Emerald Isle

It’s been a while since I visited Hamlin, IA, home of the «best breaded pork tenderloin (BPT) in Iowa», so my vision could be a little cloudy. I will go out on a limb here and say the BPT I had here at the Emerald Isle was easily one of the best I’ve had EVER, anywhere, hands down, I’m serious! As another reviewer pointed out, there’s not much to Imogene, a grain elevator, a couple churches and the Emerald Isle. Noted for it’s St Patty’s Day celebration and a super Taco Tuesday special, there is certainly at least one more reason to visit this little southwest Iowa town. Tenderloin with a capital T! Great service and friendly locals only add to the attraction.

My Fiancé’ and I hit this place up after hearing about their wings so much. We ordered a 3-​appetizer combo platter ($ 10.5) and got «hot» wings, «Jamie hot» wings, and onion rings. I ordered a bacon cheeseburger meal with jacket fries. I was a little skeptical at first because this place is literally in the middle of nowhere. The town is like 2 blocks long and looks like something you would see in a scary movie. We received our food fast and the service was very friendly. My bacon cheeseburger was HUGE and the fries were delicious. My Fiancé’ likes hot stuff and she said she like the wings a lot. After eating everything, it definitely filled me up and after all was done, the bill came and it only cost us $ 19.95! it was definitely worth it. Only down side was the fact that they do not take debit/​credit cards, so bring cash! Their ATM was out of money and I almost had to do dishes but praise God my beautiful fiancé had cash on her. Overall, I would go check it out if I were you. Good stuff.

This place is fun! Food is consistently good, taco Tues. is our fav! Drinks are good! Indoor and outdoor service, gets pretty crowded in warm weather with cyclists. Staff is friendly, occasional music, lots of laughter.

Great, friendly bar off the Wabash Trace. It has a backyard fenced in which is good if the weather is nice. I had the fried shrimp and the sweet potato fries which were tasty.