Road Tips

Lambeau Field - Green Bay, WI

 
My former neighbor, George, is a big Green Bay Packers fan.  And there's a reason - his uncle, Bob Harlan, is the former CEO/President of the Packers.  Bob Harlan and George's mom are brother and sister.  George didn't trumpet the fact that his uncle was the former CEO for the Packers - I don't think I knew about the connection until almost a year after he and his wife, Hanna, had moved in next door.  I asked George if he ever goes up for games and he sort of said, "Yeah, every once in a while.  My sisters go a lot more than I do.  I'm not really that close to the Harlan family like my older sisters are." 

(Correction - I got this part of the story all screwed up.  It turns out that George's dad and Bob Harlan's wife, Madeline, are brother and sister.  I've been telling people over the past couple of years that Bob Harlan and George's mom were brother sister.   George told me after this post came out, "No, man.  It's my dad and Madeline who are brother and sister, not my mom and Bob.  Where did you get that?"  Dunno, man...)

I said, "I've always wanted to see a game at Lambeau Field.  If you ever get a chance to grab some tickets, let me know.  I'd love to go up."

That chance happened earlier this fall when George's parents were visiting Bob Harlan and his wife, Madeline, at the Harlan's vacation home in Door County.  Madeline told George's dad that she had 4 tickets for three upcoming games.  One of the games was Dec. 5 against the San Francisco 49ers.  George called me up and said that he could get those tickets.  Knowing that there would be a better than even chance that it would be colder than hell in Green Bay at that time, I still said, "OK!  Let's go!" 

George said, "The wives will be cold, but it's more fun to see a game in Green Bay when it's cold." 

I've been to Lambeau Field a number of times.  I stop there nearly every time I go to see my account up in Green Bay.  I like to go to the Packers Pro Shop and stop in for a beer at Curly's Pub on the upper level of the Atrium area at Lambeau Field.  But I've never had the opportunity to gaze down on the storied field before.

Now, let me just say that I really don't follow one National Football League team.  I'm more of a college football fan than a pro fan.  A lot of times, I usually don't start paying attention to the NFL until about half-way through the season.  But that's not to say that I don't follow the Midwest teams.  I was a huge Vikings fan as a youth until they crushed my very soul by losing four Super Bowls in eight years.  I followed the Bears for awhile and I keep up with what's happening in St. Louis as my friend, Mike Naughton, is V-P for Finance for the Rams. 

But I've always known that football is a religion up in Green Bay.  Even in the down years, the Packers would still sell out Lambeau Field.  In fact, there is a waiting list of nearly 68,000 names for Packers season tickets.  Before this season, 126 people were able to get off that waiting list and get season tickets for the Packers games.  If you're number 65,737 on the list, I hope you're a very young person. 

Lambeau Field was originally named City Field (actually, "New" City Field - it replaced the old city of Green Bay-owned City Field) when it opened in 1957.  In 1965, it was renamed Lambeau Field after the Packers founder, Earl "Curly" Lambeau.  The original capacity of City/Lambeau Field was 32,500 when it opened and by 1995 the capacity of the stadium had expanded to a titch over 60,000 (pictured right).  The City of Green Bay continues to own and maintain Lambeau Field. 

Bob Harlan recognized the fact that the Packers wouldn't be able to exist if they didn't do a major overhaul of Lambeau Field, adding more luxury boxes, more seats and adding fan friendly amenities.  In 2000, Harlan announced an aggressive $295 million dollar renovation for Lambeau that would address the needs to help keep Green Bay competitive into the 21st Century. 

George told me, "Uncle Bob went all over the state of Wisconsin talking to civic groups, town hall meetings, whoever, just to tell the people of Wisconsin that if this didn't go through, the Packers would be dead in the water trying to keep up with all the other teams in the NFL." 

Of course, Harlan was able to convince the people and politicians of Wisconsin that the upgrade of Lambeau Field was a high priority and funds raised through a stock sale of the Packers, a half-cent sales tax rise in Brown County (Green Bay's county), and funding by the State of Wisconsin was approved.  The citizens of Brown County had to vote on the proposed sales tax increase in 2000 and it barely passed - 53% Yes to 47% No.  Renovations on Lambeau Field began in 2001.

George and I couldn't remember if the Packers had to relocate any of their games during the renovation project, but through some research I did for this entry, it turns out the Packers played all of their scheduled home games at Lambeau Field for the 2001 and 2002 seasons.  When the project was completed in 2003, the seating capacity rose to the current 72,928. 

Since we were getting the tickets for free from George's uncle and aunt, we decided to use free hotel points to get rooms for Saturday and Sunday nights.  I used Hilton Honors points for our rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn in Appleton on Saturday night, Hanna used her Holiday Inn Priority Club points for our rooms at the Holiday Inn East in Madison on Sunday.  It helped keep expenses tremendously low as it would have easily been well over $500 per couple just for the weekend trip to Green Bay had we paid out of pocket for tickets and hotel rooms.

We got into Green Bay around 9:45 the morning of the game.   We came in on Lombardi Ave. and began to look for a place to park.  We took a left on S. Ridge Rd. by the stadium (see map) and we saw a guy parking cars in his yard - literally in the shadow of Lambeau Field.  It was $25 dollars to park, but we were right across the street from the stadium with the promise of an easy out if we wanted to leave early.  We parked around the back of this house.  I had to take this picture to illustrate how close we were to the stadium.  George said, "Isn't it wild that an NFL stadium is located in the middle of a neighborhood?  How cool would it be to live across the street from or  Lambeau Field in your back yard?"

The day dawned cold and grey with a stiff wind coming off of the lake.  It wasn't going to get much higher than 25 degrees and we were all bundled up.  As we walked toward the stadium, I became painfully aware that the stocking cap I'd bought at Home Depot a few days before was going to be woefully unsuitable for the cold weather.  I needed a new stocking cap.  

We stopped off in front of the Atrium at Lambeau Field - in the Bob Harlan Plaza, no less - and Cindy got this picture of the immortal Green Bay coach Vince Lombardi.  There is also a statue of Curly Lambeau on the plaza and in between the two statues is a plaque commemorating the efforts Bob Harlan accomplished during his leadership from 1989 to 2008.   

We knew the Packers Pro Shop would be packed with people, so George suggested a Packers store down south and east of the stadium near Brett Favre's Steakhouse (see my entry on Favre's steakhouse here).  We worked our way down to a large Packers merchandise store to look for a stocking cap for me and a hooded sweatshirt for George.  While I've been very impressed with the Packers merchandise at the Packers Pro Shop, The Jersey Store had even more stuff (pictured below left).  It was split into two sections - one for women's wear and one for men's gear.  I found a stocking cap with the Green Bay logo on it for $10 bucks.  George found a vintage Packers hooded sweatshirt for $50.  We made our purchases and worked our way back toward the stadium.

 

 

 

 

 

George had a great idea to stop off at the Bay City Smokehouse which had an outdoor bar and beer garden set up in their parking lot.  It afforded us a chance to go to the bathroom, get a couple beers and a bloody mary.  Cindy was especially bundled up in her heavy winter coat and her thermal pants over a couple shirts, a pair of jeans and her Uggs boots.  Cindy is the type of person who gets cold when the temperature dips below 70 degrees.  I was sort of worried how she'd fare in this cold weather - I certainly wasn't enjoying it - but she was a trooper for a good portion of the day.  Here she is enjoying the bloody mary I got her at Bay City Smokehouse (pictured above right).  

 

George wanted to go find his cousin, Mike Harlan, the youngest of Bob and Madeline's boys, who usually tail-gated in the west parking lot of the stadium.  George's cousin Kevin Harlan is a well-known sports broadcaster and his other cousin Bryan Harlan is a well-known sports agent in Chicago.  Mike Harlan works for Badger Sports Properties in Madison and George said that he's much closer to Mike than he is the two more well-known Harlan brothers.    

 

 

Now, tailgating at Green Bay - or, for that matter, at ANY Wisconsin sporting event - is just world class.  One of the things I wanted to do was to walk through the legions of tail-gaters grilling, drinking and having a great time before the game.  The Green Bay tail-gaters take it up a notch with their elaborate gear and spreads.  Even though it was in the mid-20's with a biting wind out of the Northeast, we saw a few hearty souls dressed like it was a 50 degree day. 

We walked to the west side of the stadium looking up and down the rows for George's cousin.  We never did find him, so we decided to head to the Atrium to warm up and get a beer in Curly's Bar.

 

 

 

 
The Atrium at Lambeau Field is a large area that features a number of concession stands on the main floor.  The Packers pre-game radio show was going on in the Atrium (you can see the guys at the podium in the lower left of the above left picture) and a few people were milling about listening to them.  The Atrium is also the home of the new Packers Hall of Fame.  The old Hall of Fame, of which we've visited in the past, used to be located across Onieda Street to the south and east of the stadium.  I haven't been in the new Hall of Fame, but I understand that it's pretty cool.

Along a wall in the Atrium is a number of commemorative bricks that people bought to help fund the stadium project.  The families on both George's dad's and mom's sides bought a number of bricks to go on the wall.  Above right, here's George pointing to the brick his parents bought in the name of his family. 

 
I was having too much excitement looking at a wall of bricks, so I mentioned to George that this was really cutting into our beer drinking time.  We made our way up to the upper level of the Atrium and a cold beer at Curly's Pub.  The bar/restaurant is named after Packers founder and former head coach Curly Lambeau and features over 130 televisions throughout the place.  Understandably, on a cold morning before a game, it was packed.  George and I got a couple of beers and hung out on the upper level of the Atrium with our wives watching people come and go.

 
Of course, some of the most popular items you'll see at a Green Bay Packers game are the infamous "cheesehead" hats.  These hats are generally wedges of cheese made out of a polyurethane-based material.  But we saw a number of variations of cheesehead hats all around the stadium.  The two above - the top hat cheesehead and the crown cheesehead were just a couple of ones we encountered.  We also saw a cowboy hat cheesehead, a fez cheesehead hat and a sombrero cheesehead hat during the course of the day.  No, I did not buy one. 

