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On Special
Soft Shell Crabs
By Josh
 At the first full moon in the month of May, the Blue Crab goes through its natural cycle of molting its coat to form a much harder and stronger shell that most crab eaters are traditionally used to. So for a brief period during the months of May and June, soft shell crabs are harvested and sold for consumption before these hard exteriors are able to grow. This soft exterior allows for the crab to be eaten whole.
Here at the Uptown, we are lightly sauteeing these crabs before topping them off with lemon caper butter. They are served with a side of french style green beans sauteed with applewood smoked bacon, toasted almonds and plugra butter.
Our soft shell crabs are jumbo sized compared to the other categories of crab size...
Read more and blog with us........Find out how our jumbo crabs compare to other sizes. Do you prefer the hard shell or will you give the soft shell a try?
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Uptown News
Our 2013 Graduates
By Ryan
A restaurant's staff has many faces and many personalities. It takes all kinds of people to make this work. Without our staff being available on the weekends and holidays such as Mother's Day, New Years Eve and Chirstmas Eve, we would have a very difficult time making this work.
While you tend to lean on the reliability & experience of your veteran staff members, you never quite know what you will get from your younger generation staff, most notably high schoolers. But, it should be known that without them, this would be a difficult business to run successfully.
 What's neat about the younger staff that comes through here is that they are as much appreciated by the servers and cooks they help, as they are by management. We need them. They are an integral part of our team.
With all kinds of people, come all kinds of personalities ...and that is one of the things I enjoy most about seeing these kids grow. From their first shift when they walk in the door, rarely are they a ball of fire that shows even the most outgoing parts of their personalities. Usually it takes 3, 4, 5 shifts or more for some to even begin talking. Then one day, all of a sudden, they seem to break out of their shell and you get to know them for who they really are. It's a great thing to watch evolve.
Next thing you know, however, they graduate and go away. Some come back for summers and weekends. Others, you wonder if you can ever replace. And here we are again. Our class of 2013:
- Devin Boyd
- Marlee Giacometti
- Moriah Feagin
- Alex Maysonet
- Dalton Owen
- Shelby Straughn
Thanks for all your hard work, and congratulations on your graduation. You make and have made coming to work fun. Good luck in all of your future endeavors!
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The Morel of the Story
Seasonal Appetizer on Special
By Ray
 It does not seem like anyone can predict exactly when the morels are going to start popping. This past weekend, we received 4 phone calls in a matter of 2 hours as to if we were interested in some morels. So the term popping is very accurate. Since then, we have been able to acquire even more. I cannot tell you how long they will last.
After last year's disappointing harvest, this year seems to be a bumper crop. The morel mushroom - to my knowledge - is one of the few mushrooms that have yet to be commercially grown, at least consistently. The only one that can send us these tasty morsels is Mother Nature.
 While supplies last we are offering them lightly battered with seasoned flour. We team them up with some sweet Vidalia onion petals and serve them with a side dish of garlic mayonnaise.
Read more and blog with us........Check out a couple great links about morels. Or if you dare to share your hunting spot with others, we're all ears!
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From the Bar
New Spring Additions to our Wine List
By Jimmy
As you may know, each season we are treated to an afternoon of sampling some of our supplier's fresh new wines. It is a tough job tasting sometimes 15-20 different wines, but somebody has to do it, right?
 We use these seasonal meetings to review our current list and to bring in new wines that we find are both amazing in taste and a value to our customers. Sometimes we stray from the "traditional" varieties that many are familiar with. Some of our new selections may be a nice surprise. With that, we are happy to introduce some different and exciting additions that you'll be seeing on our glass list very soon!
 To start off, we are replacing quite a few white wines. Spring and summer are the perfect time of year for white wine and luckily, this recent tasting allowed us to bring back some of the traditionals. Some of you may be thinking..."Finally, you have brought a sauvignon blanc or a pinot grigio back." Yes, we have because the wines we tasted were amazing!
