Friday night provided some nice wine experiences and dinner in Ashland.
Free tasting at Once Upon a Vine on MacArthur - The ever pleasant and very knowledgable Charlie Knight poured selections from White Hall Vineyards. Our favorite was the 2006 Petit Verdot. Virginia is producing some very good Petit Verdot. It may be worth a few road trips to try some more.
Next we drove to Ashland. Before dinner we visited The Caboose for a free wine tasting. The knock-our-socks-off choice here was 2006 Avieso Reserve Malbec Mendoza from Vinos de los Andes. The most hearty malbec I have ever tried.
On to dinner at Iron Horse Restaurant. The was the first time we had been.
Pros - Very good wine list with reds in all price categories from the high elegance of Chateau Gloria ($72) to the very drinkable Montebuena Rioja ($20). Great Fried Oyster appetizer -very sweet with just the right amount of breading. Large portion entrees (House-Brined Pork Chop and Brazilian Rubbed Rib Eye) ensured that no one left hungry and both meats were delicious. Reservations were made on Open Table. One other plus - watching the trains roll by.
Cons - Half of the establishment was a bar/pub with a live band later in the eveing, the other half was fine dining. We were not able to join the live band because that area allowed smoking. The noise from the bar echoed around the dining room, thus our table for two was not very intimate. The side dishes were less than par. My roasted red potatoes were raw and crunchy (inedible for me). Also, while the highest priced dish on the menu was $27 for a NY Strip, my Rib Eye special turned out to be a whopping $35 (discovered when the bill was presented). For this price, my potatoes should have been perfect. For dessert we shared a poached pear and pound cake, but we were not told that it would be accompanied by a raspberry sauce. I can't stand raspberry and had to send it back.
Best perk of the evening - Our wine. We selected a 2004 Provenance Vineyards Merlot, Napa Valley for $40. A tasty bottle at a very good price.
Free tasting at Once Upon a Vine on MacArthur - The ever pleasant and very knowledgable Charlie Knight poured selections from White Hall Vineyards. Our favorite was the 2006 Petit Verdot. Virginia is producing some very good Petit Verdot. It may be worth a few road trips to try some more.
Next we drove to Ashland. Before dinner we visited The Caboose for a free wine tasting. The knock-our-socks-off choice here was 2006 Avieso Reserve Malbec Mendoza from Vinos de los Andes. The most hearty malbec I have ever tried.
On to dinner at Iron Horse Restaurant. The was the first time we had been.
Pros - Very good wine list with reds in all price categories from the high elegance of Chateau Gloria ($72) to the very drinkable Montebuena Rioja ($20). Great Fried Oyster appetizer -very sweet with just the right amount of breading. Large portion entrees (House-Brined Pork Chop and Brazilian Rubbed Rib Eye) ensured that no one left hungry and both meats were delicious. Reservations were made on Open Table. One other plus - watching the trains roll by.
Cons - Half of the establishment was a bar/pub with a live band later in the eveing, the other half was fine dining. We were not able to join the live band because that area allowed smoking. The noise from the bar echoed around the dining room, thus our table for two was not very intimate. The side dishes were less than par. My roasted red potatoes were raw and crunchy (inedible for me). Also, while the highest priced dish on the menu was $27 for a NY Strip, my Rib Eye special turned out to be a whopping $35 (discovered when the bill was presented). For this price, my potatoes should have been perfect. For dessert we shared a poached pear and pound cake, but we were not told that it would be accompanied by a raspberry sauce. I can't stand raspberry and had to send it back.
Best perk of the evening - Our wine. We selected a 2004 Provenance Vineyards Merlot, Napa Valley for $40. A tasty bottle at a very good price.
If we lived in Ashland, we might frequent Iron Horse occasionally (sticking to the menu offerings where the prices are known), but given the uneveness of our experience, we would be hard-pressed to drive the extra miles from Richmond.
2 comments:
Did the kitchen send you a new dessert? If so, how was the taste.
Hi there RCFW - Joseph Comfort here. I'm the owner of IRON HORSE. Just want to thank you for the post and the commentary. I want to take a moment to assure you that it is an absolute standard of service to announce the price of all specials to our guests - the guest should never be surprised. The same should be said about the dessert "surprise". These are consistent training issues and I will be using your blog as a training tool.
With white tablecloths (though covered with butcher paper) it's hard to shake the moniker "fine dining", but we try very hard to be an upscale-casual American Brasserie with all entrees under $30, kid friendly, etc. We step out with our specials as you had with the Dry-Aged Ribeye on the night of your visit.
I really am glad that you appreciated the value in our wine list. All BTG selections are under $9.00, with most around 6.50 for a 5.5 oz glass. Bottle prices are very competitive and in some cases 30% under venerable restaurants in Church Hill, Oregon Hill and Cary Town! As a long time restaurateur I've had it with overpriced and "trophy" wine lists. Give me valid wine that is well-thought to for the concept and the food.
Thanks for the space to respond and keep up the good work. I hope that you will return soon and take another look - I've brought on a new chef-partner and have been spending some time on the line myself.
Richmond is coming along in many ways and it's great to see blogs that boost the folks that are doing good work. Best to you.
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