Westside Family Restaurant in Grinnell Iowa

I haven't had the best of luck searching for tenderloins in Grinnell. I had a lousy tenderloin at the Dari Barn years ago, and lots of places have come and gone since then. Westside Restaurant seems to have persevered as a family dining option on this part of Grinnell for a long time now.

Location: 229 6th Ave West in Grinnell Iowa about an hour east of Des Moines.

Directions: This is on old Highway 6 on the western side of Grinnell.

Online at: Website is HERE.

The tenderloin: The cut was a little on the thin side but the meat was moist throughout. The breading had a light crunchiness and not much taste but had a good golden brown color. Served on a soft bun with your choice of fixings overall 7.5 out of ten.

Price: $6.95 a la carte

Also on the menu: full breakfast in the morning, homemade pies and a huge lunch and dinner selection like steaks or burgers or seafood.

Service: Its table service by some long serving waitresses.

Ambiance: The website says this location was a A&W Drive-In a long time ago, and it looks lika a dated eighties or older renovation. There are booths or tables in the dining area.

Final Thoughts: My attempts at finding a good tenderloin in Grinnell had been mostly frustration, I think I had one at a pizza place a long time ago, and I had tried Montgomery's Sandwich Shop but they didn't have a homemade loin. I may have to try the racing themed bar down the road in Newton on Highway 6 for my next stop.

The Mucky Duck Pub in Ames

The people who run the Mucky Duck pub in Ames have been at it for a while now. I have seen the ads for Ames British Foods in Cityview or Relish for years, and later their business was named The Chip Shop, and now the Mucky Duck. The sign above The Mucky Duck Pub has the name of all three entities.

Location: 3100 South Duff Ave in Ames, Story County in Central Iowa, about a half hour north of Des Moines.

Directions: You can take highway 69 north from Ankeny or turn south of Duff from Highway 30.
 
Online at: website is HERE

The Tenderloin: The breading had some seasoning but no taste notes stood out, and it had just a dry crunchy and dusty texture. The meat inside was also dry, and the whole sandwich felt dry. I left wondering if this could have turned out better with the fish and chips batter. I have found many of the best tenderloins to be made with the light airy batter that fish and chips are known for. I just think this is a missed opportunity of a sandwich. Served on a toasted Kaiser roll. Overall 6.5 out of ten.

Price: served with the extra thick french fries with above average salt and pepper.

Also on the menu: The fish and chips is the specialty, but they have a large menu with several British favorites that aren't available elsewhere in Central Iowa. Bangers and mash, Cornish pasty, scotch eggs English muffins, crumpets and more. Drinks include loose leaf English teas, a huge selection of imported beers. Part of the interior is Ames British Foods, which is a handful of shelves stocked with English foods.

Service: There was a guy with an English accent running the bar and taking orders and another person in the kitchen.

Ambiance: The building was once a gas station, and the remodel feels half done. The bar is bricks, the walls are covered with posters of The Beattles or the Queen. Seating is at the bar or tables. There are other British style pubs that do a better job with dark woodwork or booths or heavy stools.

Final Thoughts: I would come back to the Mucky Duck to try the Fish and Chips next time I am in town. My previous attempts to find a good tenderloin in Ames have come up with mostly disappointments and sandwiches that were not worth writing about.My next stop will probably be down the road on Highway 69 on the way back to Des Moines

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.

Classic Deli & Ice Cream Shoppe in Brooklyn

Brooklyn Iowa, the Community of Flags, the town with a sign on the Interstate that people mistake for a borough in New York City. The Classic Deli aims to recreate the old roadside Ice Cream Shoppe experience along old Highway 6 in Brooklyn. I think this place only opened in 2012, a recent comment told me to check out this place and its tenderloin sandwich.

Location: 120 N. Jackson St. in Brooklyn, Iowa just an hour west of Des Moines.

Directions: Jackson St is the Main St. reaching town from Highway 6, or you can get here from I-80 and taking county roads.

Online at: facebook page is HERE.

The Tenderloin: Listed as The Low Rider on the menu, the description claims this is cut fresh and pan fried to order. Only a handful of places make the pan fried claim, and nothing on the menu here is deep fried. The breading was crispy and flaky in some areas, and warmed to a "toasty" texture without much flavor in other parts that turned a deep black. The juiciness was great, and every part was thick with pork and juice. Overall 8.0 out of ten.

Price: $7.00 with a bag of potato chips.

