The Quarry Restaurant

What a great find in Mesa city! We will definitely be back. The beet and goat cheese salad was delicious!

Great chow and nice atmosphere. Wish we could have sat outside, but the weather would not cooperate. The Quarry is a gem in Mason City. Good staff and a very pleasant dining experience. Had the ribeye and mashed potatoes. Steak was cooked perfect, and the potatoes were great.
A definite do again!

Wasabi scallops — Brussel Sprouts — seriously awesome! Came two nights in a row food and service were so good!

Very good. If you are passing through (or by) a must stop place. Only minutes from I-​18.
Pear & fig salad was delicious. Dressing was light and did not cover the flavors of the pear, fig and cheese.
Tomato soup was a surprise. It had spinach, chunks of tomatoes as well as tortellini. I would recommend it if your looking for something light to eat or as an appetizer.
Ribeye steak sandwich was perfect. Steak was cooked perfectly and the sauce was not too spicy. Coupled with the Strawberry and Feta cheese salad made it a perfect meal.

The service was terrible, slow, and rude. Maybe because their manager was what appeared to be a cranky old hag, who was walking around with a frown yelling at each individual employee. Not a good look. The food was good, I suppose. Small pieces of asparagus that would cost extra to replace even though you can get another side for free accompanied by a warm beer in a dirty glass. Then when I said the glass was dirty, it was replaced with another dirty glass. Thanks. The «tapas bar» was unattractive… flies everywhere, too bright, and over all just a boring atmosphere. Not somewhere where you’d want to have a drink.

Travelling through for work, I stopped by and tried the Po Boy. Served on a hoagie bun, it is a mouthwatering sandwich filled with generous portions of tender bits of steak and smothered in cheese with a horseradish sauce that strikes a nice balance without being overbearing. The sweet potato fries accompanied the sandwich nicely.
I will recommend this place to local friends and may even find time to stop here again myself.

Three words: Lemon Caper Spaghetti. Order it as a side with whatever entrée you decide suits you, because it is absolutely, mother f’ing delicious. The spaghetti is the perfect al dente, and it is lightly sauced with this heavenly concoction. Trust me on this.
The full story-​my business was in Garner, Ia, but there seems to be a dearth of non-​fast food restaurants and suitable overnight accommodations in Garner (perhaps I didn’t dig deep enough, no offense Garner), so I opted for the Historic Park Inn, and The Quarry in Mason City (see my review of The Park Inn).

I was a little off put by the fact that I was one of only two parties in the restaurant. Add to that the less than expedient initial service, and you have the makings of a forgettable and perhaps regrettable dining experience. But that changed quickly, and the experience was, in the end, highly enjoyable.
The roasted beet salad that I started with was, in a word, perfect; the optimal combination of sweet candied walnuts with savory goat cheese, the earthy flavor of the golden and red beets, and the peppery and surprisingly fresh arugula that comprised the foundation of the salad.
I loved the freshness and the char flavor of the grilled asparagus side. Where are you getting your produce, at this time of year, Quarry people? It’s fantastic!
The duck, although a little well done for my liking, was very tasty, and of ample portion.
I’m a big fan of the Surly Furious IPA, but I get it every time I’m in the greater Twin Cities CSMA, so I opted for a more local brew, the Raygun IPA. It was different– less hoppy and more citrusy than a traditional IPA. Very good and reasonably priced. The ambiance is upscale small town. Perhaps a little too brightly lit and a little under-​furnished, but nice. very nice. And this entire area-​Mason City, Garner, and surrounding communities is absolutely Americana. Unless you’re an unrepentant communist, you’ll love it.

Very nice place in town. Friendly service (a little slow) and clean. I had the grilled chicken sandwich which was very good. Don’t drink the water, it tastes a little funny (maybe chlorinated?)

I come to mason city every year for a convention in the summer and every time I come I make visiting The Quarry a priority. Their drinks and beer selections are excellent, they have an array of apps and tapas, but my personal favorite is the duck. I can’t even describe to you how good this duck dish is. You must try it for yourself! Do yourself and your taste buds a favor and visit The Quarry, one of mason city’s hidden gems

Everyone seems to love this place and its food. Maybe I just went on a bad day because our food seemed very bland. We ordered avocado fries, salad (can’t remember which one) lamb and a chicken sandwich. It’s been awhile so I don’t remember the exact menu items but we were not impressed. Our waitress gave wonderful service though. I’d still be willing to go again and try new menu items.

Great food, friendly service. Quite a surprise in this little town. The tapas are killer!

