My search for out-of-the-way Midwest dining jewels encompassed more than 600 miles, three states and one hotel that I hope never to revisit.
And it was totally worth it.
Effingham, Ill.
So accustomed is one to the endless “Aretha Franklin vista” (chain, chain, chain) of branded restaurants lining the exits of Interstate Highway 57, that at first glance, the Firefly Grill — almost defiantly local, clearly one of a kind — looks paradoxically out of place.
But Firefly Grill clearly belongs. Kristie Campbell was born in Effingham, and though she moved away as a child, she returned frequently, spending untold summer evenings catching fireflies in her grandmother’s back yard. She and her husband, chef Niall Campbell, were in California when local investors pounced.
“They said that Effingham was ripe for a fine-dining restaurant, that the area was starving for something real,” Niall said.
The decision was as easy as coming up with the name.
Firefly Grill isn’t purely green, but it’s not for lack of effort. The restaurant is built from recycled steel; the walls are reclaimed barnwood. The wood-fired grill, rotisserie and pizza oven are fueled by scraps of seasoned oak from a local milling company. Next to the restaurant is a small herb and vegetable garden, which is irrigated by an adjacent man-made pond.
Despite the vaulted ceiling and wide-open sightlines, the interior is meant to evoke a sense of home. The display kitchen puts chefs and customers face to face, or nearly so, and there are homey handwritten signs overhead. The black-and-white photos on the wall are from the Campbells’ wedding.
The menu is solidly contemporary Midwestern, though there’s a fair amount of seafood from the West Coast, thanks to the Campbells’ California connections from Niall’s days cooking at the Lark Creek Inn near San Francisco. “I can talk [to a purveyor] at 8 a.m., and the fish will be here at 8 the next morning,” he said.
The rest of the menu’s ingredients are locally sourced, but the dishes are hardly tradition-bound. St. Louis-area elk shows up inside empanadas along with goat cheese and a lively salsa. Lamb rib chops are trimmed to resemble meaty lollipops and arrive with a tzatziki dipping sauce. There are burgers and salads, pizzas and pastas, and even sushi (formerly known as bait in this part of the world) on Wednesdays. And very little costs more than $20.
It’s worth the $26 to tuck into the Montana Mignon, which Niall dubs a “Wellington for the Midwest,” because the medium-rare filet is topped with barbecue sauce, bacon and boursin cheese before being enveloped in a puff-pastry blanket. The oak-grilled pork porterhouse, a massive chop at a ridiculously low $16 price, is a big seller, whether served in natural jus or slathered with the house barbecue sauce.
“It’s tons of fun,” Kristie said, “because we’re bringing a lot of dishes into the area. Many of our regular clients don’t even look at the menu when they come in; they just ask us to send out whatever we recommend.”
The one-page wine list on the back of the menu is nevertheless a serious document, ranging from easy-drinking reds and whites under $40 (there are two dozen of those) to big-name bottles such as Silver Oak cabernet sauvignon, Duckhorn merlot and Cain 5 meritage approaching (and some exceeding) $100.
The clientele is as wide-ranging as the menu. You’ll see coat-and-tie businessmen and bandanna-topped bikers at adjoining tables, with a cadre of church ladies in the corner. When prom season arrives, as it should any day now, for a few special evenings the dining room becomes a parade of pastels.
Firefly Grill, 1810 Avenue of Mid America, Effingham, 217-342-2002; ffgrill.com.Distance from Chicago: 210 miles.
Bloomington, Ind.
College towns usually have a couple of worthwhile restaurants, and the home of Indiana University is no exception. Well, one exception. Restaurant Tallent, in the heart of Bloomington’s cute downtown, isn’t just a good college-town restaurant. Airlift this contemporary-American jewel into one of Chicago’s hot restaurant neighborhoods, and it would easily acquit itself.
The aptly named David Tallent is the chef; his wife, Kristen, is the pastry chef. The two are local natives — she from Bloomington and he from Indianapolis and South Bend — and both are Culinary Institute of America graduates. “We didn’t want to come straight back to Indiana when we finished,” David said. “We figured we wouldn’t have the chance to do anything really cool. But when the opportunity presented itself, we made a leap of faith that we could cook the way we wanted.”