Also on the menu: The full ice cream menu and deli sandwiches and paninis make up most of the menu. They don't just churn out the usual fried stuff. Check out the Pie Board for homemade pies:

Howdy!

Service: I think there is table service but I just grabbed takeout from the counter.

Ambiance: This is an old Main St building that was renovated and reopened in 2012. There is a long counter along with tables for seating. High ceilings, old fixtures, and Grant Wood prints on the walls make this place look good.

Final Thoughts: The Insterstate offramp for the Brooklyn exit used to have an old fashioned service station and a diner named Brooklyn 80. It had been there for a long time but I never got around to making a stop. One day it was gone and replaced with a new gas station that since shuttered its doors, so I never made it there. Its always great to see a new place open up in a town you've driven past over and over again before. 

Fat Annie's Augusta Tap in Augusta, Iowa

The sign reads Giant Tenderloins, the name on the sign is Fat Annie's Augusta Tap, and I just had to stop in during my last visit to Southeast Iowa. Fat Annie's is not related to Fat Randi's in Van Meter, nor is Augusta to be confused with the Augusta Restaurant in Oxford.

Location: Its on the busy intersection of Augusta Main Road and Augusta Mill Road, beside the Skunk River in the unincorporated township of Augusta in Des Moines County, Southestern Iowa.


Directions: The closest town is Wever, but most people are driving along Highway 61 between Burlington and Ft. Madison. Take Highway 61 to State Highway 16, then go north on County Road X-38 which runs over a bridge into Augusta.

The Tenderloin: This was a huge sandwich, weighing well more that the 8 ounces that many places give me. the sandwich was almost too big to get a picture from my car as the sun was setting. The meat was tenderized well and a little piece on the edge fell off when I unwrapped the tin foil. Most of the sandwich was thick and closer to moist than juicy. Breading had a cracker crunch and left crumbs everywhere. The kaiser bun just couldn't handle the wight of the oversize sandwich and fell apart. Overall 7.5 out of ten.

Price: $6.00

Also on the menu: the regular fried food and bar staples are here in abundance, including burgers and fried chicken. Fat Annies is close to the Big River, and serves carp and catfish like other bars in this area.

Service: Typical small town bar style, with bartenders making small talk with regulars who seemed to have been there forever.

Ambiance: There is the usual old wood paneling, booths, dark atmosphere, beer signs, and outdoors photos. But the wall seems to be covered with carpet fragments cut into a large geometrical mural then stapled to the wall. The bar area and back seem to be covered in floor lamination, the whole place just boggles the mind.

Final Thoughts: Augusta looks like an old mill town, and Fat Annies seems to be the oldest building close to the river. The ambiance of the historic building seems to be lost with the latest renovations. I've seen some small town dive bars in my time but this place is epic.I took photos and notes about the tenderloin but all that I can remember is the decorations of the interior.

Porks in Winfield

Any place with a giant pig on the sign, on the menu, and everywhere else is a good hint of either BBQ or pork tenderloin inside. I was led here by reading Essential Iowa's suggestions. The Full name of this place is Pork's Hometown Restaurant, and it seems to be popular with the locals.

Location: 118 S. Locust St. in Winfield (population 1,131) in Henry County, in Southeast Iowa.

Directions: Winfield is on the not-so-beaten path between Wapello and Mt. Pleasant. Pork's is on the main street, County Road W66 just north of State Highway 78.
The Tenderloin: The first thing that hits you is the massive size of this thing, it must be at least 12 ounces of pork here before breading. The whole thing has good consistent thickness and is tender to the point of falling apart as you lift the edges. The crunchy breading separates from the pork inside easily, with big crumbs falling everywhere. Tiny chunks of fat weren't trimmed before cooking. The size makes this thing an incredible value and excellent sandwich experience. Served with fixins on untoasted bun. Overall 8.5/10

Price: $5.50 Extra bun is 85 cents, like the plating fee at fancy restaurants.
Also on the menu: As the only place to eat in a small town, there's a little bit of everything. Steaks, fish, burgers, salads, daily specials, and a full breakfast menu are on offer.

Service: Table service with attentive waitress.

Ambiance: Tables and booths to sit, a private room for parties, and various junk on the walls including pig images everywhere.

Final Thoughts: Literary types may remember Bill Bryson visiting here in the travel novel The Lost Continent. Winfield is the home of Bryson's grandparents, and he visited as a child. He returned in 2006 with a British television crew, and the Winfield Historical Society documented his visit in pictures and it looks like he had time to visit Pork's:

http://www.winfieldhistoricalsociety.com/billbrysonmtpnews.htm

Bryson told the Mt. Pleasant News "To me, Winfield was the perfect little place," Bryson said. "To me, this was as good as life could be. Ball games, church socials and the like all contributed."

Cactus Bob's BBQ Corral in Johnston

Updated Winter 2013, scroll down for subsequent visit notes!

Cactus Bob's is probably the most serious BBQ place in suburban Des Moines, they have seven in-house varieties of super-hot BBQ sauce. Their BBQ meats are refrigerated after smoking and reheated upon ordering, done to a scientific method outlined by their state of the art smoking machine. Nearly everything on the menu, including the french fries and potato chips, is homemade. Recently, a tenderloin special was added, so I had to check it out.

Location: 5955 Merle Hay Road in Johnston, Iowa. Just north of Des Moines.

Directions: go north from Merle Hay a few miles past the freeway. Cactus Bob's is in a strip mall close to Van Dee's Ice Cream.

Online At: http://www.cactusbobs.com/

The Tenderloin: The breading was like a thick batter but thoroughly cooked with a hint of pepper flavor. It formed a skin that was dry and crunchy on the edges. The meat was white and more tender than the other tenderloins from BBQ places in Des Moines. Served on a bun and ready for BBQ sauce. This was a tasty tenderloin 8.0 out of ten.

Price: It came in a basket with a side and a drink for $7.50

Also on the Menu: A full selection of BBQ favorites including beef brisket, pork ribs, and chicken. Sides are made fresh, and Cactus Bob's own pickle mix, jerky, and BBQ sauce are available for sale.

Service: Its just counter service with your number called when your order is ready. It can take a while to get your food when busy.

Ambiance: Its a suburban strip mall location with tables to sit, and a large dining area decorated with Texas-themed junk.

Final thoughts: This is a special place in the chain-food restaurant dominated suburbs. They have a contest where if you eat a brisket sandwich dipped in the hottest of sauces in less than 10 minutes without water, you get your money back and a picture on their wall of fame. If they did this with the tenderloin I may have to give it a try, because nothing involving tenderloins has ever scared me.





Update Winter 2013

I made it back a few times to try some of the other items on the menu. The last few years have seen this place expand into the retail bay next door for a vastly larger dining area. The BBQ sauce and General Store setups seem to be a bit larger. The dining area is decorated with hot sauce bottles, but the tacky western stuff dominates the rest of the interior.

The ribs were reasonably prices at around $15 with a couple sides. These had a tasty dry rub and good texture on the different parts of the ribs. Some areas were a little dry but I liked the firmness off the meat for the most part. I can't stand places that serve these too tender and falling off the bone.

The mac and cheese feels like a basic recipe where they add some bread crumbs on top. I wasn't impressed here, and would go with another side next time.

The hand cut french fries are deeply crunchy and feel like they have been fried more than once to reach their deep brown color. They add a bunch of salt on top when you order, but you can shake it off and dip them in BBQ sauce.

Hometown Meats & Delicatessen in Knoxville

A trip through the midget car racing capital of the world took me past Hometown Meats and Deli. Its blaring window sign meant I could not miss this tenderloin.

Location: 111 E. Robinson, Knoxville. about 40 minutes southwest of Des Moines.

Directions: Its just half a block off the square from the southwest.

The Tenderloin: I understood that this was under a heat-lamp after the person behind the counter only took about 15 seconds to put it together and ask what I wanted on it. The breading was crunchy partly from hardening under the lamp, and tasted the same as a zillion other average tenderloins. There was a thin chewy layer of pork loin with good pork flavor. The tenderloin only went slightly beyond the bun. The regular fixings are available if you ask for them. The bun is just pulled out of a bag. I think it may be wiser, maybe even cheaper, to buy these uncooked and fry them at home. 5.5/10

Price:$3.25, Friday special for $2.70

Also on the menu: Deli style sandwiches, beefburgers, tacos, and other fried stuff. There is a full meat selection as well.

Service: A handful of people shuffle around behind the meat counter. You have to tell them what you want on top of your sandwich, there is no fixings bar.

Ambiance: There is the meat counter area and a separate dining area in front. There were stacks of inventory boxes holding soda cans inside right in the middle of this area when I was here. Many locals were in and out, nearly all were getting the tenderloin.
Final Thoughts: This was just an okay second choice after I found that the Main St. Cafe had changed ownership and no longer served a tenderloin. The big sign on the window made it easy to find. This isn't the best heat-lamp style tenderloin, nor is it the best butcher shop variety.