Fine Dining in Maryville Tennessee!

Over the past couple of years we’d heard several positive comments regarding an upscale restaurant located in Maryville Tennessee.  On more than one occasion we’d been told that it was the best restaurant in the Knoxville metropolitan area.  When friends Lynn and George suggested that we get together and then we could judge for ourselves, we jumped at the opportunity… 

Foothills Milling Company is located just a couple of blocks from the center of Maryville Tennessee in a sort of non-descript red brick building.  This is a definite proof that you should never judge a restaurant by the building it’s in… The entry on the other hand, is quite inviting.

The family that owns this restaurant, states that their goal is to “provide fine dining in an elegant yet casual setting”.  

I must admit that although the dining area is simple, it is very tasteful.  The white tablecloths, the spacing between tables and the lighting all contribute to a casual and attractive dining room…

Lynn and George know fine dining!  A few months ago, at their suggestion we checked out another upscale restaurant in the south Knoxville area.  To learn what we thought about that experience, you can go to my blog site at http://bigdaddydavesbitsandpieces.blogspot.com/2013/03/truly-fine-dining-knoxville-tn.html.

Our waiter…who was quite competent and pleasant…started us out with these tasting spoons containing a bit of gazpacho just to wake up our taste buds.  This was a nice touch indeed…

Then he delivered the bread basket.  We all thought that this was perhaps the best bread that any of us had eaten in a restaurant since we’ve been in East Tennessee.  There were 2 types of bread in the basket… One was potato bread and the other was herbal bread.  Both of us couples asked if we could purchase a loaf of the herbal bread…and as it turned out, the chef/baker was able to sell both of us a big slab of the bread for only $5.00!

For an appetizer, Lynn and George shared the Georgia Quail and Biscuit. ($10.00) This consisted of a cheddar cheese biscuit, fried quail, sourwood honey, peach chutney and a smear of sriracha.  Not only was it well presented, it was very nice indeed!

Among other appetizers I noted the following: Salmon Flatbread, ($10.00), with dill cured salmon, shaved red onion, capers and dill mascarpone on fresh baked flatbread and; a Charcuterie Sampler, ($10.00), with bockwurst, currywurst, brown sugar bologna, Amish aged cheddar pimento cheese and toast accompanied by pickles and whole grain mustard.    

Lynn and George had the Baby Spinach Salad with warm bacon Dijon dressing, Benton’s bacon, goat cheese, grape tomatoes, onion and crispy black eyed peas. ($7.00) Nice salad!!

Laurie and I went with the Foothills Caesar Salad. ($6.00) It consisted of romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing and asiago cheese with cornbread croutons.  There was just enough anchovy taste to make this salad pop…very satisfying…

Nothing like a little raspberry sorbet to clean the palate!

I ordered the Cedar Planked Salmon…a salmon filet marinated and roasted on a cedar plank with mashed potatoes and asparagus. ($27.00) It was very very good!

George ordered the Duck and Pork entrée. ($25.00) It consisted of a confit duck leg, knackwurst, smoked pork shoulder and spaetzle with horseradish cream sauce, Benton’s bacon, Brussels’ sprouts and honey mustard vinaigrette.  I got a taste of the duck and it was very good.  As for the knackwurst…well, George reported that it was a decent knackwurst…not special…

Both Lynn and Laurie ordered the Flatiron Steak. ($28.00) This was a prime flatiron steak cooked to medium rare, with spicy grilled shrimp, a masa harina crepe, roasted problano, chorizo, Amish white cheddar cheese and cilantro.  Both of the ladies really enjoyed their dinner!

Other entrée options included: Steak and Potatoes, a center cut Angus filet cooked sous vide to medium, with peppercorn brandy sauce, a loaded potato cake and wild mushroom gratin ($35.00); Horseradish Crusted Amberjack, an amberjack filet with herbed panko crust, crispy herb roasted potatoes and asparagus with green onion remoulade ($26.00), and; Cornmeal Tempura Lobster Tails, Maine lobster tails in crispy cornmeal tempura with jasmine rice, sesame roasted mushrooms, sourwood honey sriracha aioli and sweet chile sauce. ($35.00)

Lynn and George shared this brownie with home-made ice cream, raspberries, nuts plus whipped cream with lots of chocolate sauce. ($8.00) It was very good…the plate was so clean when they were done, that it almost didn’t have to be washed!

Laurie and I finished our dinner with this berry cobbler with ice cream and some terrific caramel sauce. ($8.00) It was very good…indeed it was tough to share!

This is the restaurant’s sign on the side of the building facing the parking lot…

Did I mention that Wednesday is half price wine night?!!  Laurie and I enjoyed a bottle of Meridian Pinot Grigio for only $12.50!  Foothills Milling Company is truly a fine dining destination… While we won’t be showing up for dinner on a regular basis, this is a great restaurant for us to visit for our anniversary, birthdays, or when out of town guests grace our doorstep.

Foothills Milling Company is located at 315 South Washington Street in Maryville Tennessee.  Reservations are definitely recommended.  The restaurant is open from 5 PM until closing Tuesday through Saturday.  Phone: 865-977-8434.  The menu changes fairly but it is posted on-line. The restaurant’s website is http://foothillsmillingcompany.com/. 

As per Trip Advisor, Foothills Milling Company is ranked #1 out of 107 restaurants in Maryville.  In 2013, the restaurant was awarded a Certificate of Excellence.  When I checked, Trip Advisor had recorded 119 Excellent or Very Good Ratings…and 0 Average, Poor or Terrible reviews!  Check out some of the reviews at http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g55184-d876566-Reviews-Foothills_Milling_Company-Maryville_Tennessee.html.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by and checking out a quality restaurant with us!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave