Larsen's Pub in Elk Horn

Most people learn about Elk Horn when driving past signs on the Insterstate for the Historic Danish Windmill and Museum. This town gets its fair share of tourists to take the freeway exit and check the place out. Many visitors see the huge parking lot at the Danish Inn and Buffet and don't travel any further into town to get something to eat. They would be missing out on an IPPA Best Tenderloin in Iowa from 2007 in Larsen's Pub and Catering just a few block north.


Location: 4206 Main St in Elk Horn (population 649) in Shelby County, in Western Iowa.


Directions: Take the Highway 173 exit north from I-80 between Des Moines and Omaha. The Pub is right on the main street a few blocks past the Windmill and Museum, maybe seven miles off the freeway.
The Tenderloin: What makes the tenderloin here so special is the great thickness and special blend of seasonings in the breading. This is one of the thickest tenderloins that both maintains is shape and is soft and moist inside. Parts of the tenderloin are thicker than others, nearly all fat is trimmed off. The The breading forms a darker brown layer over the pork with black pepper and other flavors. The overall score has to be reduced for the untoasted bun, a 8.0 out of 10.


Price: $4.79, with fixins.
Also on the menu: The menu has burgers and the usual fried stuff with homemade sides.


Service: It was table service with an overworked guy waiting tables, tending bar, and cooking.
Ambiance: Typical pub and grub interior with beer signs, seating at tables and booths or a bar. The crowd seemed to have many regulars or lifers who all seem to want a tenderloin, I assume its these people who gave the place the nickname "The Nut Hus" as the sign implies.


Final Thoughts: This is the second of the Western Iowa Tenderloin Trail entries, which will include stops in Dunlap, Hamlin, Audubon, and Atlantic in addition to the Red Bard in Exira I wrote about earlier. The award-winning tenderloin is perfect to handle the hunger accumulated while watching the hour-long documentary about windmills and browsing the deep selection of Danish junk at the museum.

Kalme's Store and Restaurant in St. Donatus

St Donatus is a spot on the map with a little dot accompanied by the colored text "Picturesque Luxembourger Village". The "village" looks like its only about five buildings, but they do look very nice, especially if you're driving through in the fall. This is in a hilly area near the big river, so the drives are always nice.


Location: 100 N. Main St in St. Donatus (population 249) in Jackson County, near the top of the nose that is formed by the border of Eastern Iowa. Its about 15 minutes from Dubuque or 30 minutes from Galena, Illinois.


Directions: This is right on the main street Highway 52 that runs through town.


Online At: http://www.gehlenhouse.com/ is the online home of both the restaurant and the guest house is the historic buildings across the street. The website claims to offer special rates to outdoorsmen and fishermen passing through.
The Tenderloin: This is not the typical breaded pork tenderloin for a couple reasons. The first is that it isn't deep fried, its pan-fried with only a small amount of breading that gives it a different texture and very little grease. Second, its made with a special steak seasonings made here that give it a whole new flavor. Its not crunchy, and there is quite a salty taste to the whole thing. There is a great browning to the white cut of pork loin. Overall this is worth checking out, a 7.5 out of 10.


Price: $3.99, with fixins.
Also on the menu: This place falls into the trap of offering a big menu of ordinary dishes to a small town. There are a couple interesting Luxemburger twists, like homemade sausage, veal schnitzel, sauerkraut pizza and meats with their custom seasonings.


Service: Its table service in the dining area, there is also a bar area.
Ambiance: Its a historic building that has been remade several times, keeping the appearance of an Inn from the old country. You must walk past gas pumps to get in, then proceed past some grocery shelves and a bar to the dining area.


Final Thoughts: I can speak with good authority that this is the best place to eat in St. Donatus. Back when I could afford to travel overseas, I made my way to Luxemburg, and can say that this small town in bluff country is about as close as it gets in Iowa to the real thing

Railway Inn Council Bluffs

It appears the full name is Dan and Jami's Railway Inn. Its in a tough industrial neighborhood beneath the busy main thoroughfare of Council Bluffs. This bar and grill won a readers poll in the Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil a couple years ago for the best tenderloin in town.

