Corner 16 – Dinner in Knoxville Tennessee

Our friends Linda and Norm picked a restaurant for dinner on this occasion…one that neither couple had experienced before.  It’s been in operation for more than a year but it’s on the north side of Knoxville, about 40 minutes from our home and we just haven’t been up that way...

I lifted this exterior photo of Corner 16 from the Internet.  This is a family orientated restaurant, that’s for sure.  The outdoor patio dining area is covered and the grassed in area around it is tastefully fenced in.  Kids were playing outside when we arrived.  The patio has TV mounted around so guests can watch the latest game.  Corn-hole games, adult size and kid size, are available on the lawn.  There are even a couple of fire pits for gathering on a cooler night.

The bar area with its TVs and adult crowd is separated from the dining area by a clear glass wall…a benefit for customers on both sides of the barrier.

The indoor dining area is large and roomy.  The industrial look prevails… punctuated with TV screens.  This photo only shows part of the room.  While we were there, 3 large family groups of 10 or more people gathered for dinner/special events.  The room filled up while we dined...obviously a popular dining venue.  

So…how about the food?

After we ordered our drinks, we started our perusing the Appetizers offered at Corner 16.  Decisions, decisions, decisions!  Stuffed Jalapenos were a possibility as were the Fried Pickles and the Deviled Eggs…the latter is something you don’t often see on menus.

Norm and Linda decided on the Loaded Tater Tots. ($8.50) Deborah, who was our waitress, carefully explained that these aren’t tater tots with cheese, bacon and green onions scattered over them.  The ingredients are stuffed or blended into the tater tots which are then deep fried and served with ranch dressing.  The Loaded Tater Tots were a big hit!

Laurie and I thought about the Deviled Eggs but since Laurie makes the best version we’ve ever had, we decided on the Fried Green Tomatoes. ($8.50) The slices of tomato are dipped in buttermilk and dusted with Corner 16’s seasoned flour before going into the fryer.  Before being served they are topped with fresh grated Asiago cheese.  They’re served with garlic peppercorn dressing.

 

We thought that they were excellent…having one of the best breading mixes we’ve had with fried tomatoes.  The next time, I’m planning to kick them up even a little more by asking for a little more shredded Asiago cheese.  FYI, the portion was huge!

Linda ordered the Smothered Chicken for her entrée.  Her hand breaded Fried Chicken Breast was topped with Country Garden Gravy and it was served over bacon and cheddar grits.  Our waitress checked to make sure that the grits were OK with Linda… For her side, she selected the green beans.  They were perfect!  Later Linda said that the grits were OK but nothing to write home about.  She prefers a smoother version…

The portion was huge and Linda enjoyed her dinner.  She took home about half of it for lunch the next day.

Norm decided to order the Hickory Smoked Brisket Sandwich for his dinner. ($11.75) Sliced brisket, topped with melted smoked white cheddar cheese, was served on a toasted Brioche bun.  It was served with a very nice horseradish sour cream sauce.  For his side, he chose the Uptown Slaw… Norm thought that everything he ordered was very good and the brisket was excellent!

Laurie decided to try Corner 16’s version of one of her favorite standby sandwiches…the Chicken Salad Sandwich. ($10.75) A mound of traditional chicken salad is served on the diner’s choice of a whole wheat or Brioche bun.  The chicken salad is topped with Monterey Jack cheese and, as you can see, some lovely nice thick pieces of bacon.  For her side Laurie had the Bacon and Cheddar Grits.

She loved her sandwich…very nice chicken salad topped with the cheese and excellent bacon!  She didn’t care for the smoky flavor of the grits, a matter of personal taste and a lesson learned for future orders of grits.

I’m a pain when it comes to ordering…too many food items I don’t like.  I asked Deborah (our waitress) what Country Garden Gravy was made with.  It didn’t sound good to me and I was thinking about ordering the Chicken Fried Steak…which comes with said gravy.  She checked with the kitchen to see if any sausage gravy was left from brunch earlier in the day.  No such luck…so I ordered a different item. 

Before the order could be processed, the General Manager (and chef), Wing Wong, appeared table side.  He’d made up some sausage gravy and he provided a small dish of it to sample…along with the Country Garden Gravy.  I stuck with my original opinion regarding the Garden Gravy but I really liked the Sausage Gravy.  Wing Wong said that he’d make some up for my Chicken Fried Steak!  Hooray!  FYI…everyone else at the table really liked the Country Garden Gravy. 

To add just one more special request, I asked for an easy-over egg on top of my chicken fried steak. ($1.50) It was perhaps the best chicken fried steak that I’ve enjoyed outside of Texas!  The green beans were perfect too.  The meat was served over Corner 16’s Smokehouse potatoes.  I now know that I don’t care for smoked potatoes…but I will say that our waitress checked with me when I ordered to see if they’d be OK with me.  I am glad that I tried them…

Our waitress Deborah was helpful and had a good working knowledge of the items on the menu.  Wing Wong, the General Manager and Chef provided over the top service, going out of his way to make me happy about my menu choice and then checking back to see how all of us felt about our meals before we were done eating.  The food was considerably above average and the menu itself is quite imaginative.

Corner 16 is part of Knoxville’s Copper Cellar Family of Restaurants and it’s a winner.  This restaurant is located at 1640 Bob Kirby Road in Knoxville.  Phone: 865-801-9101.  Website: https://corner16.com/.   

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave