Belmond Drive-In in Belmond Iowa

The Belmond Drive-In has a tenderloin on the sign, and its 2016 IPPA Best Tenderloin in Iowa Contest plaque on the wall. Then they have a sign reading Best Tenderloin in a window, and then the shirts they wear say "Hand Breaded Tenderloins" and "Full of Awesome".

Location: 215 River Ave S in Belmond, Wright County, Northern Iowa.

Directions: you take Highway 69 North from Des Moines past Webster City and this place is on the south side of town.

The Tenderloin: This felt like one of the smaller sized loins, maybe less than seven ounces. The breading had a good golden brown color with hints of seasoning but nothing that tasted strong. It formed a very thin and slightly crunchy layer over the white loin meat. What made this tiny tenderloin good was the consistent tenderness and juiciness in the meat. Served on a higher quality toasted bun with the usual fixings. Overall 8.9 very good

Price: $5.88 after tax

Also on the menu: The menu has the basics of burgers, a melt sandwich, and hot beef with ice cream shop items for dessert.

Service: There was one person working tables and one person cooking when I was in.

Ambiance: The interior is covered with Belmond-Klemme Mustang gear, seating was available at a small counter or tables.

Final Thoughts: This tenderloin is a case of good things sometimes coming in small packages. This is my first stop in Wright County, and I hope to get back in this area when the weather warms up and more places are open.

Sale Barn Cafe in Lamoni Iowa

There is something about livestock auctions and food that just goes together. These are major get together locations with a specific function in the farm economy of Iowa. There are sale barns all over the place in rural Iowa, and many serve food on sale days. There have to be a few that stay open during the week, and I stumbled across one in the far south of Iowa in Lamoni.

Location: 900 East Main St. in Lamoni, Decatur County, Southern Iowa.


Directions: Take the Highway 65 exit from I-35 and turn West. The road turns into Main St in Lamoni and the Sale Barn Cafe is close to the city center.

The Tenderloin: The pork loin had been cut into a basic triangle shape. Breading felt like a little bit of cracker crunch and just a touch of seasoning. The white pork loin meat was steamy and warm while tenderizing had left the grain of the meat barely disturbed for a nice chewy texture. The edges had a little bit of untrimmed fat that could be chewed apart and did not take away from the enjoyment of the sandwich. Overall 7.8 out of ten.

Price: $7.50 a la carte

Also on the menu: There is a hot beef sandwich and tenderloin served hot beef style, something called a Chuck Wagon, burgers and sides. The daily specials come with a roll and a couple sides. The pies and other desserts are often made with fruits from the local Amish farms. They also sell homemade bread.

Strawberry Pie

Service: Its basic seat yourself table service with a register at the counter in the back.

Ambiance: Its a cafe inside a livestock auction building with wood paneled walls and tables for seating. The outside will smell like cows on a hot day.


Final Thoughts: Its no secret that livestock auction houses will have some good food. The hard part is getting into town and knowing the when and where to go. My internet searches have not found any other sale barn cafes with regular weekday hours, and information about any others would be appreciated.

 

Postscript: Suburban Restaurant in Gilbert, Iowa

The Suburban Cafe had been serving up homemade American comfort food for fifty years now. Its a significant milestone that few places reach, and few communities can claim a place like this one. The facebook page announced a closing on October 31, and KCCI reported a closing date of Novermber 16th soon after. Visiting the restaurant in its last week meant being greeted with a placemat with this message:

Location: 17029 Highway 69 North in Gilbert, just north of Ames in Central Iowa.

Directions: You can take Grand Ave. north from the mall in Ames, and come from Highway 69 to Gilbert Corner just outside Gilbert.

Online at: Looks like their website is down, but their Facebook page is HERE for now.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin

The Grilled Tenderloin: This is the winner of the 2004 IPPA Grilled Pork Tenderloin Sandwich Contest, the only year where the contest was about grilled tenderloins. This had a great light brown color from the grill and just a pinch of seasoning on the surface. The fat wasn't completely trimmed on mine, but the tenderizing had mad a nice chewy texture. Served on a toasted bun with all the fixins.

Breaded Pork Tenderloin

The Breaded Tenderloin: What set this breaded tenderloin apart was the layer upon layer of crunchy textured breading. The pork loin meat was always bright white on the inside, cut and trimmed well but not especially juicy.

Tenderloin Melt

The Tenderloin Melt: This was served in toasted white bread with grilled onions and melted cheese. I've had melted sandwiches with breaded pork tenderloins in a couple places and I don't think it adds much to the product.