Location: 112 S. 15th St. in Coucil Bluffs, in Pottwattamie County, about 2 hours from Des Moines or 10 minutes from Downtown Omaha.

Directions: It appears on a map like its just off Highway 6/West Broadway, however, you have to weave around some sidestreets and get under a bridge that goes over the railroad tracks. Just make sure you are on the east side of the tracks when you get off the highway.

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

The Tenderloin: From above, this took the classic triangle 'loin shape with little arms sticking far from the bun, from the side it was uneven in thickness. This is at least eight ounces of pork before preparation. The breading delivers plenty of crunch. Served with all the fixins on a well-toasted bun. Overall 7.5/10.

Price: $5.95 with homemade fries.

Service: I was there around lunch time and it looked like just one guy running the bar, the grill, and waiting tables. He seemed to have a good relationship with what appeared to be many regulars and an overall older crowd.

Ambiance: Its the usual pub and grub with railroad signs, and beer posters hung on the walls in a dimly lit interior with the usual bar gaming machines. There are tables and booths, and outdoor seating when the weather is good enough for beach volleyball.

Also on the Menu: Its typical bar food, with the usual fried suspects, the specialty is the huge Railway Burger, and the homemade hand-cut fries are good too.

Final Thoughts: From the outside it looks humble, with the puddles in the parking lot and sand blowing around in the wind. But this unpretentious place is definitely worth the short drive on Highway 6 from downtown Omaha.

Grumpy's in Chariton

If a restaurant has a hand-painted sign advertising a tenderloin, i guess its a good bet that the tenderloin will be homemade as well. The window claimed "Tacos and Lots More" so I figured it was worth a try. This little place looked like it was once the location of a small-town coffee shop. It was just one tiny room with a door into a kitchen.

Location: 114 S. Grand. St. in Chariton, in Southern Iowa. Its just off the square to the southeast.

Directions: Chariton is about 50 miles south of Des Moines. You can take I-35 south to Highway 34 West, or take Highway 65 south from the Eastside of Des Moines.
The Tenderloin: This sandwich wasn't exactly creating with take-out service in mind. The wrapper barely fit around the whole sandwich, but I didn't mind. The bun was more like a joke, it was just a dry roll that barely held its own part of the tenderloin. The meat just stuck so far from the roll. The soft and steamy inside was falling from the breading in some parts. The tenderizing made for an uneven sandwich with some parts much thicker than others. Overall 8.0 out of 10.

Price: $4.99, with fixins. Fifty cents extra for a second bun, its like a plate-splitting fee at a fancy restaurant. Half-size tenderloin also available.
Also on the menu: Small-town Mexican menu with tacos, a Red Taco, and smothered burritos in addition to sandwiches and ice-cream.

Service: Well, the lady took my order then disappeared into the kitchen just behind a door, I heard the tenderloin hit the fryer immediately.
Ambiance: The small interior had a few tables to sit at, the walls were covered with patriotic stuff and HS sports posters. I think a patio opens up when the weather is better.

Final Thoughts: I had been frustrated in some of my trips through Southern Iowa before. But this is up there with other super-jumbo tenderloin I've discovered around Iowa. The whole thing is just massive.

Mary Jo's Hobo House in Britt

While driving through northern Iowa, I found a whole restaurant dedicated to hobos. Its across from the old movie theatre turned into a museum to Hobos. This owner-operated cafe had to be place for a tenderloin.

Location: 72 Main Ave S in Britt, Iowa (population 2,052) about 122 miles north of Des Moines.

Directions: You take the state Highway 18 to get to Britt, and turn south on Main Street. The Hobo House is across the street from the Hobo Museum. Both are located just south of the business district, by the train tracks.

