Terre Haute (IN) Food Find
Here's some good food news for those in reach of Terre Haute. We had dinner at Button Woods at Sycamore Farm last night, combining my husband's birthday celebration with some research I am doing for a book on local food products and the restaurants that serve them. Button Woods is big on the local food thing, serving lunch Wednesday - Friday, and dinner only on Saturday night. It's a B&B so we decided to stay over night, driving back to Bloomington today.
We got there in the late afternoon, with dinner reservations for 6:00. The old farmhouse (1860s vintage, but beautifully redone) is lovely. There are several dining rooms downstairs – including one cozy room with a fireplace for chilly evenings. On this sunny summer eve, however, we sat in a glassed-in room with filled with evening light and a view of the patio and gazebo. The menu was enticing – lots of local as advertised, and some great sounding choices. They bill it as “brasserie style farm fresh cuisine,” and that seems to get it just right. The cooking isn’t fancy or fussy, but it is fresh and honest and delicious.
Chef Kris Kraut’s menu changes weekly but to give you an idea, last night the first courses were chilled tomato buttermilk soup, cool and spicy, and a salad with gorgeous fresh berries, goat cheese and pistachios. Entrees were White Caps (delicate fish cakes made from Michigan white fish and pan fried) with lemon garlic aoli, yellow beans and cherry tomatoes, a Heartland Beef (grass finished!) filet with blueberry barbeque sauce, a Royer Farm leg of lamb, grilled, with red and yellow pepper relish and spiced basmati rice, pineapple chipotle chicken with grilled corn and cilantro butter, and grilled squash and roasted tomatoes in a creamy wine marinara sauce over pasta.
We had both first courses followed by a tiny scoop of citrus watermelon sorbet as an intermezzo, then the beef filet with amazing mashed potatoes – lemony, lumpy and really fabulous, the white caps, which were super, with perfectly seasoned beans, and for dessert a cherry combo (cherry sundae and a spectacular cobbler) and grilled peaches with custard sauce.
And the beauty of it was, when we were done, all we had to do was toddle up the stairs to our room. Perfect!
http://www.thesycamorefarm.com/
I am not sure if I am allowed to link to a blog on ChowHound, but I posted about the dinner here, with pix: http://myplateoryours.typepad.com
myplateoryours
Jul 22, 2007 05:39PM
I ate at ButtonWoods at Sycamore Farms this past Saturday evening. Here is my report.
First, the menu, just to get it out of the way (especially since they don't show it on their website). It states:
"Our brasserie style restaurant strives to bring you the freshest, regional dishes, locally sourced where possible. We are committed to the Slow Food philosophy, and to featuring our community growers and producers whose lifestyle richly reflects the history of this Farm and the Midwest."
First Plates (a choice of either is included in the price of the main course):
- Good Life Farm's Greens with Watermelon, Pine Nuts, and Crumbled Feta with a Michigan Cherry Poppy Seed Dressing
- Chilled Indiana Peach Soup with a Raspberry Drizzle
Second Plates
- Pistachio and Mustard encrusted Indiana Chicken Breast with Horseradish Mustard Cream Sauce served with Roasted Blue and White Sycamore Farm Potatoes ($21)
- Marinated and Pan Roasted Pork Loin with a Cherry Nectarine Salsa served with Indiana Sweet-Corn Succotash ($23)
- Signature White Cpas - Lake Michigan Whitefish served with Lemon Garlic Aioli and Indiana Sweet-Corn Succotash ($22)
- Sirloin Tip Steak Marinated and Grilled with Garlic Quasimodo Sauce served with Roasted Blue and White Sycamore Farm Potatoes ($26)
- Lamb Chops (Chef Special)
Desserts
- Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with Plum Compote ($?)
- Chocolate Mousse Torte with Blackberry Sauce and Creme de Cacao ($5.50)
- Bananas Foster ($?)
I had made my reservation in advance by e-mailing ButtonWoods, and they promptly sent a confirmation.
The restaurant is located in what appears to be the original farm house, with several lovely small rooms holding 1-4 tables each. The property also has a large barn that is now available for banquets (in fact, I believe they are serving their first one today). The service was very friendly and efficient (don't let the note about the "Slow Food philosophy" fool you - the service wasn't overly slow, it was just right).
For the first plate, I had the greens (red leaf arugula) salad, and I had the chicken breast main. Both were excellent. For dessert, I had the chocolate mousse torte; it too was very good (consisting of a layer of cake, topped with a thin layer of mousse, topped with a layer of chocolate ganache).
The greens were preceded by the house ciabatta, served with a sun-dried tomato spread, which was very nice. So was the intermezzo of raspberry-strawberry sorbet served between the first and second courses.
Incidentally, starting next week, ButtonWoods will be open Tuesday for soup and salad at lunchtime, Wednesday-Friday for their farmhouse lunch, and FRIDAY nights for dinner (not Saturday nights, for now). I inquired and they said they have been open a year, and they are still experimenting with their hours; they would like to eventually serve dinner on both Friday and Saturday evenings. Obviously, call (or e-mail) ahead to make sure they will be open when you would like to come.
ButtonWoods at Sycamore Farm is a wonderful local gem for those living in, or visiting, the Terre Haute area. They are serving delicious food in a lovely, yet unpretentious, atmosphere. They also offer outstanding value; the prices are exceedingly reasonable. I extend my appreciation to myplateoryours for the recommendation.
ButtonWoods at Sycamore Farm
5001 East Poplar Drive
Terre Haute IN 47803
812-877-9288
www.thesycamorefarm.com
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