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The Grub Spouse and I first visited Bistro by the Tracks more than four years ago, when it actually used to be near railroad tracks. It recently relocated just off Northshore Drive, near T.G.I. Friday’s, which isn’t exactly by the tracks any more, but at least it’s still roughly in the Bearden area.

The new space is divided into two sections, a bar and lounge-seating area near the entrance and a larger dining room, which has a deceptively roomy feel thanks to very high ceilings. The prevailing earthy color palette is accented by darkly stained wood accents and mouldings, and we were immediately enveloped by the subdued glow of the restaurant’s dim lighting.

Racks of unopened wine bottles dominate two of the bistro’s walls, and there’s also a glassed-in private room in the back, which, on the night we visited, was hosting a large party. The Spouse and I were seated side by side in a two-person booth, giving us a wide-open view of the entire place.

All the appetizers — crispy, braised pork belly and foie gras among them — sounded doable, as did the bistro’s limited selection of soups and salads, but when we spotted lobster corndogs on the appetizer menu, we knew we had no choice but to investigate. In nearly seven years of Grubbing, I can honestly say this was my first encounter with lobster corndogs.

Interestingly, it’s no gimmick. They’re exactly what they sound like — lumps of lobster meat (along with some shrimp and other seafood goodies) that are dipped in corndog batter and deep-fried on a skewer. When the foursome of dogs was set before us, they looked like they could have come straight from a parking-lot carnival, but these tasted heavenly, especially as embellished by the apple mustard dipping sauce. They were also fairly substantial, so we left one on our plate for take-home purposes.

Main dishes include the Bistro Burger, pan-seared scallops and a flatiron steak, to mention just a few of the roughly dozen entrée selections available. The Spouse chose the Bistro Chicken — two smallish, boneless breasts with thighs attached, stuffed with goat cheese, pan-roasted wild mushrooms and cippolini onions. It is accompanied by Parmesan polenta and sautéed spinach with toasted hazelnuts.

I ordered the cioppino, a linguini-based seafood-and-pasta dish tossed with scallops, shrimp, mussels and an unidentified variety of whitefish. Given the warm, crusty bread we’d been served as well as the corndogs, we passed on soup or salad as an additional course.

The entrees were both aces. The chicken dish’s ingredients and preparation made for a truly savory entrée, while my pasta was plentiful but still light in the eating thanks to the skinny linguini and veggie-based sauce. The seafood accents were plentiful and, to my palate, minimally doctored by additional seasonings.

Our entrees, $18 and $26, struck me as being priced more reasonably than the dishes from our previous visit, and the serving sizes left us with plenty to box up for the trip home.

For dessert, we passed on the likes of Bananas Foster, crème brulee and a chocolate-coffee tort in favor of a slice of amaretto cheesecake. The slice was surprisingly light and whippy for a cheesecake, and the hint of amaretto flavoring and the slivers of almond were nice accents indeed.

So although this bistro may no longer be by the tracks, it’s still on the right side of the tracks in my restaurant book.

© 2010, Knoxville News Sentinel
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