Amanda and I had a rare opportunity for a weekend without the kids. It was our first post-Lincoln Cafe visit to eastern Iowa and started with dinner at a Cedar Rapids restaurant called Cobble Hill. It went down among our all-time best dinner excursions. Amanda had a lamb gnocchi appetizer, while I enjoyed a bowl of split pea soup with homemade hush puppies.
Entrees were superb: I had the eggplant ricotta tortellini, which was served over a light broth with walnuts and topped with cinnamon-infused cauliflower. Amanda had a flatiron steak served with parsnip puree and a noteworthy horseradish apple salad. Dessert may have been the star of the night, a slab of frozen chocolate mousse topped with cream cheese ice cream and peppermint meringues.
Following dinner, we walked to the U.S. Cellular Center to watch Casting Crowns live, with For King & Country and Laura Story as the openers. The concert’s highlight may have been the pre-encore performance of “Until the Whole World Hills” which featured all the evening’s musicians on the stage together. Following the concert we checked into the very nice, adjacent DoubleTree Hotel.
At the Casting Crowns concert.
Friday morning started with a quick run to the nearby Taco Bell to try their new breakfast menu with bacon and sausage waffle tacos. Ultimately, they were pretty tasty, resembling a McDonald’s McGriddle when the maple syrup was added to the combination of waffle, meat, scrambled eggs and cheese.
Amanda then enjoyed a massage at Nadia’s Salon and Spa, while I checked out the relatively new Cedar Rapids Public Library and NewBo City Market, both of which were impressive. Dinner made such an impression, we decided to return to Cobble Hill for lunch.
I ordered a half portion of the endive, apple, and cheddar salad. For entrees, Amanda had the cheddar cheeseburger with house French fries, while I chose the pulled pork sandwich with slaw. The thin fries were very good; the burger didn’t live up to Lincoln Cafe’s standards, though its bun was better; the pulled pork sandwich was superb. We were able to order the same dessert as the night before and chatted with former Lincoln Cafe waitress Meg before heading to Lindale Mall to do some shopping.
Our drive home included a stop at the outlet mall in Williamsburg, plus dinner at one of our favorite places, the Prairie Canary in downtown Grinnell.