Quiz time! What do you get when you cross a fine-dining restaurant with a Cheers-like friendly neighborhood bar? Before one thinks, uh-uh, not possible, think again. Think Stone Creek Dining Company in Montgomery. Here at Dining Out, we have been frequenting Stone Creek for almost two decades now, and the vibe of the place has remained consistent, even though the venue has changed. Readers of this column may recall that Stone Creek in Montgomery began its run of success among Greater Cincy’s restaurants as a corner eatery. That corner was the southeast one, at Montgomery Road where Cooper Road intersects, a bit north of the newish roundabout junction of Cross-County (aka The Ronnie) expressway. Today, Stone Creek is a bit farther north along Montgomery Road, just past Twin Lakes retirement village, and I believe in the general area where Chester’s Roadhouse once stood.
While the cityscape has changed in that area, what has not changed is the dedication the folks at Stone Creek have to their founding principles, the central one of which is to deliver on completely satisfying those who patronize the restaurant. Back in the first decade of the 21st century, Tom Cunningham, then newly installed managing partner of the eatery told me this about the busy (and Cheers-like) bar scene there: “Stone Creek has become the place to meet for a lot of people in and around the Montgomery area.” Much has changed since then, but people of the area, of the neighborhood, if you will, still gather at the bar at the new location just as they did in the past. The bar is spacious yet brings in small clusters of patrons who meet after work, or just because. Those clusters form the crowds which enjoy wine or spirits, and sometimes food as well. Some migrate to the dining room after time in the bar, some don’t.
“We are a neighborhood restaurant, so we want to make sure we take care of the people who live in this community. So, if they want to come in and have a bowl of soup and a glass of wine, we are here to provide that; whatever they want is fine with us,” Cunningham said back then. Management today echoes those same words and themes. That commitment likely is one of the reasons Stone Creek is as popular as ever with the dining public.
In any event, we enjoy the casual ambiance, the welcoming demeanor, and the quality of the place — standards not always easy to find all in one place in dining out these days. On our most recent visit to Stone Creek, we enjoyed a variety of entrée choices, and all were simply delicious. At our table of four, one selection was the orange-miso salmon, a dish that features a sesame rice cake, along with spinach, leeks, asparagus, scallions, a ginger-soy sauce to add a Pacific-rim touch, and a finish of orange-miso glaze. I have had this dish before and can report that if you are a salmon lover as I am, you will likely love this special salmon preparation. The balance of flavors offers an intriguing taste profile that is the essence of the sweet-savory approach. The salmon features a nice grill texture outside and is thoroughly warmed through by an oven finish. The result is a moist and pleasantly chewy texture that is fish-filet perfection in my book.
For me that night, the squash Wellington was the ticket. Though not a vegetarian myself, my sense is that a good time to eat a vegetarian meal is when the choice does not leave me second-guessing. Bet you know the feeling—wishing when the meal arrives that you’d ordered the fish or the steak or the chicken instead. But squash Wellington is what might be called “bold” vegetarian. For one thing, the entrée is beautifully presented. For another, it’s loaded with flavor and offers outstanding texture and mouth appeal. The squash is butternut, and the dish features Brussels sprouts and mushroom duxelles wrapped in phyllo pastry, then baked. My suspicion is that a lot of the flavor of this dish comes from the mushroom duxelles, which is a mixture of finely chopped mushrooms and shallots, seasoned with herbs and spices, the whole of which is sautéed slowly in butter. The concoction is French in origin and is a key ingredient in the preparation of beef Wellington, as well as some soups and sauces. After the oven bake, the dough-pocketed veggies are dressed in a sherry cream sauce and highlighted with tomato jam. When eating this dish, I for one, have no buyer’s remorse. Scrumptious!
Two others at our table chose to be the meat-eaters in our group of four. One had the ribeye steak, the other a small filet mignon (hold the herbed butter, please). Each ordered their respective steak cuts rare, and rare is how they came to table. Both were nearly fork-tender, they claimed, and delicious as well. These beef dishes are accompanied by garlic mashed potatoes, and a veggie, asparagus with the filet, and green beans with the ribeye.
See you at Stone Creek Dining Company!