This is a wonderful place located in downtown Mason City next to what has to be one of the coolest hotels I’ve ever stayed at (Historic Park Inn). I travel for business from NJ and my first stop to The Quarry was on one of the coldest nights of, well, my life in Mason City… back in February of this year. It’s now May and I (we) have been making it a point to stop at least once every week we are out there. What started off as a one stop a week has become at least two dinners in one week where on occasion lunch was also ordered from there prior to that nights dinner :). The establishment is comfortable, casual, and staffed with some of the nicest people. You feel welcomed the second you walk in the door. You can order from a great selection of beers or wine and enjoy them as you take a «deep dive» into the menu. Okay, the menu… some people find it funny when I say «We’ll take one of each on page one and two (appetizers)»…the thing is, I’ve done it and it wouldn’t be a let down if you did it too. For the apps the avocado fries, crab tower, macadamia nut goat cheese, mushrooms, calamari… you name it, are all delicious. If you order the edimame, don’t be surprised if you think it’s a large portion but still can’t find a way to stop from eating every last one even though the spice creeps up on you. It really is all that good… oh, and the scallops. On to the main dishes… Osso Bucco. i’ve seen this delight hit our table at least, at minimum, 6 times. The recommendations each time we bring someone new never lets down. «The Benedict» was my first meal there and the whole filet with a poached egg is right up my alley. The duck was tender and delicious, the fish/​shrimp tacos were fun, and although i haven’t tried it, the vegetarian accommodation of the jambalaya with Penne substitute looks incredible and I heard it was (if you’re Vegetarian, they will definitely build you a nice dish) I’ve seen the filet on a number of plates, the Asian shrimp, and how could I forget the lamb chops. We laughed well as my buddy went into a food coma after that plate. I kid you not when I say we eat well, and literally close out the place every time. If you just want a salad, I recommend the pear and fig as a meal, or the roasted beets. I’ve personally had this with shrimp and salmon added. You can also choose one of these «specialty» salad as your meal salad. For soup, my other co-​worker vouches for the Seafood Bisque. I can honestly say this place NEVER lets down. You will not be disappointed. I know I am forgetting names as we had repeat staff helping us out, but Andrea was one of our frequent staff members and she always made it a pleasant experience.

Amazing Some of the best food in Mason City, service is normally great but can be a little spotty.

We dined at the restaurant side (vs the tapas bar) on a Fri night. Nice variety of quality American fare on the menu, friendly service, upscale atmosphere. We shared the avocado fries — tasty and a large portion — enough for 3. I enjoyed the fig and pear salad — but it could have used more figs on my plate (I think I had 1). Then the rib eye with garlic mashed and asparagus. Food was cooked nicely, was tasty and presented well. It is pricey and for me a special occasion stop. I recommend.

Three words. .pork, pork, pork! The pork tacos, perfect two bites. The Osso Buco was fall of the bone delicious. The au jus served on the side was perfection. The next day, they turned the pork into a pork quesadilla with tons of melty cheese.

Good food and atmosphere. With my celiacs I wish they had a little more to choose from. Price is a little moderate but service and quality are top notch for North Iowa.

Every so often, you come across one of those places were your expectations are slightly above average, but they get blown out of the water by what you find. On multiple fronts, the Quarry restaurant did that for me last night. It’s been a long while since I ate somewhere where everything was so memorable.
The story began when I met a buddy at this spot. Nestled downtown by a hotel and a bit off the beaten path, it sets a nice ambiance to begin. There’s a dining side and a bar side, both of which serve the same menu. Set ups are nice either place. The bar side is surprisingly quiet with a couple TVs and a nice array of seating options. The restaurant side is very quaint and almost rustic feeling — the building is a little older and it adds a certain charm.
The beer menu isn’t extensive, but has 10 or so different and solid brews from around the country. The wine list is a bit better and there’s certainly no lack of things to try!
The food is where I was blown away and unexpectedly so. A friend who’s opinion I highly value told me this was one of his new favorite places. Three of us ended up sharing 3 appetizers, 2 entrees and a salad. It was one of the best meals I’ve had in a few years.
For appetizer, we had mushrooms over rice, avocado fries and the macadamia nut fried goat cheese. The goat chees was unique and came with a fig and orange compote — Incredible flavors. The avocado fries were solid as well — lightly breaded to give the avocado just a bit of girth. Finally, the mushrooms. These were in the top 10 appetizers I’ve ever had. Light sautee’, bruschetta, served over rice to keep the flavor locked on the plate. I found myself chewing longer as the flavor was so good.
For the salad, we had the Ceasar, which I don’t normally get excited about. This one however had «grilled lettuce». Sounds weird, it was BOSS! The light char gave a little smoky flavor up front and changed the flavor of the salad enough to make it really memorable!
The Jambalaya was excellent with just enough kick. Rumor has it that the chef has spent time in NOLA and this dish would confirm such a rumor.
The dish of the night and perhaps of the year was the Ossa Bucco — This red wine braised pork shank served with sweet potato strings and gravy was far and away one of the best things I have ever had to eat — and this hoss eats a lot! The pork was falling off the bone like it was it’s business and the gravy just made me want to sing. A friend described it as «laughably good» and that’s exactly what it was. I seriously can’t overstate how delicious this dish was. Ms. Gaga had her meat dress, I would don a dress made of this, only to have it fall off gracefully such that I could enjoy a dress sized portion. Straight up, if you only have one meal in Iowa, come here and get the Ossa Bucco — you’ve love it!
This is one of my new favorite places to eat in the country. A must try for anyone in town, anyone in the state and anyone in adjacent states!

Great food and a good beer selection friendly and fast service. Easily one of the best restaurants in Mason City.

Great food. Service is ok, depending on the day. We sat outside once with a decent waitress and inside once for lunch with poor service. The menu is pricey, but the food reflects the price. Can go casual with outside or bar seating or nice on the dinner side. Nice place to go to once in awhile.

I would have to say it has the best food in the Mason City and Clear Lake area. Good presentation, good menu, and about the only place you can get any seafood. Also you gotta upgrade to the Caesar salad with your entrée, really unique with the whole head and the grill marks, very good and different style! Patio seating when the weather is nice and also they have some local brews on tap.