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Scott and Melissa are greats hosts at the Tin Plate.
Military décor adorns the walls at the Tin Plate, including the tribute table to MIA’s.
The monster grilled tenderloin is a specialty at the Tin Plate.
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Scott and Melissa are greats hosts at the Tin Plate.
Military décor adorns the walls at the Tin Plate, including the tribute table to MIA’s.
The monster grilled tenderloin is a specialty at the Tin Plate.
Records indicate that Elwood was founded as Duck Creek in 1853, but the Chamber of Commerce notes that the first post office was listed as Quincy. Regardless, the name was later changed to Elwood.
The railroad came through in 1857, then, in 1886, gas was discovered in the area. Like all surrounding towns, the economy exploded. New glass and furniture companies sprung-up including the American Tin Plate Works. It was the largest tin plant in America.
By 1909, Elwood’s population was over 11,000, but the gas boom faded. Elwood would rebuild itself, and on August 17, 1940, Elwood-born, Wendell Willkie, accepted the Republican nomination for president in front of 150,000 at Callaway Park. At the time, it was the largest political rally in history.
Elwood also has a notorious past as the headquarters of the Indiana KKK. Blacks were unwanted, but after other cities recognized similar history, Elwood acknowledged it’s past.
Today, Elwood has a population of around 8,000. The majority of the town is in Madison County, but the western part is in Tipton County.
Unfortunately, Elwood recently gained national attention for the wrong reason. Police officer Noah Shahnavaz was gunned-down while sitting in his squad car after making a traffic stop. He was a veteran, only 24 and had been on the Elwood PD for 11 months.
Cruising around town there are some interesting joints, but one in particular, caught our attention.
Named after the tin factory, this circa 1892 building is a popular watering hole. According to Scott, the bartender and former military policeman: “Every day at 4, the vets arrive”. They tell tales, talk politics and throw-down cold ones. On the bar is a salt gun. The vets use it to shoot flies when they sit outside. Never heard of a salt gun!
When you enter the rear door, hostess Melissa, greats you. She grew up on Cape Cod and worked at the Black Dog on Nantucket Island. She met many of the rich and famous. No kind words for Martha Stewart, however!
The décor is very patriotic. One wall is adorned by pictures and veteran memorabilia. Just inside the front door is a single empty chair at a table in honor of the Missing in Action. A military uniform hangs nearby.
Most notably was Scott’s shirt. On the back is the famous line from the Billy Ray Cyrus song: “All gave some, some gave all”! I asked for a shirt, but all they had was xxxx. It could be used as a blanket.
Owner Patrick Rice (101st Airborne vet in Vietnam) and Kitchen Manager, Robyn Phillips, offer a menu with something for everyone. Appetizers are simple. The loaded ribbon fries (actually seasoned potato chips) are a go-to dish! There are also onion rings, fried pickle chips, jalapeno poppers and Wisconsin cheese curds. So, we had to try the onion rings. Nice and crispy with a hint of cornmeal in the breading, these were worth the visit.
Wings are also a staple, and their “Pig Shack” barbeque sauce is an area favorite.
The salads are aplenty. There’s chicken, steak, the house special bean salad and others.
The sandwich section includes ten choices with their signature prime rib sandwich being the favorite. Gayle, my wife, decided on the fish sandwich with the house-made tartar sauce. The fish was OK, but the ribbon fries were excellent.
Since this is the home of the “almost famous giant hand-breaded pork tenderloin”, I was all in! It’s a humongous slab that would have covered three buns. I dove-in! I couldn’t eat it all but still did major damage.
If you come for dinner, they keep it simple with country dishes like chopped steak, fried shrimp and ham steak. But the most popular is their fish and chips. They use white fish rather than the more common pollock or cod.
Elwood is a delightful destination and has other haunts to check-out, so when heading south, stop, look around, but definitely visit Tin Plate.
Loren Shaum is an automation engineering consultant, retired pilot, author, home gardener and sometimes chef. He and Gayle reside in Syracuse. He can be contacted at comtec@kcaccess.com.
Tin Plate: 2233 S. J St. Hours: Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone: 765-557-8231
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