Craving a homestyle meal? Several Evansville-area restaurants offer the tradition of the plate lunch, also referred to as a “meat and three.” Central is protein — think meatloaf, roast beef, country fried steak, pork chops, liver, sausage, fried chicken, or catfish — with a supporting cast of side dishes of your choice. Don’t know where to start? Here are a few menus to try.
Head to Stockwell Inn (4001 E. Eichel Ave.), known for its ever-changing plate lunch specials Monday-Friday. Patrons dig into fried chicken or country fried steak with mashed potatoes and corn, bacon cheeseburger casserole with green beans, lasagna or spaghetti with garlic toast and a salad, or a sloppy joe with fries and coleslaw.
Merry Go Round Restaurant (2101 N. Fares Ave.) plate lunches are served Monday-Saturday in a nostalgic, colorful diner setting. Try a smoked pork chop with fried apples, old-fashioned Polish sausage or old-fashioned spare ribs with sauerkraut, baked Swiss steak, grilled or breaded catfish filets with tartar sauce, or macaroni and ground beef en casserole. Side staples include whipped potatoes, stewed apples, cut corn, tossed green salad, and coleslaw.
In addition to a craveworthy breakfast menu, Nellie’s North (600 N. First Ave.) or Nellie’s Restaurant (8566 Ruffian Lane, Newburgh, Indiana) offer for a weekly rotating selection of plate lunch. Select from beef liver with onion, pot roast, catfish fiddler, or a salmon patty supported by rotini pasta salad, baked beans, coleslaw, French fries, and mashed or garlic potatoes.
Looking for on-the-go options? Old Tyme Deli (307 N. First Ave.), a popular spot with Berry Global employees, offers rotating to-go plate lunches Monday-Friday that can be enjoyed dine-in or carryout. Order meat loaf, beef and noodles, Salisbury steak, lasagna, or barbecue pork steak. Among Downtown’s Bargetown Market (330 Main St., Ste. C) daily lunch specials is a plate lunch on Thursdays. Options vary from pot roast with potatoes, carrots, and bread to meat loaf with mashed potatoes, gravy, and collard greens or cream corn.
