As August drew to a close, I was honored to be invited by friends to close out the birthday month with dinner at The Rock House Eatery in Guntersville, Alabama. We have enjoyed dining at this restaurant, and I realized I have never written a blog post about this great restaurant. So now is the time!
From their website: A vision for a family-owned local restaurant came to fruition as Joey Duncan, and Chef son Brandon’s dream for Rock House Eatery opened in downtown Guntersville Alabama in summer 2009. Joey’s warm personality and knowledge of food along with Brandon’s culinary training at Le Cordon Bleu culminated into a restaurant concept offering fresh, innovative cuisine which, to this day, remains so very popular to its patrons and visitors in Guntersville and the surrounding area.
Their menu offers a wide variety of Southern favorites including fried green tomatoes, steaks, and pasta dishes. Burgers and pizzas are on the menu as well. We ordered a wide variety of dishes and empty plates gave proof how much we enjoyed our meal.
Bo Duncan is a wonderful host and greets everyone with a warm smile that immediately makes you feel at home. Our reserved table sign made sure everyone knew it was a birthday meal for me!
The Rock House Eatery has a full bar which features many local beers. Fresh warm bread with seasoned olive oil for dipping was promptly delivered to the table for us to enjoy while we perused the menu.
We started our meal with the Southern staple: fried green tomatoes. These are not your typical cornmeal-crusted green tomatoes. Their version features fried green tomatoes, crumbled bacon, and homemade cilantro-mint jelly.
I always enjoy an appetizer portion of tuna tataki: Ahi tuna, chili-ginger tahini, spicy apricot wasabi soy. The picture is just one slice of the appetizer portion, which we all shared. An Ahi Tuna Salad is also available, and it is fantastic!
Now on the entrees! Entrees are served with two sides: wild rice, garlic sauteed spinach with purple onion, veggie stir fry, baked potato, garlic smashed potatoes, baked sweet potato or veggie of the day.
Sweet Harold chose the BBQ double-cut center-cut pork chop with a choice of sauces (sweet-n-spicy bbq, mango chutney, Asian ginger lime, hoisin garlic). For his sides, he selected garlic smashed potatoes and green beans. The pork chop was perfectly grilled, and he ate every bite!
Dinner Companion #1 chose the Pan Seared Salmon seasoned with house herbs, fresh dill topped with a fresh lemon-dill sauce. Selected sides were the same as Sweet Harold's. Our server suggested the salmon be cooked per "chef's choice." Dinner Companion #1 reported it was perfect.
Dining Companion #2 selected one of the special of the night: Grilled Swordfish topped with Pineapple Mango Chutney. Apologies for the slightly blurry picture. Sides were sauteed spinach and smashed potatoes. I had a sample bite of the swordfish, and it was not as "heavy" as some swordfish I've had in the past. I'd order this one if it's on the menu again!
Last but not least, I chose the other special of the night: Chicken Piccata with roasted potatoes and green beans. I am a sucker for any dish that includes capers and lemons. Perfectly cooked chicken with a light breading and the sauce had a great consistency. I adore roasted potatoes, and these were well seasoned as were the green beans.
One of the Rock House Eatery's signature desserts is the bread pudding! I am not a fan of raisins, so I usually pass on this one, but all of our diners LOVE this dessert.
For me, I requested a dish of Blue Bell Vanilla Ice Cream with Chocolate Syrup. Our server graciously made that request happen complete with a birthday candle!
Another excellent meal at the Rock House with efficient service with a great smile and attitude. There's always a fun atmosphere and fantastic food. Thank you to Bo and all the staff for making my birthday meal perfect!
Amazing sounding food.
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