F is for Family, the Feasting Fox and Fountains on Locust

Well, we deviated from the usual.  Wendy and I are usually alone or accompanied by our pre-teen aged foodie, but on this night, we had my daughter and her two children (5 years and 20 months) with us. 
 
Pre-teen foodie is easy to take anywhere even when he's whining about our dining location choice.  The other two children and their mother are another story.  On this evening, we were later than usual getting to the restaurant.  When we arrived, their were two couples in the VERY QUIET dining room.  There was music coming from the bar area, but it didn't overcome the VERY QUIET.  Let me tell you, my two small grandsons do not do VERY QUIET often.  It didn't take long before the 5 year old was building scaffolding out of the multitude of silverware on the table.  The little one did not want to sit in a high chair and the food needed to arrive quickly before my very stressed and tired daughter (she teaches first grade and had been with children since waking) exploded.
 
We ordered multiple appetizers.  All of us enjoyed the Parmesan Cheese Puffs.  The cheese had been piped onto the center of small pieces of toasted French bread using a large star tip and then it looked to have been put under the broiler to get a quick brown.  The older of the two grandchildren could have eaten the whole plate of these things.  They were good and he loved them.  His dairy intolerant brother only got the dry toast, but he, too enjoyed the appetizers.

The German Sausage Sampler was also enjoyed by all.  The plate held a variety of sausages including our Sausage Wellington, a mild sausage wrapped in puff pastry, sliced thin and served with horseradish cream sauce.  I believe that puff pastry makes everything better, but believed that this sausage and cream sauce would have stood alone.  It was delightful.

The reason my one and only child joined us was for the potato pancakes and she chose the right time and place for great potato pancakes.  They were perfectly seasoned shredded potatoes with just the right amount of crisp and fluffy.  Served with chunky applesauce, they were a big hit with all six of us.

The chicken tenders were ordered for the grandchildren's dinners.  They were also a big hit.  Large pieces of chicken, perfectly breaded and fried.  Served with ranch dressing, they were really good.

Our waiter, Brad, was very patient as he continued to refill the lemonade that the kids drank as though it were from the fountain of youth. 

Pre-teen foodie ordered French Onion Soup, that he didn't like.  It was not Famous-Barr's recipe, but had a nice flavor in spite of having a much thinner broth that what was expected.  He also ordered scallops that were served on a bed of creamed spinach along side mashed potatoes.  He said they were good and from the looks of his plate at the end of the meal, they were very much enjoyed.

His mother ordered Huhn Schnitzel.  Since Wendy doesn't like mushrooms, I got the mushrooms and some of the cream sauce that it the tender chick was served with.  Yum!

My daughter enjoyed the special - baked Pork Loin with mashed potatoes and glazed shredded carrots.  Carrots that the mother of my grandson's said that she could eat all day long.  She loved them even though she thought the pork was a little dry.

I had the sauerbraten.  Tender pieces of beef that were also served with mashed potatoes and sweet and sour cabbage.  Wendy and I both worked for Grone's Cafeteria and even though we were employed there ten years apart, both of us recall the wonderful taste of the Monday Night Special of sauerbraten and potato pancakes.  While my dinner was good at the Feasting Fox, it did not compare to that of the sauerbraten served by the Grone family.

With all of us full, almost content to sit in our chairs and the scaffolding taken down, we decided to head to Fountains on Locust for dessert.  The orders included Brownie in a Cup, served with ice cream, two Bearcat Specials, two Banana Bourbons and one Pinapple Cup made with dairy-free raspberry sorbet.  I could go on and on about Fountains on Locust, but let me just tell you that you must try it yourself and that all adults with any sense of good taste should try the Banana Bourbon.  Their website:  www.fountainonlocust.com