Why is Bonge's so special? Well, they don't take reservations, and it's very small, so you have to arrive early and then wait to get in. Normally this would be a major negative, but in Bonge's case, it's fun, because they let you tailgate in the parking lot! Yes! Tailgate! The restaurant opens and begins taking names around 4:30, so we arrived around 3pm. On this occasion (early September), we were the first ones there, but during the bulk of the summer I don't imagine that would have been the case. We set up camp and played some Euchre with our friends until we were able to line up and put our name in.
When you do put your name in, there are 3 approximate seating times to choose from (if you're far enough up in the line to choose--it's not a large restaurant, so it fills up quickly). You can go in right away, at 4:30, or you can select 6:30 or 8:30. We selected 6:30, and when a table opened up for us not long after 6pm, the hostess came out to get us.The menu at Bonge's changes several times a season, and that day's offerings are up on a chalk board over the bar. Included in every meal is soup or salad and two sides--a veggie and, both times we've been there, cheesy potatoes.
Tim opted to start with the tomato soup. I had a tiny sip and really enjoyed it. It's a bit chunky and full of flavor, and comes with croutons on top. I chose the wedge salad, which is (as would be expected) a wedge of iceberg lettuce with a delicious creamy blue cheese dressing on top. It's pretty much as simple as that--nothing fancy or extraneous about it! They do crush some croutons and sprinkle them over the top, which gives it some crunchy texture without needing to get a whole crouton on your fork. Again, extremely simple, but pretty darn good.
For our mains, I got the Prime Cap with Shrimp ($32). The prime cap is the top part of a ribeye roast, and it was incredibly tender and flavorful. It was cooked nicely to medium rare, and served sliced with the shrimp over the top (probably should have moved them a bit so you could have seen the beef in the picture!). The shrimp themselves were perfectly cooked and slathered with garlic butter--so, so good. Our veggie that night was asparagus--three stalks of it, which I dutifully ate so I could feel like I was having at least one healthy thing. The cheesy potatoes were everything you would expect cheesy potatoes to be. All in all, a great plate of food.
Tim got the 16 oz. Applewood Smoked Prime Rib (available on the weekends only--$26). It was a huge slab of meat, also medium rare and extremely good. I probably would have wanted more au jus if I was eating it, but Tim was very happy with the horseradish dipping sauce it was served with.Our friends got the Perkinsville Pork ($23) and Harger Duck ($25), both year-round staples on a menu that otherwise changes. The pork is pounded fairly thin and coated with parmesan cheese, and it was incredible. I'll be very tempted by that one the next time we go to Bonge's. The duck is pounded out and wrapped around cream cheese and jalapenos, and served in a plum barbecue sauce. Sounds very strange, but somehow it all works.
We got a basket of cornbread on our table, in addition to everything else, and let me just say that it's possibly the best cornbread I have *ever* had. It's sweet and moist, with flecks of jalapenos to give it some chewy texture and heat. It's perfection. I am wanting some just looking at the picture.
To top off our gluttonous evening (and, let's face it, afternoon), we decided we'd get dessert. Tim and I split the sugar cream/chocolate cake thingie (no idea what it's actually called), and it is as it sounds--a layer of dense brownie-like chocolate cake on the bottom, and a layer of very sweet sugar cream pie style filling above that. It's topped with fruit (in this case, blueberries that had been cooked down into a sauce) and real whipped cream. It's pretty sweet, but I very much enjoyed it. Our friends got the chocolate cake and straight up sugar cream cake (also covered in the blueberry topping), and they enjoyed theirs, also. Not sure how much these cost, though--our waiter gave them to us for free! I guess bantering with the waiter can pay off (thanks to our friends for doing so)! He was a nice guy, and seemed to really enjoy his job. He gets a thumbs up from us, for multiple reasons. We definitely left that place very, very happy.If you have a Saturday afternoon and evening to kill this fall or even next summer, give the full Bonge's experience a try. I'd possibly even be willing to go one winter's night if there isn't a wait, but I doubt it would be half as fun without the tailgating!
Website: Bonge's Tavern
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