Springfield, MO is one of my all-time favorite cities to travel to. I've been going there since the mid-80's and it's always been a fun time on each visit. I have a new account in the area that has been doing some pretty good business for me and I asked them if they'd like to go out to dinner. One of them suggested a place that had opened in June of last year on Springfield's southeast side - an upscale tavern by the name of The Rock. We all met up there after a short drive from their office/warehouse.
The historic Galloway neighborhood of Springfield for years was known as sort of the "bottoms" of the city. In and around Galloway Village was a large rail yard, a quarry, a fish hatchery and a park. The rail yard and quarry went away a number of years ago, and much of the area was designated as a flood plain. However, the city has made a significant upgrade in the area over the past number of years and in 2014 they declared a segment along S. Lone Pine Ave. as blighted opening the way for urban renewal projects. A developer came in to put in housing, retail shops and restaurants that would be known as Quarry Town. One of the spots that was available for a restaurant came to the attention of Tim and Jennifer Bair.
In 2007, Tim and Jennifer Bair borrowed a combined amount of $140,000 from their respective fathers to open Bair's Sports Grille in nearby Republic, MO. Failure was not an option for the Bairs who knew that it would financially devastate the three families. Fortunately, things worked out for the Bairs and Bair's Sports Grille became well known for their great burgers. The one location eventually grew to four around the greater Springfield area and the Bair's also added a spin-off sports bar called T-Bairz, and a little pub in Republic by the name of The Bent Penny Tavern. The Bair's worked with the Quarry Town developer and opened up a more upscale restaurant to their Bair's Sports Grille locations. The Rock Food & Friends at The Quarry opened on June 10 of last year, but most locals know it as "The Rock".
I pulled into the parking lot of The Rock around 6 p.m. on a weekday evening. (see map) The parking lot is elevated behind the building and also is used by other businesses and apartments that are in the immediate area. One of the more interesting vehicles in the parking lot was this 2007 Lincoln Crown Victoria police-issue car that had Beer Patrol decals all over it. It appeared to be a rolling advertisement for either a local distillery or for drinking beer, in general. We sort of marveled at both the ingenuity of the vehicle and the possible problems the driver could get into if he'd been drinking a little before getting behind the wheel to head to another bar. "Only in Springfield," one of my guests mused looking over he car before we turned to walk into the restaurant.
The Rock's decor is sort of a contemporary industrial look. Wooden trusses lined a vaulted ceiling above the bar and dining area. Limestone wall and corner accents were found around the room with a half-wall separating the bar area with high-top tables from the dining area that had low-tops. Large flat screen televisions were placed around the room giving The Rock sort of an upscale sports pub feeling. And there was a very nice deck out in front of the place, but it was sort of spitting rain so no one was using it.
We sat at a table along the half-wall opposite the bar area and were greeted by McKenna, a young lady who would be our server that evening. They had Kona Big Wave on tap - I immediately liked the place when I found that out - and I ordered one of those up. One of my guests got the O'Fallon Hemp Hop Rye, a hoppy amber ale made by the O'Fallon Brewery located in the St. Louis suburb of Maryland Heights.
The menu at The Rock features a number of appetizers and sharable plates. One of which was the buffalo cauliflower that came highly recommended by one of the guys. They were about a dozen deep-fried cauliflower tops that were then rolled into a sweet Sriracha sauce. Chopped celery, cilantro and scallions were mixed in with shredded gruyere cheese. It was actually very good. Other appetizers they had included an ahi tuna poké, and peppadew peppers stuffed with blue crabmeat and pork belly seasoned with Cajun spices and finished with boursin cheese. Now, I really should have ordered that just to see what that was all about.
The main menu at The Rock consisted of a handful of entrees including a blue crabmeat mac & cheese, lemon pepper chicken, seafood dishes, and steaks. They had artisan pizzas made with cauliflower crust on the menu at The Rock in addition to a handful of burgers and sandwiches. A la carte sides such as quinoa, sautéed zucchini sticks, cauliflower rice, and lo mein noodles were on the menu, as well.
One of my guests got the grilled ahi tuna - sushi grade tuna that was seared and served with two sides. He got the steamed broccoli and the brown rice to go with it. I didn't get a photo of that, but it looked pretty good. But I did get a picture of my other guest's choice that evening - the Slab burger. It was a 1/2 lb. beef patty topped with grilled ham, cheddar cheese slices, sautéed onions and finished off with an apple habanero barbecue sauce all of which came on a toasted brioche bun. Fries were supposed to come with the burger, but he asked to substitute the steamed broccoli. My guest had had the Slab burger before and he said it was already his favorite thing on the menu.
I went with the ahi tuna tacos. Fries also came on the side with them, but I wasn't interested in either eating the fries nor substituting them out for another side. It was the same sushi-grade ahi tuna that my guest had and it was served in a soft flour tortilla with chopped tomatoes, a kale slaw, and topped with a garlic/sweet chile "Boom Boom" sauce. Shredded cheddar cheese was supposed to come on the tacos, but I had our server hold that. They were actually pretty good. They had a very rich taste without a hint of fishiness from the ahi tuna and they were very filling. They hit the spot very well that evening.
I've eaten at a number of restaurants over the years in the Springfield area and I'm pretty impressed with many that I've tried. The Rock is a nice addition to the restaurant scene in the area, a nice spot for a meal. I can't say the food was bad, far from it. But many of the items were derivatives of popular foods found at many restaurants. I thought my ahi tuna tacos were fine, but my guests seemed to really like their meals. The Rock has a pretty good craft beer list, and the environment was pleasant and comfortable. I'd say, sure, check it out if you're looking for upscale barfood in a leisurely setting.
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