 
We made it to our seats just before kickoff.  They weren't bad, but they weren't exactly what George expected.  We were on the South 10 yard line on the West side of the stadium, up from the Packers bench.  George thought we'd have better seats, but I didn't care.  We were at a game in Lambeau Field!  

Of course, I had to satisfy my scoreboard fetish with the first picture above left.  And I was able to squeeze off the above right picture as the 49ers were getting ready to run the first play from scrimmage from the game.  

 

I had two regrets, however.  First of all, the Packers wore "throw-back" uniforms from the 1929 season - the year the Packers won the first of their 12 National Football League titles.  Nope, not the familiar green and gold uni's, they looked more like Notre Dame playing in their navy blue and gold jerseys, mustard gold pants and brown helmets.  It was really disappointing to me to not see the Packers in their regular uniforms. 

 

The second regret was going out at halftime to try to warm up and to go to the restroom.  The line for the men's was about 150 deep when we got there.  While George and I really didn't have to go that bad, we decided to have a Leinenkugel beer while we waited for the line to go down.  Unfortunately, before that happened the game started again and we missed one of the most spectacular touchdowns in Green Bay history. 

Donald Driver caught a wide-open pass from Aaron Rodgers at the San Francisco 40 yard line and was hit no less than five times before he bowled over the goal line for a 61-yard touchdown reception.  Here's the replay of that spectacular play:

 

We heard the crowd going nuts when we were out on the concourse.  George said, "Oh, man!  The Packers just scored!  Something big must've happened." 

That night when we got into our hotel rooms in Madison, George called me up and said, "Have you seen the replay of Driver's touchdown?  It was unbelievable!" 

 

Driver's touchdown opened up what was a close game at the half.  The Packers went on to score another touchdown later in the period and then added a couple 4th quarter field goals as they won going away 34-16.  We decided to make our way out with a little over 3 minutes left in the game to hit the restroom and then get over to the truck to get us out of Green Bay ahead of the traffic.  I took this picture just before the Packers got another field goal to give them their 34 points on the day. 

 

I told George that if the opportunity ever arose again in the future that I'd love to come back to see a game at Lambeau Field.  Maybe next time, I'd like it to be a little warmer than 25 degrees with a stiff breeze (which had turned to the west about halfway through the afternoon.)  He wouldn't commit one way or another, especially with his aunt and uncle getting up in years.  But even if he can't score tickets again, I wouldn't mind trying to find a couple tickets on Stub Hub just to go back to see a game at Lambeau Field at some point. 

Mirai Sushi - Chicago

I've been meaning to take the guys from Decibel Audio out for dinner at some point.  They're one of my largest dealers and great guys, to boot.  I made a point to schedule my meeting with them late in the day and then go out to dinner afterward.  The only problem is that there are many, many great restaurants in the vicinity near Decibel Audio, so the choices were overwhelming.  One of the guys said, "Well, we could do Japanese."

I asked, "What kind of Japanese?"

He said, "Sushi.  There's a great place called Mirai Sushi over on Division Street, but it's a little pricey." 

I replied, "Let's go.  You guys deserve it." 

Now, if the name Decibel Audio rings a bell for some of you movie buffs, it's because the name was featured prominently in the John Cusack film, High Fidelity.  Many of the scenes were filmed in the same neighborhood on N. Milwaukee where Decibel Audio is located and Cusack wore a Decibel Audio t-shirt during a number of scenes.  I never put the two together until a couple years after I began to call on Decibel Audio and I happened to see the movie.  The guys at Decibel Audio said they got inundated by requests for the same t-shirt, so they ended up printing tons of them.  "It was our best selling unit of sale," Adam, the general manager, told me at one time.  They continue to sell them on their web site and while sales aren't as brisk as they once were, they still sell a handful of them each month.

 

But, as I'm prone to do with this blog, I digress...

 

Mirai Sushi is a hip, upscale urban sushi restaurant that is part of a number of hip urban restaurants, clubs, galleries and shops that permeate the Division at Damon area in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago (see map).  Former club owner and Korean native Miae Lim (left) opened Mirai Sushi in 1998 and it immediately became the critics choice for the best sushi in Chicago. 

Five years later with partners Jonathan Segal, Jeffrey Beers and Rick Wahlstedt, the group opened Japonais in Chicago.  The group - minus Segal - opened Japonais locations in New York City and Las Vegas.  I've eaten at the Japonais in Las Vegas three times (click here to see the entry of my last visit to Japonais in Las Vegas).  I was highly disappointed during my last visit to Japonais with both the food and the service.  I related my experience to the guys at Decibel when they told me that Mirai Sushi was the incubator for Japonais and I said, "I think Japonais is highly overrated." 

One of the guys said, "I think the same thing about the one in Chicago.  It's gone down hill over the past couple of years."  I was hoping the same wouldn't be said about Mirai Sushi.

One of the problems with the Wicker Park neighborhood around Mirai is that there is little to no parking available, especially at night when the clubs and restaurants warm up.  Thankfully, Mirai did offer valet parking for $10 bucks (plus a two dollar tip for the valet).  It was cheaper than taking a cab to and from the restaurant, though.

We didn't have reservations at Mirai, but we were able to get in and get a table when we got there around 8:15 that evening.  We each got a menu and ordered up Asahi beers for the table.  The place was hopping with a number of people in the dining area.  There is a sake lounge upstairs in Mirai, but I didn't really notice a lot of people coming or going from the stairway.  I understand that Mirai can get a little crazy on the weekends - I thought it was sort of loud for a Tuesday night. 

Boy, where to start.  First of all, I didn't think the prices for Mirai's sushi was all that expensive, at least compared to other sushi places I've been to.  Their selection of hot Japanese dishes, specialty rolls and nigiri sushi was rather light - it was definitely not a long list of items to choose from.  But most of what they had sounded great and were what I'd end up ordering at most sushi places.  I did have to get some help from the guys on some of the specialty rolls they had. 

One of those specialty rolls - the spicy octopus - came highly recommended.  They put spicy octopus inside a rice roll and then top it with a small piece of tuna sashimi.  The guys said it was "outstanding".  We signed up for one of those along with what Mirai called "tuna tuna salmon" - poached salmon with double helpings of tuna in a roll.  We also picked out a spicy tuna roll for starters. 

Surprisingly, two of the specialty rolls - the spicy tuna and the spicy octopus - came out very quickly.  It was one of the quickest servings after I've ordered I've ever had at a sushi restaurant.  I remarked, "I hope this isn't fast food sushi where they make it up in advance." 

But from the first taste, I didn't have to worry whether when it was made.  The spicy octopus with the tuna on top was just outstanding.  And the spicy tuna rolls were also excellent.  We had just finished up the two specialty rolls and the "tuna tuna salmon" showed up at the table.  It took a little longer because of the poaching of the salmon.  That roll, too, was just outstanding.  Not as good as the spicy octopus, but still a very good roll.

We wanted to order up some nigiri sushi along with another spicy octopus roll.  This time we also ordered a harime roll - fluke and ponzu fish with soft shell crab off to the side.  I ordered a couple pieces each of the smoked Scottish salmon, the hamachi (Japanese yellow tail), the ebi (black tiger shrimp), and the toro (fatty tuna).  The other guys ordered stuff like eel, soy marinated salmon, regular tuna and squid.  I was up for a sushi feast that evening.  And the guys from Decibel deserved a nice meal from me. 

While we waited for the nigirl to show up, we talked about other restaurants they liked in the area.  The new 2011 Michelin Guide for Chicago had just come out and we were talking about having to pick one up just to see what they said about restaurants we were familiar with and what new restaurants we could find in the book.  Since this is the first ever Michelin Guide for Chicago, it was making quite a stir with "foodies" in and around the Chicago area.

Our waitress, who was very good, came over to inform me that they were out of the toro that evening.  "We just ran out," she said.  Somewhat crestfallen, I changed my order to the chutoro, or the medium fatty tuna.  She went away, but a minute later she came back and excitedly said, "Guess what?  We have two pieces of the toro left!  Would you still like them?"

Absolutely!  And I'm glad they had them because they were some of the best fatty tuna that I've ever had.  And the smoked Scottish salmon was "melt-in-your-mouth" great, as well.  Some yellow tail that I've had in the past gets to be sort of mushy and sort of fishy in taste, but the yellow tail at Mirai was very fresh and flavorful with a nice texture with the bite.  Of course, we made short work of the spicy Octopus roll.  And the hirame roll with the soft shell crab on the side was just outstanding, too.  Quite seriously, I could have gotten another one of those, but I knew I'd hit my limit on sushi for the evening. 

It's amazing that a land-locked city like Chicago can get such great sushi.  But fresh fish is flown into the city on a daily basis from all over the world.  One of the guys from Decibel was telling me that rumor has it that the Hare Krishna's control the distribution of fish to 90% of the sushi restaurants in Chicago.  I don't know if that's true, but there's a lot of great sushi places in Chicago.  Sometimes I take Chicago for granted just because we live close enough and I'm in there quite a bit.  But Mirai Sushi was one of the best sushi restaurants I've ever visited.  It was much better than its sister restaurant, Japonais.  I'm looking forward to trying some new places with the guys from Decibel Audio. 

Mulgrew's - East Dubuque, IL

When I first started Road Tips over five years ago, I still hadn't figured out the concept or the format of the blog.  Most of my early entries were of unique and favorite places of mine where I hardly did any research on the place, nor was it necessarily a place that I had recently visited.  Over the past year, I did finally get a camera phone that allowed me to take pictures of places I visited rather than having a large camera to haul around.  One of the first places I wrote about was Mulgrew's in East Dubuque, IL.  I decided after a recent visit to Mulgrew's that I needed to do an entry that gave Road Tips readers a little more of an in-depth look at the place.

East Dubuque was once a hot bed of vice and sin starting back in the days of Prohibition.  Actually, until very recently, East Dubuque was notorious for the number of strip clubs and late night bars that stood up and down Sinsinawa Street - a.k.a. "Sin Street".  For years and years, bachelor parties, frat boys and thrill seekers visited the likes of Schnee's, Isabella Queen, The Cave, The Arena and The Coliseum, all of which featured girls dancing in the nude.  After the guys had their fun at the strip clubs, they'd end up the evening polishing off foot-long chili dogs at Mulgrew's right up to 5 a.m. 

A few years ago, city leaders pushed up the closing time for bars to 3:30 a.m.  Then three years ago, the city banned all adult entertainment clubs in East Dubuque and pushed up closing time at the bars to 3 a.m.  In a couple of years, bars in East Dubuque will have to close at 2 a.m. - the same time as the taverns across the river in Iowa and up the road in Wisconsin.  The early morning closing times meant booming business for the strip clubs and bars in East Dubuque.   Now that the strip clubs have been closed and the bars are beginning to close early, a number of the bar owners in East Dubuque are beginning to feel like the salad days are over. 

 

One of those bar owners, Dalene (Toots) Temperley is the owner of Mulgrew's Tavern and Liquor Store on Sinsinawa Street.  She is the fourth generation of the Mulgrew family to run the business which was opened as a grocery store in 1921 by her great-grandfather William "Old Bill" Mulgrew.   When Prohibition ended in 1933, "Old Bill" and his son, Bill, Jr., brought in the first legal liquor to be sold in East Dubuque.  The Mulgrew's added a bar and grill that sold packaged liquor on the north side of their grocery store soon after.

Mulgrew's Bar and Grill was sort of a fancy place for a number of years - the bartenders wore jackets, waitresses wore matching outfits.  I understand it was one of the finer places to dine in the Dubuque area for a number of years.

Bill Mulgrew, Jr. passed the bar and liquor store onto his son, Dallas, who ran it up to his death in 2004.   During that time, Mulgrew's became sort of famous for their foot-long chili dogs - a late night staple for those who had partied well into the night at one of the strip clubs in East Dubuque, or those who had come across the bridge from Dubuque when the bars in Iowa closed down.   I was told on a "good" evening, Mulgrew's would sell 250 to 300 chili dogs - most of those served after 1 a.m.

 

I was coming home from Madison and decided to stop in for a chili dog and a cold beer early one afternoon recently.  There were days when parking was tough find up and down Sinsinawa Street in front of Mulgrew's (see map), but this day there was plenty of parking along the street. 

 

Mulgrew's hasn't changed much from the first time I visited the place nearly 25 years ago when I was brought to have my first chili dog after a training meeting I had with the guys from the old Audio Room store in Dubuque.  These guys couldn't quit talking about how good these chili dogs were.  We ended up at Mulgrew's around 9:30 at night and the four of us had "snow dogs" - Mulgrew's foot-long chili dogs loaded with onions on top.  One of the guys, I'll never forget him - Jim Sullivan - had FIVE that night!  Jim was not a small guy and I was a lot smaller at that time than I am now, but I was able to do three that evening.  I about died on the spot.  But they were so good - the chili doesn't have any beans in it and it's not very spicy.  The hot dogs are steamed and placed in warm water to keep them warm until serving.  Mulgrew's also features a spicy homemade mustard that you can put on top.  But I just like a few onions (not quite as many as a "snow dog") and yellow mustard on mine. 

 

 
The menu at Mulgrew's is pretty basic compared to what they used to serve years ago.  While the chili dogs are the draw, they also feature burgers, soups, sandwiches and fried chicken.  The menu at Mulgrew's is hung on the wall by the booths opposite the bar. 

I took a seat at the bar and there was only one other guy in the place down the way from me.  Dalene Temperley was talking with the patron about how the city of East Dubuque was imposing more restrictions on business for the tavern owners.  I heard her say, "It's not the same East Dubuque that I remember." 

 

The bartender came down and I had a very simple order for her - a chili dog with onions and a cold Old Style.  They used to sell Old Style on tap and they'd serve it in a mug that they'd pull out of the freezer.  The frosty schooner of beer was one of the highlights of the meal.  Today, Mulgrew's just serves Old Style in bottles.  Although, I may have been able to order up a frosty mug, but I didn't ask.  It didn't matter.

She made up the chili dog in front of me. The buns are always fresh, the hot dogs have a nice flavor to them and the chili is, well...   I used to joke - and guess I still do - that if I found out that urine was the secret ingredient in Mulgrew's chili, I'd still eat their chili dogs.  There's just something about the combination of the chili, hot dog, bun, onions and mustard that makes a Mulgrew's foot-long chili dog outstanding.  Just like the decor at Mulgrew's, the chili dog hasn't changed since my first one that fateful evening in 1986. 

 

I made small talk with the bartender after I finished my chili dog and I said, "So, things have changed around East Dubuque, huh?"

She said, "Yep, the city is tryin' to drive us all out of business.  They say that East Dubuque isn't family friendly enough." 

I asked if they're still busy after 1 a.m. and she said that they were, but not as much as they used to be.  Once the strip clubs closed and we had to start closin' earlier, we began to see our overall business dip.  We used to be packed for lunches.  I think we've served about a dozen people today so far."

With that a guy came in and sat near me.  He was greeted by the bartender who said, "I haven't seen you for awhile." 

He said, "I know.  It's been too long for me to go without a chili dog." 

Mulgrew's isn't fancy and, quite frankly, I've never had anything other than a chili dog during my many visits over the years.  But the chili dogs are king at Mulgrew's and other than the cold beer, there's not much more of a draw at the place.  And that doesn't make it bad, it is what it is.  I'm just hoping that Mulgrew's survives so that Dalene Temperley can pass the business on to her daughter some day.

The Claddagh Irish Pub - Middleton, WI

Claddagh (pronounced "CLAW-duh) Irish Pubs are a chain of upscale authentic Irish pubs with 15 locations throughout the Midwest.  About four years ago, I had a brief entry on Road Tips about the original Claddagh in downtown Indianapolis (see that entry here).  I've had beers at a couple three Claddagh's during my travels and had always meant to eat at one, but had never gotten around to do so even though I've certainly had the opportunity to do so.  It was a cold evening in Madison and I didn't feel like venturing far from the hotel that evening.  The Claddagh Irish Pub was a short journey from my hotel and I figured some good ol' Irish comfort food would be in order that evening. 

One of the big reasons the Claddagh pubs appear to be authentic Irish pubs is that they were started by an Irishman and an American who lived in Ireland for a time.  Kevin Blair was an Cleveland-area native who worked for a number of years for the Taco Bell corporation when it was owned by Pepsi.  He was hired in the mid-90's to go to work at the Supermacs fast food chain in Ireland.  During Blair's stay in Ireland, he loved the feel of the Irish pubs and the many friends that he met while frequenting those pubs.  The Irish have a term - craic (pronounced "crack") that describes a place that is fun, lively and friendly.  Blair decided that the United States needed authentic Irish pubs with "craic".

Blair talked Supermacs chairman Patrick McDonagh to help him start a chain of upscale Irish pubs in the Midwestern United States.  In 2001, the first Claddagh Irish Pub opened in Indianapolis.  Both Blair and McDonagh were looking at aggressive growth during the first few years growing the chain to nearly 20 locations.  However, like most partnerships, this one went sour with McDonagh withholding funds to keep the company from expanding while trying to force Blair to sell his shares.  McDonagh had already invested over $20 million dollars into the Claddagh chain and wasn't willing to invest more money for expansion.  Lawsuits and court dates ensued and the chain eventually declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy.   McDonagh's CDG Acquisitions group came in and bought the assets for $10 million dollars in 2008, about an estimated third of the value of the Claddagh chain.

By the way, the Claddagh Irish Pubs get their name from a small fishing village - Claddagh - that was legendary for the friendliness of the people who lived there.  Many writers lived in Claddagh over the years (Claddagh is now part of Galway, Ireland - home to Pat McDonagh) and they wrote about the hospitality they received from the townspeople during their stay. 

Each Claddagh Irish Pub has a dining area, a bar and a handful of small rooms that feature overstuffed chairs giving the place sort of a cozy feel, allowing patrons to sit down with friends in a comfortable setting and enjoy a Guinness or a Jameson whiskey.   The dark wood walls and broad-beamed ceilings give Claddagh pubs an authentic Irish pub look.

I rolled into the parking lot of the Greenway Station shopping center in Middleton where the Claddagh is located (see map) around 7:30 p.m.  The Claddagh is located next to Cheeseburger in Paradise, the Jimmy Buffett-owned chain of upscale burger joints (click here to see my entry on Cheeseburger in Paradise) and the parking lot in front of the businesses were full of cars.  I was able to find a spot and I went in to get a seat at the bar.

The first thing I noticed behind the bar at the Claddagh was where there should have been bottles of different types of liquor, there were nothing but bottles of Jameson whiskey.  Yes, I was definitely in an Irish pub!  The bartender came over and asked if I wanted a menu.  I got a Smithwick's as I perused through the selection they had at the Claddagh and glanced up at a football game and a hockey match they had on the flat panel televisions behind the bar. 

Claddagh Irish Pubs have a wide selection of authentic Irish food including Shepherd's Pie, fish and chips, corned beef and cabbage, and Irish beef stew.  They also have some American-based foods with an Irish twist such as the Guinness barbecued ribs made with a Guinness bar barbecue sauce, the Jameson burger that's topped with a Jameson sauce, along with the normal staples - steaks, chicken and a couple of pasta dishes.  

I needed a "stick-to-my-ribs" dinner as it was cold and I was having trouble warming up.  I thought about the Chicken Kildare - a garlic encrusted chicken breast filled with spinach, mushrooms and Irish rasher (a type of Irish bacon).  The bangers and champ sounded good, too - Irish sausages served over Irish champ (baked potatoes) and topped with an onion gravy.  But what I ended up getting was the old fashioned meat loaf, topped with a sweet glaze and then served with mashed potatoes and gravy and a side of vegetables.   For a starter - and to help warm me up - I got a cup of the Guinness onion soup, basically a French onion soup that is made with a Guinness beer stock. 