Price: $8.50 for the grilled loin, and $9.50 for the breaded loin each with a side.

Pie Board

Also on the Menu: The specialty is fried chicken, but there are daily specials like hot beef sandwiches or chicken fried steak. The homemade desserts are listed on a Pie Board by the door, including triple layer cakes, brownies and cream pies. I was able to grab a slice of the Peach Pie topped with whipped cream on my last visit:  

Peach Pie

Service: Its table service with attentive staff and a counter to pay next to the front door.

Ambiance: The building is an classic roadside cafe. The old lights and unique fixtures add to the atmosphere and family photos cover the walls along with antiques and news articles. The wide window view of the highway and cornfields was obscured be a neon Budweiser sign. There are tables for seating and it gets crowded in the middle of the day.

Final Thoughts: I have to admit I was a little slow in getting around to writing about Suburban Restaurant. I always seemed to be driving past in the late afternoon when the restaurant was closed. The midday sun always cast some awkward shadows that made the exterior pictures look bad. I just didn't get it together until the place had already announced they were closing. Places like this never actually get replaced and they never last forever anyway. Ames has been a consistently tough place for me to find what I am looking for, but I hope to have something new to blog about from Ames soon enough.

Its all over.

Dinky Diner in Decatur City, Iowa

Nothing beats visiting classic rail car diners while driving through small towns in Iowa. The Dinky Diner in Decatur City has been serving consonance and comfort food since the building was moved here around 2005. 


Location: 104 NE 4th St in Decatur City, Decatur County, Southern Iowa. Its about sixty miles south of Des Moines.

Directions: Just a few hundred feet East from exit 12 when taking I-35 into Southern Iowa.

The Tenderloin: This one felt like seven or eight ounces when I lifted it up. The meat was in an odd pounded out shape, I had had tenderloins here before in the usual triangle shape. The breading was crunchy and golden brown but some parts were cooked more than others and showed in the darker coloration. Served on a large toasted bun with your choice of fixings. Overall 7.5 out of ten.

Price: $6.50 with a side of ridged potato chips.

Also on the menu: There is a daily menu with the usual boring stuff like burgers, there is full breakfast made fast, and then there is the Menu Board:

Notice the choice of salads, including butter beans, pea salad, and broccoli & cauliflour. I was able to grab a picture of the pies waiting to be served:

Service: There have been at least three people here each time I visited. Its table and counter service with a register to pay by the door.


Ambiance: The Dinky Diner is a later model of the Valentine prefab diner known as the "Double Deluxe", meaning its twice as big as most others with straight edges and corners. There are small booths to go along with the counter seating, and the whole place is spacious compared to other pre-fab diners.

Final Thoughts: Decatur City is twelve miles north of the state line, the second exit from the state border on I-35. I was sure I could find another on my trip south. My next stop in this area will probably be the Sale Barn Cafe in Lamoni, off the first exit on I-35.

Westy's Sports Bar & Grill in Thornton

An article in the Mason City newspaper alerted me to a small town sports bar with a big tenderloin in the hamlet of Thornton up in Northern Iowa. I walked inside to be met by a giant banner proclaiming "We have the biggest loins....", so I knew I was in the right kind of place.


Location: 324 Main St in Thornton, in Cerro Gordo County, Northern Iowa about 90 miles north of Des Moines.


Directions: You take exit 180 from I-35 and drive 2 miles into Thornton, Main St and Westy's is just north of the train tracks.


The Tenderloin: The loin itself was pounded thin, and took up the entire to-go box, making the bun and fixings look extra small. It formed a loosely triangular shape, and although thin it maintained a good amount of juiciness. The breading had the usual cracker crunch, but little seasoning to speak of. Served with lettuce, onions, and tomato on a corn-dusted bun. Overall 8.0 out of ten.


Price: $6.00 a good value.
Also on the menu: The menu was small with burgers and chicken, and Thursday is Taco Night. The restaurant was promoting its hamburger for the Best Burger in Iowa contest by the Iowa Beef Industry Council.


Service: I came in during the off hours, there was just one guy running the bar and the kitchen.
Ambiance: Its a small town sports bar with team banners, Chicago Bears stuff, televisions, and a bar or tables for seating.


Final Thoughts: The stretch of I-35 between Ames and Mason City or Clear Lake is one lonely stretch of road with few good options for the hungry traveler. Once you pass the Gilbert exit in Story County its like a dead zone with few options other than truck stops and fast food. Westy's and its tenderloin are not going surpass the Suzie-Q in Mason City as the best loin I have found in this area. It is a good large loin for a reasonable price, and close to the Interstate as well.