That was five years ago. So far, so good.
The twin dining rooms affect a simple elegance with chocolate and pistachio walls, natural oak floors and arty contemporary light fixtures. The compact dinner menu (Tallent doesn’t offer lunch) has a strong local component that will only become stronger as the local farms spring to life, and most of the produce and meats are organically grown and naturally raised. Entrees hover in the upper $20s for the most part, and there’s a $60, five-course tasting menu (available Monday-Thursday).
There’s always a daily foie gras preparation (Hudson Valley foie gras is one of Tallent’s few imports), likely something whimsical like Tallent’s “breakfast for dinner” plate, which places the seared foie gras over a large buttermilk biscuit, along with sunny-side-up quail eggs, homemade bacon and a blackstrap-molasses gastrique.
A truffled farm egg, coddled in a hunk of toasted brioche in a sort of gourmet toad-in-the-hole presentation, accompanies a salad of local asparagus with artisan goat cheese and splashes of 25-year-old balsamic vinegar.
Main courses might include Lake Superior walleye with a profusion of thin-shaved spring vegetables, or thickly sliced elk loin with buttery polenta, ramps and wild mushrooms.
Dazzling service knows every detail of the menu and has charm to spare.
The wine list numbers just over 100 bottles and is designed for the price-conscious customer; whites and reds are grouped into $26, $36 and $46 price levels (about a dozen each per level), plus “Worth the Splurge” categories for tough-to-find whites and reds.
Tallent credits much of the restaurant’s success to the local growers. “They really got behind us,” he said. “Bloomington has the most amazing farmers market. It’s made it so much easier to have the freshest, best-tasting food.”
Restaurant Tallent, 208 N. Walnut St., Bloomington, 812-330-9801; restauranttallent.com. Distance from Chicago: 232 miles.
Mt. Vernon, Iowa
To reach Matt Steigerwald’s quaint Lincoln Cafe, you hop off Interstate Highway 80 and venture north 20 miles or so to the tiny town of Mt. Vernon (population 3,390, says the 2000 census).
That sounds like a pretty remote location, but the restaurant is actually equidistant from Iowa City and Cedar Rapids, which provides more than enough population to draw upon. Because Lincoln Cafe, which sits in a circa 1905 building that has housed a confectionery and a clothing store in its history, has only 45 seats, and that’s counting the stools at the counter.
And when the weather’s nice, the place, stools and all, fills up. Every day at lunch, every night beginning around 5:30 p.m. The locals have learned to arrive early, because Lincoln Cafe doesn’t accept reservations. It’s pretty much first-come, first-served, although if you call ahead, you’ll get put on the waiting list.
“It’s not a perfect system, but if you know the drill, it works fairly well,” Steigerwald said. “It’s really only an issue for four months out of the year.”
If you have to wait a bit, which is a safe bet, wander four doors west to Lincoln Wine Bar. Lincoln Cafe doesn’t have a liquor license, you see, but the Wine Bar, also run by Steigerwald and his wife, Michelle Mouton, does. So you can relax with a glass of wine and purchase a bottle or half-bottle to enjoy with dinner. (Bottles purchased at the wine bar are exempt from the $10 corkage fee.) Prices are somewhere between retail and restaurant markup.
Steigerwald said he wanted to create a restaurant that “really would serve the local community,” and so the main menu is very simple and affordable, full of sandwiches and a truly impressive $5 hamburger. To see what Steigerwald really can do, check out the chalkboard, which is framed with white Christmas lights; this is where the chef lists his daily specials — usually an appetizer, three entrees (typically in the upper $20s) and a dessert or two.
The appetizer might be a bounty of plump mussels, served with romesco aioli-smeared croutons. One night the entrees options included a pair of roasted quail with artichokes and bacon over calasparra rice (a Spanish rice typically used in paella) and a mushroom-pistachio salad; and a thick Black Angus rib-eye steak with crispy potatoes, Maytag blue cheese and bourbon-laced jus. Entrees include a green salad or the day’s soup (a delicious cream of parsnip one night).
Desserts are pretty down-home, but Steigerwald will throw in a twist now and again. He’ll fashion a baked Alaska with chilled chocolate mousse and a spiced creme anglaise, while at the same time offering Ritz-Cracker ice cream (it’s very odd, but the ice cream tastes exactly like a Ritz) with a tart cherry-plum compote.
Steigerwald cooked for more than five years at the acclaimed Magnolia Grill in Durham, N.C. What brought him to Iowa was nearby Cornell College, which offered Mouton a teaching position eight years ago. The pair moved to Mt. Vernon in 2000, opened the cafe the following year, and Steigerwald has been growing accustomed to the winters ever since.
Lincoln Cafe, 117 1st St. W., Mt. Vernon, 319-895-4041; foodisimportant.com. Distance from Chicago: 225 miles.
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When you’re not busy eating . . .
Effingham, Ill.
Nicknamed “The Crossroads of Opportunity” because it joins Interstate Highways 57 and 70, Effingham is home to quaint, historic buildings, a handful of gorgeous lakes . . . and the world’s largest cross (at the crossroads, natch). visiteffinghamil.com
THREE TO SEE:
– Lake Sara Effingham may be landlocked, but with an 800-acre lake just outside of town, does it matter? Surrounded by golf courses, resorts and a pretty, winding road, it’s a major draw of this small community. Approximately 5 miles NW of downtown.
– Ballard Nature Center The town itself is overrun with chain restaurants and hotels, but just due west are 40 square miles of preserved nature. A number of trails wind over the natural wetlands and prairie, home to dozens of species of birds, snakes, fish and other critters. 618-483-6856; ballardnaturecenter.org
– Ingram’s Pioneer Log Cabin Village Thirty miles southwest of town in Kinmundy, Ill., is this cluster of 16 pre-Civil War residential log cabins and Jacob’s Well, a former stagecoach stop where Abraham Lincoln and Jesse James occasionally boarded for 6 cents a night. 618-547-7123; iplcv.com
Bloomington, Ind.
A bustling college town thanks to Indiana University, Bloomington is, er, blooming with activity and attractions. www.visitbloomington.com
THREE TO SEE:
– Bloomington Community Farmers Market Bloomington’s market takes over the entire City Hall every Saturday, and every second Saturday visual arts and crafts are on display with the edibles. There’s also a satellite market on Tuesdays across town, for a twice-weekly farmers market fix. 812-349-3738
– The Kinsey Institute Home to one of Indiana University’s most talked about academic disciplines, the Kinsey Institute is more than a center for research in sex, gender and reproduction. The Kinsey Institute Gallery, for example, is exhibiting its third annual juried art show, through July 25. 812-855-7686; kinseyinstitute.org
– Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center A couple miles south of town lies the only dedicated Tibetan cultural center in the nation — and it’s gorgeous. A sprawling 90 acres of manicured grounds, the center is open to the public during the day, and Sunday afternoon meditations and teachings welcome drop-ins. 812-331-0014; tibetancc.com
Mt. Vernon, Iowa
Beyond a small shopping district, historic homes and picturesque Cornell College on the hill, Mt. Vernon is a quiet little town. Its proximity to Iowa City and Cedar Rapids, however, offer options. mountvernoniowa.org
THREE TO SEE:
– Herbert Hoover National Historic Site Hoover was born in 1874 in a two-room cottage about 25 miles south of Mt. Vernon, and it’s still standing. Today, the massive Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum, thorough visitor center and pleasant picnic areas make the site worth a detour. 319-643-5301, hoover.nara.gov
– Lake Macbride State Park It’s easy to forget you’re in the middle of Iowa while visiting this well-preserved slice of nature. Fishing, boating, hiking, swimming and camping are all on the agenda at this park, which dips into Coralville Lake, about 15 miles south of town. 319-624-2200
– The Amana Colonies Located about 30 miles southwest of Mt. Vernon, this collection of seven villages is one of the country’s longest-lived communal societies. Local artisans’ studios, shops and historic buildings line the streets here, where handmade furniture sells as well as the art . . . and then there’s the food, from baked goods and smoked meats to traditional German sweets. 800-579-2294, amanacolonies.com
— Lauren Viera