I was seated next to a guy from Indianapolis who was in Madison on business and we got to talking.  He was a really nice guy, in his mid-to-late 30's, I'm guessing.  He said, "We've got three Claddagh's in the Indy area.  When I go on the road to Columbus, Cleveland or Cincinnati I always go to the Claddagh's there.  It's like a home away from home."  He said this was his first trip to Madison and he was surprised to find a Claddagh near his hotel.  Some people like that familiarity with their restaurants, I would rather explore.  Although, I have to admit that it's getting tiresome to find new and exciting places in some locations. 

The Guinness onion soup was very good - a large crouton was on top along with an ample amount of Swiss cheese.  Large onion chunks were in the broth that had a hint of a taste of Guinness to it.  Actually, a bowl of the soup alone would have been a good meal.

The bartender brought out my plate to me and I sort of looked at it funny.  It certainly didn't look like meat loaf to me - and it wasn't.  It was the Irish beef stew.  It looked very good, but it wasn't what I ordered.  I got the bartender's attention and pointed out that I think I got the wrong meal.  He said, "You had the beef stew, right?"  I said, no, I had the meat loaf.  "Ah!  Yes, the meat loaf!"  He said he'd get me the right meal straight away.  That's the problem with people who don't write down your order - they space out from the time they take your order and then enter it into the system.  But he did give me a free beer for waiting.

And the wait was worth it.  I was served two large slices of meat loaf that had a nice smoky glaze on top the slices.  There was a little bit of a heavy beef gravy on the slices of meat loaf, but the mashed potatoes were swimming in the gravy - just as I like it.  The vegetables were a medley of broccoli, cauliflower and carrott slices.  

Everything was very good - the meat loaf was flavorful and hearty, the mashed potatoes were real and the rich, thick gravy was a great compliment to the meat and potatoes.  The vegetables were also cooked perfectly with a little bit of a crunch with each bite.  The meal was exactly what I was looking for - generous portions of good ol' comfort food on a cold late fall evening.

The guy from Indy next to me had the Shepherd's pie.  "I've tried the meat loaf before," he said.  "I like it, but I think these guys make about the best Shepherd's pie I've ever had in the States." 

After I finished what I could of the meal, I sat at the bar savoring my meal, watching the football game and enjoying one more Smithwick's.  The guy from Indy had polished off his Shepherd's pie and had ordered the bread pudding for dessert.  On the menu, the bread pudding comes under the heading of "split to share" desserts.  And it was huge, easily covering an 8" dessert plate.  And this guy was going to eat the whole thing!  And he did!  I said, "Jesus, buddy!  You need to watch it!  I was your size one time and when I started traveling on the road that's when I started to gain weight.  When you have a company credit card and you're in a city far from home, it's not hard to over-indulge." 

He said, "Oh, I know it.  I've gained 15 pounds over the past couple of years.  This (pointing at the bread pudding) doesn't help, but it's so darned good that I have to indulge myself every once in a while." 

I'm glad I finally got to try the food at one after stopping in for just the beer on my previous visits.  The meat loaf was very good, the portions were generous, the Smithwick's was great (any place that has Smithwick's on tap is OK by me) and the service - other than screwing up my order - was adequate.  There are Claddagh Irish Pubs in four of the cities that I travel to and now that I know that the food is very good, I'll go back at some point when I just need the feel of some comfort food in my tummy. 

The Original Steve's Pizza Palace - Platteville, WI

Actually, the name of the place is just Steve's Pizza Palace, but the Platteville, WI location is the first of a number of Steve's Pizza Palace's that have come and gone around the Midwest over the years.  I had eaten at the Steve's Pizza Palace in River Falls, WI - one of the best pizzas I've ever had (click here to see that post).  My friend, Eric Page, who turned me onto Steve's in River Falls (and who used to work there when he growing up in that town), told me that he'd been to the Steve's in Platteville before.  He said, "It's not as good as the one in River Falls."  I was driving between Cedar Rapids and Madison one evening and decided to pop into downtown Platteville to have a pizza at Steve's. 

The story of the original Steve's Pizza Palace began in 1955 when Greek immigrants Stavros (Steve) and Stella Blatzas moved from their World War II-torn area in Greece to Duluth on the invitation of Stella's uncle.  Stella's family - including her four brothers - eventually made their way to Duluth, mainly working in local restaurants. 

In 1964, Steve and Stella moved to Platteville and opened Steve's Pizza Palace.  They ran the business for four years before selling it to Stella's brothers, John and Nick Zaimes.  The Zaimes brothers eventually sold their shares in Steve to their brother Patrick and his wife, Nina, in 1980.  Patrick and Nina Zaimes soon obtained a liquor license so they could sell beer at their pizza joint.  (I can't imagine a Steve's pizza without beer.)

In River Falls, the Poulios family operated the Steve's Pizza Palace there.  They had invited Eleni Poulios' family, the Patakos, over to the United States to work in the family restaurant.  Her younger brother, John Patakos, knew little English when he moved to the United States, but he eventually graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Platteville with a degree in history with honors. 

In 1988, the Zaimes' decided to move back to Greece and they put Steve's Pizza Palace up for sale.  John Patakos bought the place and continues to run it today.  However, here's the "rest of the story"...

Patrick and Nina Zaimes decided to move back to the United States in 1999 to allow their children, Katherine and George, the opportunity to go to college in the states.  The Zaimes' children moved in with John Patakos' parents (who were now living in Platteville) to go to school at UW-Platteville.  Both Katherine and George had literally grown up in Steve's Pizza Palace and both worked there part-time while going to school.

Katherine and George eventually transferred to Iowa State University, but John Patakos kept up correspondence with young Katherine.  Their relationship became romantic when John and Katherine became engaged in 2003.  She moved back to Platteville in 2004 after getting her degree at Iowa State and is now the president of the company that includes not only Steve's Pizza Palace, but also The Perfect Pint - an Irish-themed bar attached to Steve's - and The Captain's Cove, a Caribbean-themed restaurant that serves basically the food as Steve's Pizza Palace.  Katherine also finds time to teach ballet and work with the UW-Platteville's drama department.  

Steve's Pizza Palace was also one of the very first smoke free restaurants in the state of Wisconsin.  Not long after John Patakos took over, he instituted a smoking ban in the restaurant.  This was a risky business move nearly 20 years before Wisconsin did a state-wide smoking ban in restaurants and public places.  However, it turned out to be a boon to business at Steve's, turning it into a destination for families and those who didn't want to smell cigarette smoke while they were eating their pizza. 

 
It was about 8 p.m. when I pulled up in front of Steve's Pizza Palace at the corner of Main and Chestnut in Platteville (see map).   The outside of the building was in a state of construction as it appeared they were in the process of putting in new windows across the front.  I walked into the restaurant and there was a small bar area to the left and a good sized dining area facing me.  In the back of the restaurant's dining area was a small gas fireplace with some chairs situated around a coffee table in the middle of the room.  I thought it was sort of a nice touch, but it cut down on the seating area for the restaurant.  (I guess if Steve's dining room is full they can get a table over at the Perfect Pint which is connected down a hallway from Steve's.)  It gave Steve's Pizza Palace a very homey and cozy feel to the place. 

One of the waitresses showed me to a booth and dropped off a menu.  I didn't need it one - I knew I was going to get a small Italian sausage, pepperoni and mushroom pizza.  But Steve's also features appetizers, salads (including a Greek salad with Steve's homemade Greek dressing), calzones, spaghetti, and a number of sandwiches including gyros and a Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato sandwich that's served on pita bread. 

About 20 minutes and two beers after I ordered my pizza, the waitress brought it out to my table.  For some reason, I could tell right away that it wouldn't be as good as the pizza at Steve's in River Falls - as Eric Page said.  First of all, the crust appeared to be a bit more thick than the one in River Falls.  And the sausage chunks looked like they were sort of haphazardly thrown on to the top of the pizza - not like the pizza at Steve's in River Falls (or at Alex's Pizza Palace in Rolla, MO - another great Greek pizza place) where each individual square "party cut" has their own chunk of sausage.  But in the long run, it didn't matter.  It was a very good pizza from the first bite.

The crust, while a little more thick than the River Falls Steve's location, was crisp, yet chewy.  The sauce had a nice sweet and tangy taste to it.  The mozzarella on top was plentiful and flavorful.  And other than the sausage just sort of thrown on the top in a feeble attempted to get a chunk on each square, the toppings were fresh and above average in taste.  It was a damn good pizza, overall. 

All across the Midwest, I've found that a number of small college towns have a great little pizza place.  I think of all the horrible pizza that we have in the Quad Cities with only two or three places that are worthy of getting a good pizza.  Then I find a place like Steve's Pizza Palace in Platteville - not that far from the Quad Cities, where the pizza could easily be better than anything the area has to offer.  I know Steve's have tried to franchise out to people in other small Midwestern towns, but it can't be as good as the original Steve's Pizza Palace in Platteville and definitely not as good as the even better Steve's in River Falls. 

d'Bronx Deli - Overland Park, KS

 
d'Bronx Deli is another one of those places that I've driven by many times during my visits to Kansas City, but had never been in there before this visit.  Not only do they specialize in real deli sandwiches, but they also have authentic New York style pizza by the slice.  I had some time between appointments on my last visit to Kansas City so I decided to stop into the Overland Park location for lunch. 

Actually, the Overland Park d'Bronx Deli is the third of three locations in the greater Kansas City area.  The original one at 39th and Bell, a block east of the Kansas/Missouri border in Kansas City, MO (see map) was opened in 1990 by Robert and Janet Bloom.  Janet Bloom's father owned an authentic deli in the Bronx (hence the New York pronunciation of "da Bronx" into one word) not far from Yankee Stadium before moving to Kansas City years ago to run the apothecary shop at the Crown Center shopping center.  She never forgot her days of being in her father's deli and wanted to bring that same atmosphere to Kansas City. 