Here is a list of our new wine additions:
- Sea Ridge Chardonnay
- Mercer "Gone Fishin'' Reisling
- Momo Sauvignon Blanc
- Jam Jar Moscato
- Parcel 41 Merlot
- Bradford Mountain Zinfandel
There's no need to be intimidated by our new listing... we always encourage everyone to try a sample. Who knows, you may open your palate and find a new favorite. I know I do every season!
Click here to read a brief description about each of our newest wines. Which ones are you looking forward to trying out?
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On Special
Lamb Burger
By Ryan
Two weeks ago, for our Burger-Me Thursday special, we proposed a fresh ground lamb burger with cucumber, tomato, arugula, red onion, feta cheese and tzatziki sauce. It was our biggest selling Burger-Me Thursday creation to date. What is nice about doing a weekly special like this is not only trying to come up with some crazy burger ideas, but also being able to experiment with something like ground lamb.
We never quite know how well an item will sell or if it will be well received. If it is well received that's all the better. If not, at least we were afforded the opportunity to enhance our culinary knowledge with new product. It works well for you, and it works well for us.
The lamb burger is "baaaaaaaaa"-ck on special this week for those of you that were not able to try it last time it was available. Lamb meat certainly has a different flavor profile than ground beef, but the texture is quite the same. We tried not to change the ingredients too much, and it will still be served with tomato, cucumber, arugula, red onion, feta cheese and the tzatziki sauce served on a freshly morning baked challa roll.
This burger won't be around forever, so stop in this week and give your culinary taste buds a new experience.
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Uptown Playlist Theater
We now have tickets available for sale on our website.
Please purchase tickets either online by clicking here or in person only.
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"Not Your Everyday Specials"
Monday Nights, Steak Diane
Every Monday after 4 pm, we will be serving Steak Diane for $17.75. This will be just like the Red Door Inn. With Victor's stamp of approval.
 Fish Taco Tuesdays
Every Tuesday, we will be serving fish tacos. The taco includes panko breaded tilapia, red cabbage, chipotle mayonnaise, and a mango pineapple black bean salsa. They will be served with corn chips and adobo sauce. Available for dine in and carryout. 3 for $7.75 or $2.75 each.
Wienerschnitzel Wednesday
Every Wednesday after 4pm, we will be serving authentic German Wienerschnitzel. Served with roasted asparagus, spaetzel and veal demi glaze, it is only $12.75.
Prime Rib, Friday and Saturday Evening
Available after 4pm every Friday and Saturday night is our herb crusted prime rib of beef. Our prime rib is slow roasted for several hours in our 1980 alto shaam. It is served with au jus, mushrooms and your choice of side dish. Available in 12oz or 16oz.
 Herb Crusted Leg of Lamb,
Saturday Evenings
Available after 4pm every Saturday night we have our sliced leg of lamb with a mint demi glaze served with our daily mashed potato and vegetable side. Sure to be a new favorite! $19.75
 Sunday, All Day, "The Oscars"
Take your pick of a New York strip, grouper, veal, chicken or portabello mushroom... then top it with asparagus, lump crab and bearnaise sauce. Award-winning! $12.75
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Burger Me Thursday
Choose any microbrew or bottled beer to accompany a different and
enticing burger, every Thursday, for just $10.
 This Week: May 16
Stuffed Mushroom Burger
Mushrooms are trendy right now, so we'll keep the flavor going! This unique burger is stuffed with a blend of salemville blue cheese and oyster mushrooms. Pair this delicious concoction with your favorite microbrew and our housemade french fries... you've got yourself a tasty treat!
 Next Week: May 23 Salmon Burger
We give the beef a break this week and opt instead for fresh grilled, ground salmon. We top it with cucumber, mesculyn and dill sauce... all of which is then packaged together with flavorful whole wheat! Go ahead and give it a try!
