Runs with knives!
The Iron Horse Inn Restaurant & Vintner Select presents: Frog’s Leap Winery This evening, we dined at the Iron Horse Inn for their monthly “third-Tuesday” wine dinner, this one focusing on wines from Frog’s Leap Winery. First Course Fried Spicy Salmon Roll, Plum Sauce &…
This evening was the first-Saturday Wine Dinner at the Iron Horse Inn. Wendy & I joined a bunch of friends at the table for a great meal. Our party was 13 people strong! We love taking new people to the Iron Horse — all we have to…
Tonight’s wine dinner was very nice — Wendy & I joined Cindy, Mo, Angel, and Greg for a very nice meal at the Iron Horse Inn. Chris & Devin did a nice job of explaining the wines.
First Course
Deconstructed Spicy Crab Sushi
Clean State Riesling
I really liked the Riesling. The first taste was almost overpoweringly sweet, but the second (and subsequent) tastes were much more balanced. It went very nicely with the crab sushi, which was “deconstructed” — the components of the dish — nori, spices, crab, and a sauce — were spread out on the plate.
Second Course
Grilled Salmon, Creamy Rosemary Polenta, Tomato Gravy
Bootleg Chianti
The saLmon (hi Mo!) and the polenta went well together, the gravy and the polenta were okay together, but the combination of all three components was less than the sum of its parts. The wine (which was good) was paired with the gravy and tasted pretty good, but the overall dish and wine wasn’t one of my favorite pairings.
Third Course
Pork Tenderloin, Truffled Wild Mushroom Blue Cheese Compote
Bootleg Southern Red
I didn’t care for the blue cheese component to the mushroom compote, but I was shouted down by my tablemates, who liked it. The pork was well-prepared, moist, tender, and flavorful. The pairing with the wine — which is a blend of 25% Primitivio, 25% Negroamaro, 25% Montepulciano, 25% Uva di Troia — was very nice.
Fourth Course
Vanilla Bruleed Rack Of Lamb, Toasted Couscous, Grape Tomatoes, Baby Spinach
Root One Cabernet Sauvignon
Before & during this course, we sampled a duck breast dish that we enjoyed at a previous wine dinner and has now been added to the dinner menu at the Iron Horse. Man, that’s a good dish! The rack of lamb was a nice compliment to the duck, and was an excellent course in its own right. I really like couscous and could eat a large bowl of it, and it went nicely with the lamb, which was crusted with a bit of vanilla sugar. The Cab was a nice wine and paired well.
Dessert
Chocolate Flourless Torte, Espresso Anglaise, Blackberry Compote
Unico (Gran Reserve) Cabernet Sauvignon
As loyal readers of this site know, I am not a huge fan of chocolate desserts, but this torte was very nice. The anglaise was very good, and the compote was a necessary ‘high note’ of sweetness.
After dinner, Angel, Wendy, Greg, and I sat around and talked (and drank — thanks for the Moscato d’Asti, Angel!) for a couple hours. It was a nice visit to end a nice meal!
I learned recently that the IRON HORSE INN, long a fixture in the Glendale restaurant scene, has closed its doors. I’ve got mixed feelings about this closure. We’ve spent many enjoyable evenings at the Iron Horse over the last 5+ years, from the time we…
Closed since early January 2008, the IRON HORSE INN in Glendale Ohio has recently reopened. The building has a storied history, and it is great to see it open again under new ownership. Wendy and I have dined there twice as guests of the restaurant.…
At the end of October, it was my month again to pick for the monthly outing of the Happy Mouth Supper Club. I selected the Iron Horse Inn, which has newly reopened in Glendale after being closed for a while. Chef Stefan Marcus is at the stove, and does a very nice job!
Almost the entire Happy Mouth group was there (with a few guests: Beth, Julie, and Terry) and we were seated downstairs in the restaurant’s formal dining room. Our server took exceptional care of us all night.
We started with a mussels appetizer compliments of the Chef, then went into other appetizers — the excellent Red Pepper Bisque and the night’s special soup of Creamed Spinach and Cognac. Both were awesome, as were the Lobster Strudles we enjoyed. Afterward, Chef sent out a small green salad with duck confit. The salad was lightly dressed, and the duck confit was very tasty.
After that, it was into entrees. Everyone fell quiet, which is a sure sign that people are enjoying their meals quite a bit! Desserts were great, too!
Recently, The Iron Horse Inn started offering Sunday brunch, from 10a-3p (reservations encouraged but not required). Wendy and I stopped by last Sunday and really enjoyed the selections from Chef Jackson Rouse and crew. They have a varied brunch menu, including a quiche of the…