Martha’s Pick:

Twisted Tail (Beebeetown)
2849 335th St
Logan, IA
Fare: Steakhouse
Cost: $45 for two drinks, two appetizers and two meals
Reservation: Not needed for our Friday night visit

Greetings, eaters and readers!

For this month’s pick – forgive us – we flew right past the state line and went to check out a “word-of-mouth” hotspot. Both friends and family have spoken highly of The Twisted Tail and we were in the mood to do something different. We took the 25-minute, curvy and scenic drive into Iowa on a recent Friday and easily found out that the Twisted Tail is a can’t-miss. Literally – the one road GPS had us take runs right into the restaurant and the sprawl of dozens of parked cars. We figured the entire greater Beebeetown population was there and we headed in to see if it would meet our expectations.

Having just left a surprise party in Omaha – someone had told us the Twisted Tail had a good beer selection. Not being a purveyor of beers quite like Jac, I went with the Infusion Vanilla Bean Blonde because I knew I would enjoy it. Jaclyn ordered herself an Empyrean Peanut Butter Porter, which tastes like a Reese’s peanut butter cup.

FYI: Martha is already one gulp in when this picture was taken. Even pours for everyone.

While discussing appetizer options, Jaclyn said, “I always enjoy a good onion ring,” and that was that. At the last second, I added a loaded baked potato because I hadn’t had one in such a long time. I kid you not – I think both the onion rings and potato came out quicker than any appetizer order we’ve ever had before. I smooshed and prepped the piping hot potato while Jac dug into the salad that came with her entrée. The baked potato was yummy and the bacon was delicious and real – no baco’ bits here!

The onion rings were generously sized and hot. My favorite part, actually, may have been the Boom Sauce that came in the basket. It provides quite a kick and I couldn’t have a bite of ring without it. If anything, the onion rings were ALMOST too crispy and breaded; think the kind that sort of hurts your mouth while you’re eating it.

Both menu and media (researched before the trip) boasted of the Twisted Tail offering one of Iowa’s best burgers. I asked our server if it was a certain burger and she said no – just the meat and patty itself. I landed on the BBTown White Gold Burger and sweet potato fries. Served with Kerry Gold White Cheddar, Black Forest Bacon, Beer Braised onions served on a Brioche Bun, the burger comes out prettily presented and toppings on the side – just how I like it. I’ll decide what I want from there, thank you!

Pleasant surprise – the sweet potato fries come with a small serving of melty marshmallow sauce. I think it was more for drizzling on top because there wasn’t enough to “dip” like normal. Despite not being asked how I wanted to my burger cooked, it was prepared nearly perfect. It was a very juicy and delicious patty.

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Unsure what to order, Jaclyn asked our server what she recommended. The first item she mentioned was the Ribeye Sandwich – which Jac was considering anyway – so that’s what she got.

When it arrived, Jaclyn said to me, “Well I didn’t think it’d literally just be a steak in between two slices of bread. But here we are.” There was a lot of back and forth between cutting off fat and taking bites … and the following questions:

“Why is this a sandwich?”

“Why not just serve a steak and bread on the side?”

“WHAT AM I MISSING HERE??”

We don’t know.

Confusion aside, the “sandwich” wasn’t bad. The steak was juicy and had good flavor. But we think perhaps our server meant one of their most popular times is the loaded ribeye sandwich that comes sautéed onions, mushrooms and blue cheese. If Jaclyn had ordered that, there would have been a lot less questions – and more overall enjoyment.

Final Bites

Is Twisted Tail worth the drive? That’s hard to say from just our first experience. There were hits and there were misses. Should we have ordered something else? Their Friday special is Award Winning ribs – maybe that’s a good place to start? And from what we could see – the Twisted Tail works hard (and seems to succeed) at offering something for everyone. We saw families with babies, families with college kids home for summer, friends and couples. There were ladies enjoying beers on the patio and we repeat – the parking lot was full. If it’s a sideways fork (it is for both of us), it’s because we’re open to going back and trying something else on the menu. I’m already eyeballing the smoked chicken wings and Jac might just give that loaded ribeye sandwich it’s own chance at redemption.

Cheers!
Martha and Jaclyn

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