Robert Bloom also grew up in "da Bronx" and followed Janet out to Kansas City.  They decided to opened their first deli and did so after scouting out a number of buildings in the greater K.C. area.  The original Bell and 39th location has high tin ceilings and a long, narrow wooden floor - exactly the look of her father's deli in New York City.   Originally, the Blooms were going to go with sandwiches only, but after a while they added pizza by the slice to the menu.  It quickly became known as one of the best pizzas in Kansas City. 

In 1998, the Blooms opened a second location in the Crown Center (see map).  They opened their Overland Park location about five years ago. 

It was around 1:30 when I made it into d'Bronx Deli in Overland Park located in a strip mall on the east side of Metcalf at 105th St. just north of I-435 (see map).  The menu was posted on a wall behind the counter and they featured a number of sandwiches including hot sandwiches like beef brisket, corned beef, meat load, Italian sausage and pastrami.  They also had about a half dozen signature sandwiches including a grilled reuben, the "Wild Bill" which featured hot Genoa salami with provolone on a sub roll, and the "Bell Street Bomb" featuring roast beef, turkey, Genoa salami topped with herb cream cheese and provolone. 

I was thinking about getting a couple slices of pizza - they either have them by the slice or you can get a 16" whole pizza.  I asked what kind of slices they had up and the guy behind the counter said, "Well, we're out of slices right now, but we've got a couple coming up in a bit.  We can make slices for you if you like, but it will take about 20 minutes."  I didn't really have 20 minutes to wait for a slice or two of pizza.  Maybe next time. 

Decided to get a sandwich instead, I ended up getting one of d'Bronx Deli's special sandwiches - the Napoli, which had hot cappicola, pepperoni, bologna, and Genoa salami topped with provolone cheese along with pepperocinis, roasted red peppers, sliced green olives, tomato, onions and a vinaigrette dressing.  And it was served on a toasted sub bun.  Ummm...  I was ready for that!

I found a table in the sort of modern looking dining room while I waited for my name to be called.  It was about five minutes after I ordered that a young man came over with my sandwich and asked, "You had the Napoli, right?"  That's right!   

The Napoli wasn't overly large, but it had a lot of toppings on it.  The presentation was a little spartan as I didn't get any sides with the sandwich (they featured normal sides like potato salad, cole slaw and cottage cheese, but they also have authentic potato latke's as a side along with a homemade olive salad).  But a large quartered kosher dill pickle spear did come with the sandwich - always a plus in my book with any deli.

The sesame seed sub roll was chewy and had a light crunch when you bit into it.  The meats were fresh and very flavorful - I love a good spicy cappicola on any Italian sandwich.  (For my homemade Italian sandwich featuring cappicola, which I've been told by those who've made it is pretty damn good, click here to see the recipe.)

I did like the roasted red peppers on the sandwich (I may have to try that on my Italian sandwich at home in the future).  The tomatoes were fresh which was nice since it was early November.  And the vinaigrette was a nice compliment to the whole sandwich.  The only thing I thought they could have done better was not be so chincy on the chopped green olive topping.  But overall, it was a very good sandwich.  I was happy with what I got.  

A dealer of mine in the Kansas City area who I saw later in the day told me that while d'Bronx Deli does have good pizza by the slice, there's a place over in Kansas City, MO near the University of Missouri at Kansas City - Pizza 51 - who also does a very good pizza by the slice.  "My wife and I have gone to both places back to back just to see which had the better slice.  I liked Pizza 51, she liked d'Bronx."  He told me I needed to do the same thing next time I came into town.  

And I probably will try that at some point.  But I found another good deli in my travels.  The Napoli at d'Bronx was very good and it may be tough to order some other sandwich when I go back in.  But I'm sure whatever I order for a sandwich at d'Bronx will be pretty damn good. 

McKenna's Blues, Booze and BBQ - Omaha

 
While in Omaha recently, I had time to stop in and grab some lunch at McKenna's Blues, Booze and BBQ, a hot spot for great barbecue and top notch blues music.  It had been quite some time since I'd been in to McKenna's and I was sort of shocked to find that I had never written about the place on Road Tips until now.  It's one of my favorite places to eat when I'm in Omaha.

McKenna's Blues, Booze and BBQ first opened in 1991 tucked back on the south side of Pacific at S. 74th St. Place (see map).  Owner/founder Billy McKenna combined his love for good ol' Southern barbecue along with his passion for blues music to bring some of the best food and music under one roof.  My first visit to McKenna's was in 1999 and I was blown away by the food, then blown away by a blues band from some small Nebraska town that was playing there that evening.  For a guy like me who loves both blues and barbecue - well, and booze - it was like I'd found heaven on Pacific St. in Omaha.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.  McKenna's was seized by the I.R.S. in 2006 for non-payment of taxes.  A lot of people thought McKenna's run was over, but in 2007 the team of Kyron O'Brien, Randy Murphy and Chris Bollinger stepped in and re-opened McKenna's.  They kept a lot of the same format of blues music and great barbecue.  (Billy McKenna opened a restaurant on S. 108th St. called Billy Mac's in 2007.  That restaurant  closed earlier this year.)  The only difference is that McKenna's has live music only on the weekends and not from Wednesday thru Saturday as they did when Billy McKenna ran the place.  It's not a large place and it can get pretty loud in there. 

One of the reasons - if not THE reason - McKenna's food has stayed the same under new ownership is that executive chef Manny Ayala and his son, Raul, were brought back in to run the kitchen and smokers.  The menu at McKenna's features both Southern barbecue and Cajun styles of food, along with variations of Hawaiian pork and Jamaican chicken.  McKenna's also has about 15 sandwiches to choose from including a brisket sandwich, a homemade smoked sausage sandwich, and a smoked turkey sandwich. 

I was met by a hostess when I walked into McKenna's a little past noon the day I was there.  Since it was just myself, she said, "You can sit at the bar, if you want."  Sure, that works.  There was one other guy at the bar eating what appeared to be a cheeseburger.  Well, I was going for barbecue that day. 

The only thing that I don't care for at McKenna's is that their combo plates all include chicken.  I don't like barbecued or smoked chicken.  I love boneless chicken breasts on the grill, but I don't care for bone-in "barbecued" chicken.  Their "three-way barbecue" offering on the menu has smoked chicken, brisket and baby back ribs.  I wanted two of those things.  What to do, what to do...

One of the reasons I wanted the brisket is that McKenna's slow cooks their brisket for up to 10 hours.  It comes out juicy and flavorful.  I decided to get just the brisket platter that's served with McKenna's signature jalapeno corn bread (it's OK) and a small cob of sweet corn (I'll pass).  I got two sides with the meal and I remembered that their red beans and rice were outstanding, and a side of their baked beans. 

 

McKenna's has sort of a Southern road house feel to the place.  It definitely pays homage to a lot of the great blues artists with pictures and memorabilia all over the place.  Toward the back of the McKenna's was a corner that was dedicated to all things B.B. King including pictures, posters, memorabilia and a copy of King's famous "Lucille" guitar on the wall.  It brought back memories of the time I met B.B. King a few years ago.  (Click here to see that entry on Road Tips.)  McKenna's always had some great stuff to look at each time I came there. 

 

The bartender brought my food out to me less than 10 minutes after I ordered it.  It was a pretty good sized portion of brisket on the plate.  The smoke ring at the top of the meat was very visible and it was covered with a smattering of McKenna's homemade sweet and somewhat spicy barbecue sauce.  I usually like to slather my meat in barbecue sauce, but at McKenna's they only provide a small cup of sauce.  It turns out I didn't need any more than that.

The brisket was exactly has I remembered - flavorful and tender.  It was lean and very juicy.  It was - in a word - outstanding.  McKenna's makes some of the finest brisket I've encountered in my culinary pursuits. 

One thing that I usually do with baked beans at most barbecue places is add some of the barbecue sauce to help zip up the taste.  At McKenna's I didn't have to do that.  They make their baked beans with their barbecue sauce and there's plenty of it in there.  The beans, too, were just outstanding.

As were the red beans and rice from what I remembered on previous visits.  One thing that I almost got for lunch was the smoked sausage with red beans and rice platter.  I had that on a visit about six years ago and the taste sensation was out of this world.  McKenna's makes their own sausage with a combination of spices and herbs added to the meat, then they slow smoke the sausage.  Combined with the red beans and rice, it's out of this world.  But the red beans and rice on their own, well, I'd put them up against any Cajun restaurant I've visited, including Heaven on Seven in Chicago or Crawdaddy's in Milwaukee - two of the best Cajun restaurants in the Midwest.  Both the rice and the beans weren't overcooked and I'm still trying to figure out the wonderful concoction of spices they add that made the side a little zippy, but not enough that it was overpowering. 

 

I had to have a bite of the jalapeno corn bread with a little dollop of McKenna's homemade honey butter on top.  I'm not a big fan of corn bread, but the bite I had of McKenna's jalapeno corn bread was good.  Not enough that I wanted to have more, but it had a nice little singe to the taste.  But, for me, corn bread is just too dry for my taste.

If I hadn't read an article on the wall about the new owners of McKenna's Blues, Booze and BBQ, I would have thought it was the same place that I first tried over 10 years ago.  And in a way, it is.  Getting the Ayala's back into the kitchen was a big get for the new owners.  And they continue to make some of the best Southern style barbecue in the Midwest.   Go for the barbecue, stay for the blues.   McKenna's is a great place for both. 

(Update - McKenna's closed their doors toward the end of September of 2014.  There's rumors that another barbecue place will go there in its place.)

