There’s a new aroma in the Old City–one that wafts with the familiar charred scent of well-cooked steaks. But it’s one that also carries accents of animal proteins that haven’t often or regularly found their way to the public kitchens of Knoxville. When Chef Tim Love throws open the doors of Lonesome Dove Knoxville tonight, he’ll do it with the help of cattle, of course, along with some goats, pheasants, elks, rabbits, rattlesnakes and more.
Sitting at the corner of Jackson and Central in what may forever be known as Patrick Sullivan’s Saloon, the Lonesome Dove Bistro raises the stakes and prices of Old City dining. Love promises a fine dining experience in what he call “a boisterous atmosphere… Our service is very formal but the atmosphere is very fun.” First courses run $10-15 and most mains hover in the $30 bracket.
The building has been retooled, refitted, and redesigned into a sleek mix of dark wood, Edison-style illumination, and some decor from the former occupants (if you remember the penny bar, you’ll find it in the private dining hall upstairs). All of the changes sit beneath imposing chandeliers–some well hung with antlers—that recall something one might see in a hunting lodge that a Hapsburg would find homey.
There is a sense of the hunt here—Love says that the antlers in the air are all the product of serious deer stalking—and the menu reflects it. Though it’s tempting to call the Lonesome Dove yet another addition to the high end steak house market—there’s a pricey Waygu ribeye on offer along with beef and bison steaks priced by the ounce—the sheer variety of fauna being roasted, grilled, and fried give the menu a rich diversity of the sort that makes foodies faint and swoon.
Perhaps you’re craving pheasant enchiladas, or a roulade of chukar, quail, and peasant, or even a crispy goat crepinette? Love has answered your prayers.
Even though it might seem like a carnivorous den of iniquity, Love insists that, “We love our vegetables.” And it appears that that’s true—the veggies get loving attention and adornment that include grace notes like Calabrian chili, Oregon truffle, and local honey, too. There’s squash carpaccio and a mesquite grilled cauliflower steak that makes a pretty damn tasty read even alongside a ringer like duck breast with duck foie gras sausage and pickled nectarines.
Love aims high with wine service plans with three sommeliers on staff and plans to fill the wine vault with about 1200 bottles. Of those multitudes, Lonesome Dove will feature 15 by the glass. The bar has a strong Bourbon, tequila, and Mezcal program, but they won’t do much in the way of Scotch since, Love says, “I can just walk across the street to Jig and Reel for that.”
There are a lot of neighborly Tennessee touches here—many of the dishes, including the salt cellars on the tables, are made locally by Rachel Kirk Pottery and some of the glassware comes from just up the street at Pretentious Beer Glass Company.
But the goat comes from Texas.
Lonesome Dove Knoxville opens today at 4:30 p.m.!
100 N. Central St.
Knoxville, TN
(865) 999-5251
lonesomedoveknoxville.com
Dennis Perkins' Home Palate is a tasty exploration of local options for eating out and eating well by way of restaurant reviews, features on fun or unusual foodstuffs, and interviews with local food purveyors and tastemakers. It’s a candid and personal look at what’s right (and sometimes what’s wrong) with eating in Knoxville and its environs. He is also the artistic director of the Knoxville Children’s Theatre, has directed and performed at the Actor’s Co-op and Black Box Theatre, and is a foodie par excellence.
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