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Specials This Week
appetizer
artisanal cheese sampler
1. Corsendonk Brugge (Belgium) 2. Pena Gorda (Spain)
3. Quickes Oak Smoked Cheddar (England) 4. Cypress Grove
Chevre Truffle Tremor (California) 5. Carr Valley Penta Creme
Blue (Wisonsin) 6. Sap Sago (Switzerland) serves 2 to 4 19.75
oysters on the half shell
watch house point oysters from the eastern shore of virginia.
medium in size with a medium salinity and a clean sharp
flavor. served with a mignonette 11.75
fried morels and vidalia onions
fresh picked local morel mushrooms and vidalia onion petals
lightly battered and fried. served with garlic aioli 11.75
soft shell crab
a jumbo soft shell crab sauteed and served with lemon caper
butter 13.25
salad and sandwich
mesculyn salad & panini sandwich combo
turkey galantine, creamy havarti, arugula and tomato.
served with a mesculyn, walnut and gorgonzola salad.
balsamic vinaigrette dressing 11.50 with cup of soup
of the day 13.50
lamb burger
fresh ground lamb burger topped with cucumber, tomato, red
onion, feta cheese, arugula and tsatziki sauce. served on a
fresh baked challah roll. 12.75
prosciutto and pear salad
thinly sliced prosciutto and bartlett pears with grape
tomatoes, brie cheese and pinenuts served over a bed of
arugula and mesculyn greens. served with sherry vinaigrette
dressing 13.50
entrees
herb crusted lamb rack
12 oz lamb rack crusted with fresh herbs grilled and sliced
over long grain wild rice and arugula salad with balsamic
vinegar and extra virgin olive oil 26.50
stuffed chicken breast
breaded boneless chicken breast stuffed with rosmarino ham
and brie. served with our seasoned rice blend 13.75
soft shell crabs
two jumbo sized soft shell crabs sauteed and topped with
lemon caper butter. served with french style green beans
sauteed with applewood smoked bacon, toasted almonds and
plugra butter 29.75
spinach radiatore
radiator shaped pasta with sauteed spinach, pinenuts and a
white wine cream sauce 13.75 add grilled chicken 15.75
pancetta and bowtie pasta
sauteed pancetta, fiddlehead, english peas, asparagus,
shallot, grape tomato and goat cheese with white wine and
olive oil 15.75
dessert
godiva double chocolate cheesecake
rich godiva cheesecake with chunks of creamy milk chocolate.
topped with chocolate mousse, chocolate ganache and
chocolate whipped cream 8.25
chocolate lava armageddon
a dark and decadent mix of brownie and hot fudge topped
with sisler's french vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and
fresh raspberries. serves 2-4 people 12.75 |
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Foodie Fight
 Each week in the newsletter, we will ask three questions from the "Foodie Fight" cards. The first person to email us (see link below) the correct answers to all three questions will receive a complimentary lunch. The winner has to have the exact answer for all three questions, no exceptions! The following week we will publish the correct answers and the winner of the previous week. So come in and have a drink, study the cards, test each other and have fun.
Good Luck!
1. What does the acronym COOL stand for on a food label?
2. True or False: Under U.S. patent and trademark rules, a living organism such as a species of corn may not be patented.
3. Of the 2 main subvarieties of garlic, which one produces a loopy stalk called a scape and has fewer cloves?
Fine Print:
- You must be the first person to respond with all three correct answers.
- The response must go to the email address in the above link.
- You must reply within 24 hours from the time the newsletter is published.
- Participants are eligible to win up to 3 times a year.
Last Week's Questions & Answers:
1. What high tech food wrap can withstand temperatures up to 440F? ............fata paper
2. In 2010, what was the name of the pizza that Pizza Hut introduced with a crust edge formed to hold alternating balls of cream cheese and meatballs? ...........crown crust pizza
3. What is the name of the kitchen tool called a Guard Dog? ............hot dog cutter
Last Week's Winner: ...................no winner |
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Uptown Grill
601 First Street | LaSalle, IL 61301 | 815.224.4545
Monday - Thursday: 11am -10pm
Friday - Saturday: 11am - 11pm
Sunday: 12noon - 10pm
uptowngrill.com
Uptown respects your privacy and will not sell or distribute your personal information. |
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