A Return to the Canteen Lunch - Ottumwa, IA

Over the past year, Road Tips entries have been picked up by or linked to a handful of web sites or forums on the Internet.  As I keep telling myself that I'd like to slow down a bit from the pace at which I write, the popularity of this blog has risen tremendously over the past few months.  With that said, recently an entry was picked up by an Ottumwa High School alumni site for my original post on the Canteen Lunch (see that post here). 

That entry was received by Ottumwans with much derision and scorn.  Everything from my taste buds to my sanity was questioned in comments on Road Tips and e-mails that I received from Ottumwans who were upset that I dared to say that while the Canteen burger was good, I preferred the taste of the Newton Maid-Rite better. 

Now, I've known a few Ottumwans in my life and one thing I'll say about people from Ottumwa is that they are highly defensive of their city.  Ottumwa is a hard-scrabble river town that has fallen on hard economic times over the past few years.  While it may have been an OK place to grow up, Ottumwa - like my hometown of Newton - is not the same town as it was 30 years ago.  But people from the area seem to be overly protective of all things Ottumwa when it comes to discussions about their hometown.  "Yes, Ottumwa is a dreary town," I can hear them say.  "But it's OUR dreary town!" 

You gotta love people like that.  I view people from Ottumwa as being "glass half-full" kind of people.  They're always looking on the bright side of life. 

Most of the responses and comments I received after the original Canteen Lunch entry had to do with the difference between Maid-Rites and the Canteen burger - which are, basically, the same thing.  The big difference is taste with many Maid-Rites versus the Canteen.   And there seemed to be some confusion as to the "real" Maid-Rites and the "new" Maid-Rites that have popped up over the past 25 years.  So, for the benefit of those who think all Maid-Rites are alike I'd like to give a little background on the original Maid-Rites and the "new" Maid-Rites that are out there.

The original Maid-Rite was founded in 1926 by Fred Angell in Muscatine, IA.  Angell sold his first franchise to a lady in Newton in 1927 for $300.  A year later, Clifford Taylor, a Newton resident, bought the rights to put a Maid-Rite in Marshalltown.  The Muscatine location closed down in 1997, but the Newton (pictured at right) and Marshalltown (Taylor's Maid-Rite) locations are still going strong today. 

In 1982, the Angell family sold the franchise rights to Clayton Blue and John Gillotti who had big plans to take the Maid-Rite chain nationwide.  But nothing materialized as a court battle ensued after John Gillotti died in 1991. Blue - who had left Maid-Rite after defaulting on contract payments in partnership with Gillotti - said that he was the rightful owner of the Maid-Rite franchises.  But the courts ruled against Blue's claim saying that the contract appeared to be tampered with.   

In 2002, the Gillotti family sold the Maid-Rite franchise to Bradley Burt, a former banker and marketing manager who the Gillotti's had brought in years prior to help shore up the sagging Maid-Rite name which had dipped to under 100 locations in the Midwest.  Burt immediately decided that all Maid-Rite franchises needed to have continuity and standardization.  He began to pressure franchise owners over contract issues that were either not enforced or were loosely followed over the years.  He also wanted all Maid-Rites to buy pre-cooked meat from the Des Moines headquarters so there would be a uniformed taste with all Maid-Rites. 

 

A number of Maid-Rite franchises closed down, worried that they'd either have to move their operations to larger buildings or to buy new equipment to bring their restaurant up to new Maid-Rite standards.  However, the Maid-Rite "outlaws" - including Dan Holtkamp's Maid-Rite in Newton and Taylor's Maid-Rite - continued to do their own "thing", including grinding and cooking their own meat.  The original Maid-Rite locations were grandfathered in to non-existing standards allowing them to continue to operate as a independent franchises without paying royalties or franchise fees to Burt's corporation.

Now, I'm going to interject some opinion in this story at this point.  The Maid-Rite franchises that follow the rules and contractual obligations of the Maid-Rite Corporation aren't very good.  The pre-cooked meat is micro-waved and served as customers order and it's lifeless in taste.  A number of Maid-Rite franchises have opened and closed within their first year.  It is not the same Maid-Rite as many Iowans - or Midwesterners - have grown up with. 

In 1982, Maid-Rite franchises began to pop up in the Quad Cities area.  And even to my "questionable taste-buds" the ones in the Quad Cities aren't very good.  They seem to be following the course put forth by the Maid-Rite corporation, but I believe they are still steaming their own meat.  And the meat they use doesn't taste very good.  The Maid-Rites in the Quad Cities are nowhere as close in taste and freshness as the ones in Newton and Marshalltown.  (Ross' Restaurant in Bettendorf - which used to be a Maid-Rite location years ago - still makes the best Maid-Rite-style sandwiches in the Quad Cities.  And I've come up with a recipe using chicken broth, cooked onions and some seasoning that comes damn close to the taste of Maid-Rites in Newton and Marshalltown.  See that recipe here.) 

One exception seems to be the Marion Maid-Rite, which opened in 1986.  I've had a Maid-Rite there on a couple occassions and it tastes pretty darn good.  It's probably the best of all the "franchise" Maid-Rite's I've eaten at.  (And, to my knowledge, it's the only one that serves beer.  I've never had a beer with a Maid-Rite and I'm not certain it would taste that good together.) 

Burt put additional pressure on Taylor's Maid-Rite in 2006 by writing to the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals to say that Taylor's was not in compliance with state law with the way they prepare and hold their meat for serving.  Taylor's holds cooked meat at one end of the steamer table while they put raw meat in the other end to begin the cooking process.  The Newton Maid-Rite does the same thing, but uses a metal partition between the two sides that can be lifted out and moved across the steamer depending on how much cooked meat they have.  The Canteen Lunch does the same thing in Ottumwa. 

Burt wanted to know why Taylor's was allowed to continue to cook their meat that way, possibly introducing e-coli into the meat - and the Iowa D.I.A. decided that he was right.  Taylor's had been in business since 1928, but there had never been a complaint about food poisoning from their restaurant.  

Long story short - the Iowa legislature got involved and voted to strike down an amendment that would allow Taylor's to continue to cook the way they have for over 80 years.  Taylor's Maid-Rite is still fighting in court.    

If you can tell by now, I'm much more partial to places like the original Maid-Rites, the Canteen Lunch and Ross' in Bettendorf.  They continue to do things the way they've done them for years - and they all taste better than any of the current Maid-Rite Corporation operations. 

So, with that little bit of history out of the way, I had been back to the Canteen Lunch on a couple occasions since my original visit about 3 1/2 years ago.  People from Ottumwa continued to rave about the Canteen burgers, but, once again, I didn't think they were any better than the ones in Newton.  Don't get me wrong, they were very good.  But they weren't the best loose-meat sandwich I've ever had. 

After the Canteen Lunch entry was linked to the Ottumwa Alumni site, I told a couple people that I was going to go back and do a more in-depth feature on the place.  I was driving home from Kansas City recently and I decided to go across Southern Iowa on Highway 34 which would put me in the Ottumwa area around 1:30 on afternoon. 

 

The story of the Canteen Lunch starts back in the 1930's when the little eatery was opened in an alley between S. Court and S. Market, just off W. 2nd St. (see map).  Actually, the original Canteen was a five seat diner in a different location before moving to their present location.  In 1976, Earnest and Shirlee McBeth, Shirlee's sister and brother-in-law bought the Canteen.  Shirlee was a hairdresser by trade, but took over the day-to-day operation of the Canteen.  Shirley and Earnest eventually bought out her sister and brother-and-law and continues to run the business to this day.  

The charm and history of the place was more than evident a number of years ago when the City of Ottumwa wanted to build a parking ramp on the spot where the Canteen Lunch stood.  There was such an outcry from the locals that the city decided to build the parking ramp AROUND the small building.  The power of the people! 

The Canteen is very small - only about 12 to 15 seats around a semi-oval counter.  In my previous entry, I noted that there were five ladies behind the counter, each of them were no younger than their mid-50's.  I was criticized for that comment by a couple people, saying that there were younger ladies than that working behind the counter.  On my recent visit, I will stand corrected.  There appeared to be one lady who wasn't under the age of 45 while the others behind the counter had to be well into their 60's.  However, one young lady - looked like she was in her 30's - came out from the backroom at one point.  So, no, not everyone is old who works at the Canteen Lunch.  

Lunch time can be pretty crazy at the Canteen, but since it was well past 1 p.m. when I got in I was able to find a seat at the counter.  Now, I did this little faux pas last time I was in and didn't remember the procedure.  I ordered two "Canteens" with cheese.  The lady said, "We only serve one at a time.  If you want another one after the first one, we'll get it for you."  They keep 'em fresh that way.  I immediately showed that I was not a regular in the place. 

She brought the first one to me, wrapped and tucked in the wax paper.  Like any Maid-Rite sandwich, the loose meat was falling off the sides of the bun.  Now, before my first visit to the Canteen Lunch, I was told by a friend of mine from Ottumwa, John Stewart, who now lives in Florida, that I could easily eat three of these things.  On my first visit, I had one (because I'd had one in Newton about an hour before and wanted to do a taste comparison with the Canteen burger), but I had two on my previous visits - which was more than enough for me.  The "Canteen" was large and meaty, very flavorful.  But, once again, quite honestly, it wasn't any better than what I've had at the Maid-Rite in Newton.  They are both very good for what they are and definitely better than any of the Maid-Rite franchise locations. 

A lady came in with a small box and ordered 20 canteens just after I got my first sandwich.  With workman like efficiency, the ladies behind the counter formed an assembly line of buns, condiments, placing meat on the bun and wrapping the Canteens before placing them in the box.  The lady was gone about 10 minutes after she entered the Canteen.  Pretty impressive!

A couple came in and sat down across the counter with me.  The lady ordered a Canteen "moist".  The guy ordered a Canteen "Moist with extra salt."   Wait a minute - these people may be on to something.  The "moist" - yes.  Not so much with the extra salt, however. 

The lady went over to the steamer and dug around in the meat, placed some on the bun and sort of dipped it in the juice in the bottom of the steamer.  Ah ha!  That may be the trick!

 I ordered my second Canteen with cheese - moist.  And it came to me with a better flavor than the first one.  The taste sensation in the meat was heightened by just a little bit of the broth that was introduced on the sandwich.  (When I make my homemade Maid-Rites, I throw a little bit of the chicken broth in with the meat when I store it in a bowl in the refrigerator.  Letting it sit for a day or two and then warming it up really makes it taste better.)   That was the knock out taste that Ottumwans have come to love over the years.  It certainly helps to know the local secret when it comes to a place like the Canteen Lunch.  Order them "moist". 

While the decor at the Canteen Lunch isn't anything special or spiffy, I was sort of mystified to see pictures of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John Kennedy on the east wall of the restaurant.  On the west wall, there is a large map of the United States where people can put a pin in to signify their hometown.  Nearly every state on the map - including Alaska and Hawaii - had a pin marked and there were a couple hundred pins all over the map.  People do come from all over to enjoy a Canteen burger at the Canteen Lunch.

OK, so there, all you Ottumwans.  Yes, the Canteen Lunch is very good, it's full of history and nostalgia for those of you who grew up there, but I can't say that the Canteen Burger is any better than a Maid-Rite that Dan Holtkamp makes in Newton or one that Don Short makes up in Marshalltown.  They all have great flavor to them and but they're all a little different in taste.   I'm sure it's something that you just grow to like and become accustomed to when you're growing up.  The key to the Canteen burger is keeping it moist with the broth.  And that's how I'll order it up on my next visit to the Canteen when I can get through the Ottumwa area again at some point.    

Update March 2015 - Special thanks to my friend John Stewart, an Ottumwa native and a retired lawyer in Florida who sent along some information that Shirlee and Earnest McBeth have sold the business to Scott Pierce, the owner of Pierce Fence Co. in Ottumwa.  The McBeth's decided that it was time to slow down and the couple would like to do some traveling.  Keeping the Canteen in the family wouldn't work as the McBeth's sons do not live in the area, so finding the right owner to take over the iconic restaurant was of the utmost importance.  They think they found that person in Pierce who is adamant that he will not change anything at the Canteen after he officially takes over. 

(Newton Maid-Rite and Maid-Rite sandwich pictures courtesy of Roadfood.com)

Anthony's Steakhouse - Omaha

I had an early morning meeting with a potential new account in Omaha recently and I got into Omaha rather late the evening before.  I was hungry when I checked in and I asked the desk clerk if any place in the area would still be serving food.  She gave me a couple recommendations, but then she said, "There's Anthony's Steakhouse just down the street a bit.  Just past Interstate 80."  (see map)

Anthony's is one of those places where I've driven by on a number of occasions on my numerous trips to Omaha over the years, but never stopped in.  One couldn't miss the place on the west side of 72nd Street with the big steer over the entry way.  I decided to give it a try that evening.

Anthony's Steakhouse has been around for over 40 years serving some of the best steaks in Omaha.  Compared to other steakhouses in the city, it's sort of flown under the radar except for the locals who have kept coming back since Tony Fucinaro first opened the doors in October of 1967.  Less than two years later Anthony's suffered a devastating fire.  But business had been so good up to that point that when Tony rebuilt the place he added seating and a large lounge area to the building.  He also added a party/banquet room to the building. 

The decor of the restaurant also changed from a Western-themed restaurant to an elegant setting that would make Anthony's comparable to most high-end steakhouses across the nation.  Tony's son, Tony, Jr., now runs the day-to-day operations of the restaurant. 

Anthony's Steakhouse features the Ozone Lounge, one of central Omaha's premier night spots.  The lounge features live entertainment six days a week and its own menu that features bar favorites as well as some of Anthony's signature dishes.  I contemplated getting dinner in the Ozone Lounge when I walked into the place just after 9 p.m. that evening, but the music had just started and I wanted to have more of a quiet meal. 

I was met by an elderly hostess who seemed a little put out that I decided to show up so late.  I asked her if it was too late to get a meal and she said in sort of a dismissive voice, "No, we continue to serve up to 10 p.m. or when the last person leaves."  It would be a good bet that if no one else came in for dinner, I would be the last one to leave that evening. 

She took me to an upper tier of booths and tables overlooking the main dining area at Anthony's.  She sat me in a booth, gave me my menu and told me that a server would be with me shortly.  There was a couple in the booth next to me, and a couple guys at a table next to me.  I thought, "Why didn't she seat me in a booth away from people?"  I figured she was trying to help the waiter out by having all of his tables in one area. 

Now, sensing my surroundings when I'm dining alone has never been a high priority, but it was difficult to not hear the conversations going on at the other two tables.  The two businessmen were discussing high-end audio - my chosen path of work.  One guy was trying to give advice to the other guy on what to look for in buying an audio system.  But the one "expert" was woefully wrong with some of his information.  I try not to interject into other people's conversations, but I came oh so close to saying, "Excuse me, but I'm in the industry and what you're telling this poor guy is just dead wrong." 

But I decided to butt out and read my paper.  They left soon after. 

The couple in the booth facing me appeared to be on a date, quite possibly their first date.  A little more about these two in a bit.

My waiter came over and I ordered up a beer as I looked through the menu.  Actually, Anthony's Steakhouse is not unlike any other old time Omaha steakhouse that I've had over the years.  They have the usual cuts of meat from filets, rib eyes, t-bones and strip steaks.  They also feature pork chops, chicken entrees and seafood on the menu.  And since the Fucinaro family is Italian, they also feature a number of pasta items on the menu. 

But I was in the mood for steak that evening and I eventually ordered the New York strip, rare.  None of the sides they had were overly appealing to me, so I ended up getting the twice-baked potato.  A side of pasta - mostaccioli with a red sauce - also came with the meal.  I also got the wedge salad upgrade for $2.00 over the house salad that came with the meal.  

As I was waiting for my wedge salad, the guy in the booth on the date with the lady excused himself to go to the restroom.  He was still gone by the time I received - and finished - my wedge salad.  By the way, the wedge salad was excellent.  A fresh lettuce wedge with topped with slices of red onions, Anthony's homemade Italian dressing and tons of very good bleu cheese crumbles around the wedge.  It was actually one of the better wedge salads I'd had in quite some time. 

By the time the waiter had come back to take my salad plate, the young lady stopped him and asked him to check the restroom for her - her date hadn't come back to the table and he'd been gone for nearly 20 minutes.  By this time, my senses picked up that this may not be a happy ending.  Another waiter brought out my steak and it wasn't long after it was set in front of me, the original waiter came back and informed her that no one was in the restroom.  The lady burst into tears.  Her "date" had left her at the restaurant holding the bill and with no ride home.  I felt so bad for her that I almost paid for her dinner so she wouldn't have to.  A manager came over and told the woman that he'd take care of the bill and that he'd call her a cab.  

(I got to thinking as I was driving to Kansas City the next day - what a great way to scam a restaurant!  The guy skips out on picking up the tab for a good meal and leaves the woman there to pick up the pieces.  Although the way this woman reacted, I doubt these two were in cahoots.  Unless she was a great actress.)

 
After that drama ended I was able to enjoy my meal.  The New York strip was cooked a perfect rare for me, nice and juicy with a load of flavor.  And unlike many strip steaks that I got earlier this summer, this one was void of gristle throughout the steak.  It was a wonderful steak for my first visit to Anthony's. 

I tried a couple bites of the twice-baked potato which was also pretty good.  The mostaccioli with the homemade marinara sauce was rather pedestrian - nothing to write home about.  But that was OK.  I was concentrating on trying to finish my steak that appeared to be larger than the advertised 14 ounces.   

Anthony's Steakhouse had a very good steak - not the best I've had, but certainly not bad either.  It's tough to be a steakhouse in Omaha with all the stellar competition in town.  But you don't stay in business for 43 years without having good food and good service - anywhere you are.  It's a testament to Anthony's staying power with all the great choices of steak restaurants in Omaha that they are definitely one of the best local steakhouses.  While I may like Johnny's Cafe or The Drover a little better, I'd put Anthony's ahead of many of the other places in Omaha. 

D'Arcy's Pint - Springfield, IL

I had a meeting with a potential dealer in Springfield, IL recently and afterward I decided to grab a bite to eat at a place I'd heard about for quite sometime, but had never been to before - D'Arcy's Pint on the west side of the Capitol City of Illinois.  (See map)  D'Arcy's is a large Irish bar/restaurant that is famous for one of the culinary treats in Springfield - the horseshoe sandwich.  More on the horseshoe later. 

D'Arcy's Pint began in 1998 when co-owners Glenn Merriman and Hallie Pierceall opened in a shopping center on MacArthur Blvd. - the main North-South road through Springfield.  It quickly became one of the best places in the area to get good food and a cold beer in a fun and inviting environment.  It became so popular that just seven years after they opened they moved to a larger location in a building that features two bars and two dining areas along with an outdoor beer garden. 

D'Arcy's Pint features a full menu, but they claim to have the best horseshoe sandwich in Springfield.  The horseshoe sandwich is indigenous to Springfield as the history of the food dates back to the late 1920's.  Legend has it that a Springfield man, Steve Tomko, came up with the idea of the horseshoe.  But historians around Springfield refute his claims and say that a chef by the name of Joe Schweska came up with the idea - or actually, he got the basic idea from his wife.

Schweska was the chef at the old Leland Hotel in downtown Springfield.  He was talking to his wife about coming up with something new to put on the lunch menu at his restaurant in the hotel.  She suggested doing something that used a Welsh Rarebit sauce on top.  Schweska cut a piece of ham into the shape of a horseshoe, placed it on a couple pieces of bread, then topped it with potatoes and the cheese, mustard, Worcestershire sauce that is the basis for a Welsh Rarebit sauce.  (Picture courtesy of Roadfood.com)

Schweska eventually moved away and Tomko began to take credit for creating the horseshoe sandwich.  But older people remember Tomko as a dishwasher in the kitchen where Schweska was the cook.  Nonetheless, wherever Tomko went to work at a restaurant in Springfield, he served a horseshoe sandwich.  They were so popular that a number of restaurants around Springfield came up with their own horseshoe sandwich.   D'Arcy's Pint is no exception.  

