March's dinner was at Yellowstone Cafe in Chesterfield. It was snowing quite a bit that day, and made travel for some a bit challenging. Sreenu Dandamudi was the host but was unable to make it. But still, ten brave souls attended. Because of hazardous driving conditions, many diners were late arriving at Yellowstone, including myself, and it was brought to my attention that the hostess wouldn't seat anyone at the table until the whole party arrived - not exactly a great greeting when coming in from out of the cold. They eventually seated most of the party after Shelby could confirm that those not yet present were on their way. We understand that restaurants don't want to waste table space, but the dining room was sparsely occupied and we had called ahead with reservations. Nevertheless, our group was happily seated in the warm "outdoorsy" dining room that had decor reminiscent of the Bass Pro Shop by the time my tardy husband and I arrived.
We had a nice waitress who was quick to take drink orders as we perused the menu. Oh - which reminds me - no beer on tap - only bottles, just an FYI. I was really looking forward to a frosty cold one, however the waitress was happy to supply me with a frosted glass so I could pretend it was draft. Another quirk to mention is the bathroom. The bathroom was a single stall, unisex bathroom, located right off the dining room with just a little drywall to separate it from our table. We deducted, however, that given the restaurant location, the space was most likely retail space originally, so Yellowstone had to work with what they had, and they did seem to make the most of it, as it was nice and clean. You may just wish to ask for seating that is not so conveniently located by the bathroom if this sort of thing erks you. It didn't bother me at all, and I'm not sure if it necessarily bothered anyone else, but the topic did come up amongst the diners.
Next, appetizer orders were placed, and instead of bread and butter, the restaurant provided crackers and cheese spread, which proved quite tasty. I tried the crab cakes and they were delicious! The dinner menu was expansive and very reasonably priced, with salads, sandwiches and burgers in the $8-10 range, and entrees and pasta dishes for $15-20. I didn't hear any complaints over anyone's dinner selection. A few folks ordered the Walleye, a featured menu item, and quite enjoyed it. Some entrees were a little on the salty side, but flavorful still.
And then there was dessert. This was probably the highlight of the evening. Yellowstone had a great dessert selection of cobblers, pies, etc. and the options excited the crowd. I must say the caramel apple pie was amazing. Also available is a variety of fun-flavored coffees that are more like desserts in their own right - they at least sound amazing but you'll have to see for yourself as we opted for the fully-loaded desserts instead of drinks.
All in all, it was an enjoyable evening and the food was down-home good. I think I'd rate this restaurant with 3.5 out of 5 spoons. What do you think of Yellowstone? Rate and post thoughts below!
I thought the decor could use an update, but it was woodsy and if you like that sort of thing - it's right up your alley. My chicken was excellently prepared - but the sauce they drenched it in was not very good and kind of looked slimy (but it wasn't). I appreciated our cheerful and plesant waitress, and felt bad that she didn't get a bigger tip for her hard work. The gratuity was automatically included and there was no line to add more money - the auto add was definitely below my standard rounded up 20%. Several of us commented on this - but none of us had cash - afterall, it is 2011. I like a good glass of wine with my dinner, so I wish they had a better wine list. I never order dessert, but it sounded amazing so I gave the peach cobbler a whirl - it was very good. I'd say the restaurant gets 3 stars in my book.
ReplyDeleteThe cheese spread and crackers was delicious! Unfortunately that was the highlight of my meal. The soup and pasta was average and the dessert was way, way, way too sweet. All in all, I thought Yellowstone Cafe was a decent neighborhood restaurant
ReplyDeleteGood bar food (with a twist). I had a grilled chicken sandwich with fries - its hard to go too wrong with that and they didn't. The cheese spread and crackers in lieu of bread did seem a bit ticky tack at first but I agree they were quite tasty. I agree with the comments about our waitress- she was pleasant and competent. This being my first GDC dinner, the best part for me was the company and conversation! The take away for Yellowstone is it's worth checking out if you're in that neck of the woods but otherwise probably not worth the drive.
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