Calhoun's at Turkey Creek

By The Grub Scout
Calhoun’s isn’t yet quite as ubiquitous as Weigel’s in the Knoxville area — but it’s getting there. The local restaurant chain’s newest location recently opened its doors in the Pavilion section of Turkey Creek.

Looking back through my Grub archives, I couldn’t believe that I had never reviewed any of the Calhoun’s restaurants, even though I have visited several of its corporate cousins, including Chesapeake’s, Cumberland Grill and Cappuccino’s.

Not that I’ve never eaten at a Calhoun’s. Off the clock, I’ve probably dined at three different locations, the most recent being this past summer. The Grub Spouse and I literally dropped anchor at the Calhoun’s in Lenoir City after spending a day with friends on Fort Loudoun Lake.

I had ordered the ribs, and I must say that they didn’t exactly impress. They weren’t bad — just surprisingly average for an item that claims to be a house specialty. Plus the service that day was lacking in several respects, namely the extremely long delay in food delivery.

I figured our official visit to Turkey Creek would be a good opportunity to compare and contrast the two locations.

It being the day after Christmas, the flocks of post-holiday gift exchangers were out in force, so we got queued up for an estimated 30- to 45-minute wait. The Spouse and I conversed at the bar, where I enjoyed a glass of one of Calhoun’s six handcrafted beers — the velas helles.

The wait was shorter than promised, and once seated we launched our meal promptly with an order of fried green tomatoes from the appetizer menu. For my entree, I naturally went straight back to the barbecue ribs, a half-slab dinner with rice pilaf and spinach Maria sides.

The Spouse had the full menu selection to choose from, including sandwiches and burgers, prime rib and steaks, and traditional favorites such as Southern-fried catfish, char-grilled shrimp, teriyaki chicken and the barbecuey chicken Calhoun.

The Spouse chose the smoked rotisserie chicken (served over rice) and selected steamed broccoli as a side item.

We started experiencing deja vu when a manager stopped at a neighboring table to appease a family that had been waiting a long time for its food. The manager handled things courteously and professionally, but the family polished off its meal and left in a huff, leaving behind Calhoun’s peace offering of a free dessert on the next visit.

The situation hit home when our server informed us multiple times that the kitchen was slammed and that our orders would likewise be slow in arriving. On a reconnaissance jaunt around the dining room, I discovered a party of about 20 teens, which I suspect gummed up the works back in the kitchen and slowed down production.

I’m generally pretty forgiving when it comes to long waits. Sometimes kitchens get swamped, and they do the best they can. To Calhoun’s credit, our server was otherwise on the ball, and she and the managers kept their customers apprised of the situation and were extremely apologetic.

Once they finally arrived, the ribs weren’t a substantial improvement over what I had experienced previously. In my opinion, they’re generally overcooked on the outside and a little skimpy on meat. At least the rest of the meal, including our Key lime pie dessert, was more enjoyable, although I question the value of our $40 tab.

So I guess I’m OK to eat at Calhoun’s in the future. Next time, though, I’ll skip the ribs. And I might bring along a good book.

To contact the restaurant critic, e-mail entertainment@ knews.com.

CALHOUN'S TURKEY CREEK

* Full bar service