| rev:text
| - I was really close to leaving a 3 star review, but Big Grove pulled through in the end!
My folks came down to visit and we wanted to grab some dinner.
We got in at 4:30 and the server informed us we couldn't order dinner until 5, so we got a table and dissected the menu for ~30 minutes, ordered some drinks, and a bar snack or two.
We opted to sit outside on a beautiful Sunday evening. Though I must mention the inside of Big Grove has a cool ambiance. Very dark/modern types of colors with some interesting tree/woodwork stuff hanging from the ceiling.
Wine by the glass happened to be half off that evening, which was a pleasant surprise. I had a smoother French one which I forget the name of and my mother had a French Malbec, I tried to look them up online when I got home but it seems their wine list isn't 100% up to date online. Dad opted for a beer, the Left Hand Milk Stout Nitro, which ironically my roommate just ordered last weekend at Black Dog! He really enjoyed it but thought it wasn't served cold enough. No frosty glass, kind of a turn off for my Pops....
We started with the deviled eggs and hushpuppies. The eggs were just OK and I thought the hush puppies were pretty tasty, especially with the sauce they came with! My mother said they were just fair.
For dinner, my Uncle got the Free-Range chicken which he liked a lot. He particularly enjoyed the chicken jus as well as the dumplings that came with it. Mom and Dad split the short ribs, which they both thought were exceptional, and believe me, my mother is highly critical of short ribs, since she can cook up some mighty fine ones herself. I can verify via taste that these were not your average short ribs, I'd highly recommend these. On a last second split decision between the skirt steak and the pork tenderloin, I opted for the latter. This was also a really well put together dish that came with carrots, endive, and these glorious sweet potato hash brown patty things. The pork itself was done a perfect medium-rare and was flavorful, juicy and overall a nicely executed plate that would not have been the same without the creamy mustard sauce it was all sitting on.
We did have some qualms which would have normally warranted only a 3 star review if it wasn't for how well everyone enjoyed their entrees. The beer I mentioned above could definitely have been served colder. Our server didn't seem to take the hint when my dad mentioned he liked frosty glasses. Our other major qualm would be the price to portion ratio. My parents split the short ribs and when they were finished they were still kind of hungry. Be warned, if you want to be at least a little full, don't share an entrée, the portions are pretty small. The place is also comparably expensive, all of these entrees nearly required a $20 bill or more. We thought the clipboard menus were a little tacky for a place of this caliber.
I do like the farm-to-table concept, I also really admire and respect Big Grove's local sourcing of foods. My only constructive criticism would be to actually put where each dish comes from on the menu, such as:
"Grilled Pork Tenderloin - Farm XYZ: _____, IL".
As an avid organic and local food fan, adding this type of notation makes me feel much better than simply, "local". Common Ground Co-Op in Urbana does a fairly good job of this.
Overall, a very pleasant dinner on a gorgeous day.
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