The Tenderloin: This seemed to feel like the typical 8-ounce jumbo tenderloin upon lifting. It had a shape like a big bent rectangle. The meat was barely tenderized and had minimal trimming of fat. The grain of the pork loin was felt while chewing. The breading had enough seasoning to make the whole thing interesting. Served with choice of fixins on a toasted bun. Overall 7.0 out of ten.

Price: $5.25, with fixins and side item.

Also on the menu: a full breakfast, burgers, and a "hobo philly" sandwich.

Service: Its table service, there weren't any other customers when I arrived early for lunch.

Ambiance: The walls are covered with picture of hobos and railroad junk. Many photos are autographed by members of the Hobo Hall of Fame, which I guess is in the museum nearby. For a place dedicated to hobos, it was perfectly clean and well-lit inside.

Final Thoughts: I guess this tenderloin was rugged and unsophisticated like the travelling clientele that come here each summer for the National Hobo Convention.

Town House Supper Club Comes to Des Moines

This is just a mini-review of the Town House Supper Club Mobile unit which is in Des Moines for an unspecified period of time. My original write-up of the Town House Supper Club in Wellsburg can be found here:

http://des-loines.blogspot.com/2008/01/townhouse-supper-club-in-wellsburg.html

Location: The parking lot of a pawn shop at SE 2nd and Army Post Rd, near South Ridge Mall.


Important note: The stand is only scheduled to be open from 11am to 7pm from Monday to Wednesday.

The Tenderloin: Its the same as the original up in Wellsburg. Its big and tender with bread crumbs falling everywhere.

Price: available from $4 to $6

Also on the menu: nothing, pretty much just tenderloins with bags of chips and drinks.

Ambiance: There are picnic tables behind the stand, Army Post Road is always busy and loud.


Final Thoughts: There is no real clarity to how long this stand will be here, but if it gets enough business it may stay open more days of the week. The Townhouse people are not shy about putting their mobile unit so close the the Southside institution of Smitty's down the street.

Tenderloin Emergency: Michael's in Beaverdale to close

Beaver Avenue was once the main route from downtown Des Moines to places north and west. Now its still a busy street with a neighborhood filled with small store, bars, and restaurants. The local paper broke the news today that Micheal's Restaurant and Lounge was closing this weekend. This total bummer was confirmed by a waitress inside.

Location: 4041 Urbandale Ave. half a block off Beaver Avenue in the Beaverdale neighborhood of Des Moines.

Directions: Drive up Beaver Avenue and turn east on Urbandale, you can't miss it.
The Tenderloin: This tenderloin was rated 2nd in the state by the IPPA in 2008, the highest ranking ever for a tenderloin from Des Moines. It was consistently rated among the top in Des Moines. My sources tell me this is similar to the original IPPA winning tenderloin served at Darrell's Place in Hamlin, only much bigger. That is reflected in the fine breading and thorough trim job, there is no fat at all in the tender moist pork. Served on a lightly toasted onion bun with all the fixins. Overall 8.5 out of ten.

Price: $8.59 with choice of side.
Also on the Menu: The tenderloin was the highlight of a large menu with pasta, pizza, and burgers. Poor Michael's Pizza shares the building and does to-go orders.

Service: The hostess will seat you in the dining area, or its seat yourself at the bar or in the lounge. Everyone was in a sour mood since the closing was announced.
Ambiance: Its a low-key lounge with dim lights and a bar area with a few TVs to look at. The dining area is quieter.

Final thoughts: This place will be missed. For emergency tenderloin cravings in Beaverdale, I'm not really sure. Porky's Drive-In had a sign reading "homemade is back", possibly referring to the return of homemade tenderloins that were replaced by frozen disks there several years ago. However, Porky's hasn't been open since last fall. Maybe another place in Beaverdale will add a tenderloin to its menu soon.