But I didn't think I'd care much for a horseshoe sandwich.  It is sort of like a "slinger" in St. Louis and a "Magic Mountain" in the Quad Cities - a bunch of stuff thrown together on a plate and served with a cheese sauce.  Some places use a white cheese sauce on their horseshoe sandwiches, others will use a cheddar cheese sauce.  It just didn't appeal to me at all.  No, I wanted something much different than a horseshoe sandwich that day.

It was about 1:30 when I got into D'Arcy's Pint that afternoon and I was surprised to find the place packed with people.  As I said, there are two dining areas in the place and both the west and east dining areas were full.  There was a handful of people waiting to get a table.  The hostess told me there was a spot at the bar in the east dining room if I wanted to eat there.  I had no problem with that and I took the last chair available at the very ornate bar. 

 

The menu at D'Arcy's Pint features a number of appetizers, soups and salads for starters.  The bulk of the menu is typical bar food that you'd find at an Irish-themed restaurant - pot roast sandwich, cheese steak sandwich, fish and chips, and reubens.  They also featured a number of burgers and grilled chicken sandwiches.  D'Arcy's Pint also served pizzas and after 4 p.m. they had a dinner menu that featured Irish fare such as Shepherd's Pie, corned beef and cabbage, and a traditional Irish "boxty" - a potato pancake that is stuffed with things like corned beef and cabbage and grilled in a pan.  They also have steaks, seafood and chicken items on the dinner menu, as well. 

I was torn between the reuben and the Irish-American B.L.T. Darcy's had on the menu.  When my bartender asked me if I was ready to order, I told her that I was torn between the reuben and the B.L.T.  The guy next to me - obviously a regular - turned and said, "Oh, buddy.  Get the reuben.  It's the best around." 

An unsolicited recommendation is always welcome.  I went with the reuben.  The bartender asked me if I wanted to upgrade from chips to french fries for $1.50.  Sure, what the hell.  I also ordered up a Smithwick's to go along with the lunch.

When my sandwich showed up, I was pleasantly surprised to see a lightly grilled, swirled marble rye reuben on my plate.  The french fries were nothing special and probably not worth the $1.50 up charge.  The sandwich was good sized and full of tender corned beef.  As I usually do, I asked for a side of 1000 Island dressing to go along with the sandwich.  Some reubens don't have enough 1000 Island dressing on them and I like to dip the reuben into more dressing.  I was surprised to find that I was charged - I believe - 50 cents for a 1 oz. container of 1000 Island dressing.  I found it somewhat amusing and perplexing at the same time that they charged me for the small amount of dressing they gave me.

 But that minor experience didn't take away from the taste of the sandwich.  The guy sitting next to me didn't steer me wrong - the reuben at D'Arcy's Pint was as good as he said it was.  The corned beef was lean and flavorful, there was a generous amount of sauerkraut and cheese on top, the bread was just fabulous - I'm hoping that it was homemade or - at the very least - made by a local baker for D'Arcy's Pint.  The bread was thick and held together even with all the moist fixings inside.

Before I left, I had to use the restroom.  I took a look inside the west side dining room and saw that it was equally as large as the one on the east side.  However, the bar was much smaller with a short three-sided bar with high backed chairs.  I found out later that this particular bar was originally in one of Springfield's original ice cream soda shoppes - the Sugar Bowl - that was in business from 1927 to 1959.  I found it rather interesting and sort of neat that they were using an old time ice cream shoppes counter as a bar.  

My reuben sandwich, the beer and a tip for the bartender came to just a bit over $15 bucks.  Sort of expensive for lunch, but it was a large sandwich with a lot of meat.  I'm still sort of amused that they charged me for extra dressing, and the fries weren't worth the $1.50 up charge.  But, overall, it was not that big of a deal.  I don't know if I'll land that dealer in Springfield, but at least I know of a good restaurant/bar to grab a quick sandwich while I'm in town.  D'Arcy's Pint did not disappoint. 

Anthonino's Taverna - St. Louis

 
A shout out today to an old friend, Tim Lake, who used to live in St. Louis years ago and who now lives just outside of Birmingham, AL.  He's a regular reader of Road Tips and we had a back and forth about my post on Amaghetti's (see that post here) a while back.   I was trying to remember the name of the little place where I got a sandwich similar to Amaghetti's "Special" sandwich.  I finally remembered  the place - Mama Toscana's.  Tim was telling me of a place on the Hill that had good sandwiches and an "out of sight" gyro - Anthonino's Taverna.  I told him I didn't know where it was.  He said, "Oh, man!  As much as you're on The Hill, you've had to drive right by it." 

Turns out that I have driven past Anthonino's many times, but never stopped in.  On a recent trip to St. Louis I stopped in for lunch one day. 

Anthonino's Taverna is what you'd call an Italian/Greek restaurant and that's a reflection on the owners, Rosario and Anthony Scarato.  Their father is Italian, while their mother is Greek.  Both Scarato boys grew up in the restaurant business as their father, Bob, owned his own restaurant - Athen's Cafe - for 20 years.  Anthonino's (which is "Little Anthony" in Italian) began in 2004, housed in a building that was built back in the 1930's.  The Scarato's are on hand all the time and their father, sometimes helps out as the host. 

Anthonino's Taverna has a great neighborhood tavern feel to the place.  While it's not overly huge, there's a large bar as you come walking in with a number of tables along the big window up front.  The "L"-shaped dining room allows for small groups to push tables together, or for a quick bite for two on a date night.   The place is bright with a lot of festive paint colors on the walls. 

It was just after noon when I walked into Anthonino's.  One of the waitresses greeted me up front.  I told her it was just me and she said, "Would you like to sit at the bar?"  Well, sure!  That definitely worked for me.  50's and 60's - era  jazz was playing on the sound system in the place.

Anthonino's menu reflects the wide and varied recipes the two brothers bring to the table.  Their appetizer menu is deep with Italian staples like toasted ravioli, calimari and antipasti, but they also feature a number of Greek appetizers such as spanakopita - feta cheese and spinach wrapped in phyllo dough, slices of gyro meat with homemade tzatziki sauce, and baby dalmathes - grape leaves stuffed with seasoned rice along with feta, peppers and pita.  

Their salad menu features a house salad that is similar to those you'll find at many other Hill area restaurants, only they use a Greek dressing to top it off.  They also have a Caesar Salad and your choice of toppings for any of the salads including gyro meat, chicken or sauteed portabella mushrooms.  

Anthonino's has a full dinner menu consisting of both Italian and Greek specialties.  In fact, the readers of River Front Times in St. Louis voted Antonino's the best Greek restaurant in the St. Louis area for 2010.  But they also have a very large selection of Italian pasta specialties such as Tutti Mare, beef tortellini in both a marinara or a cream sauce with peas and capocola, and something called Pasta Puttanesca - pasta topped with tomatoes, capers, onions, kalamata olives, anchovies and oregano with garlic olive oil.  Oh, man!  My stomach is doing back flips as I'm writing this. 

As a surprise to me, Anthonino's also features hand-tossed pizzas on their menu including a number of specialty pizzas with a little Greek flair to them.  A larger group seated at a larger table back toward the restrooms had a couple pizzas on their tables for lunch.  While Anthonino's pizza isn't the thin crust like a St. Louis-style pizza, it's definitely not overly thick.  It looked delicious.

But I was after a gyro.  My friend, Tim, moved from St. Louis to near Cincinnati about five years ago before moving on to Birmingham.  His wife's family still lives in the St. Louis area and he told me, "Anthonino's has the best gyro I've ever had.  I have to stop each time we're back in St. Louis to get one."  He said he became hooked on them just after Anthonino's opened up over six years ago and said he's found nothing like them anywhere.

Anthonino's gyros are part of a lengthy sandwich menu featuring burgers, Italian and Greek sandwiches, fish sandwiches, and their own take on the submarine sandwich.  One thing Tim told me to do was to order the gyro with feta cheese.  And that's exactly what I ordered.  I had my choice of a side and I saw that for a $2.50 up-charge I could get one of Anthonino's house salad.  I took that instead of fries. 

The salad was, in a word, wonderful.  It had fresh tomatoes, kalamata olives, pepperocini and sweet red onions with fresh lettuce topped with a creamy feta cheese dressing.  I would have been happy just to get a large house salad it was so good.

 
Less than 10 minutes after I finished my salad, my gyro was brought out to me wrapped in foil and topped with a generous amount of feta cheese and tzatziki sauce with large slices of tomatoes and red onions mixed in.  It was huge!  I had to make cuts and eat the first part of it with my fork and knife.  But even after that I was having to take big bites just to get into the heart of the gyro. 

I wasn't overly enthused about the feta cheese on my gyro, however.  Too much feta can be overpowering and this was a little too much for me.  And some of the meat slices were a little charred like they had been left on the spit too long.  But the meat that was not overcooked was moist and tender and had a really good flavor to it.  And the pita bread shell they used at Anthonino's was also very good - great flavor and not too chewy. 

Was it the best gyro I've ever had?  Probably not - but, then again, it may be one of the most authentic gyros I've ever had.   Next time I go and get a gyro at Anthonino's I'll probably ask for a little bit of feta - that was almost too much for me. 

But overall, I really liked Anthonino's.  Not only for the gyro, but for the ambiance, the service and the overall neighborhood feel to the place.  From the moment I stepped into the place, I liked the warmness of the place.  It made me wish that I had a neighborhood bar/restaurant like Anthonino's within walking distance of where I live - or even just a short drive from my home.   There's a lot of great little bars and restaurants on the Hill, but Anthonino's Taverna has suddenly shot to the top of my list of the place I'd most like to get a beer and sandwich.