Monday, September 15, 2014

Ford's Pub & Grill in Eddyville, Iowa

A review on Urbanspoon recommending the tenderloin at this small town brought Ford's Pub to my attention a few years ago. The sign reads "The Place to Meet and Eat!" and has a graphic of a beer mug and a burger.

Location: 603 Main St in Eddyville in Wapello County between Ottumwa and Oskaloosa in Central Iowa.


Directions: Eddyville is reached from Highway 163 and Fords pub can be found by taking the offramp and finding the corner of seventh street and Main.

The Tenderloin: The crackerlike breading formed a consistent and thin layer of crunchiness to the entire loin. It took a nice shade of golden brown on each of my visits. The trim job wasn't perfect, but that didn't bother me this time. The inside was warm and juicy white loin meat. The cut of loin meat took a roughly triangular shape. Overall 8.1 out of ten.

Price: $5.50 a la carte

Also on the menu: This was mostly the usual bar food of burgers and fried stuff, one of their burgers is named the Oinker Burger.


The Whole Hog: I tried this a while back, a breaded tenderloin topped with sliced ham, bacon, melted cheese, and barbecue sauce. Served on texas toast, this was worth the extra two dollars if you are really hungry.

Service: It was bar service and I just stayed at the bar on my two visits.


Ambiance: this is a large bar and grill for a small town like Eddyville. The walls are covered in beer signs or various sports gear including a large area dedicated to Oskaloosa native Tyler Sash.


Final Thoughts: I could not help but notice the miniature dirt racing track next door to Ford's Pub. Its like a dirt track that people race stock cars on, but its really tiny. Do they race bumper cars on it? My internet searching only brought me to a drag strip outside of town.


Ford's Pub & Grill on Urbanspoon

Monday, September 1, 2014

Jerry's Main Lunch in Burlington, Iowa

The sign still lists an five digit phone number from forever ago, and the media reports Jerry's has been open since 1946. Jerry's Main Lunch has been featured recently in Edible Iowa River Valley, the Burlington Hawkeye newspaper, and WQAD television in the Quad Cities in a feature about landmark restaurants.


Location: 501 S Main St. in Burlington, Des Moines County in Southeast Iowa.

Directions: You have to take Main St south from downtown and Jerry's is on the West side of the street.


The Tenderloin: The crackerlike breading expanded from the loin meat and left an empty space that made the sandwich look bigger. It felt like a good seven ounces of pork, and the meat was steamy and hot. There was a hint of black pepper on the outside. Served on a soft toasted bun with your choice of fixins. This was more about the experience of eating in a classic old diner than the actual breaded pork tenderloin. Overall 7.2 out of ten.

Price: $4.70 also available in smaller size.

Also on the menu: the specialties are the Breakfast Mess and the Jerry Burger, the menu is mostly standard diner fare with daily specials and homemade pies.

Service: Its counter service and the food is made right in front of you.


Ambiance: Its a brick diner building from almost seventy years ago with fourteen seats on an L-shaped counter. The walls are covered with photos or old newspaper stories, and you can buy a t-shirt while you are here.

Final Thoughts: There aren't many places with as much history or family tradition as Jerry's Main Lunch. I think the family were talking about furniture when I stopped in during the off hours. When I see Jerry's thriving it makes me surprised that nobody is trying to make it work at the old Valentine Diner parked beside the river in Muscatine. Just a reminder you can see my list of tenderloins near Highway 61 HERE.


Jerry's Main Lunch on Urbanspoon