Tin Mill Restaurant, Hermann
May 2025
The historic Hermann Mill, formerly an 1840s grain elevator, mill and icehouse, now houses the Tin Mill Restaurant. Intricately tied to the town’s agriculture, the mill produced White Pearl Flour and Lucky Hard Wheat Flour. The Dierberg family of Saint Louis renovated the mill in 2007 and have been instrumental in Hermann’s preservation for many years.
Blueprints of the building hang on the restaurant’s back wall. Original wood flooring and beams add a rustic vibe. Centered in the dining area, the grain elevator shaft soars seven stories above the basement. An attached icehouse, now Celebration Hall, accommodates large dinner parties, weddings, conferences and private events.
“Our seasonal menu offers German-American comfort food with several Italian dishes added this winter,” says general manager Justin Lieser. “Chef Stewart Barteau joined us last March and previously worked at some notable St. Louis restaurants.”
Wines from Dierberg vineyards in Hermann and Santa Barbara, California influence every dish, even the vegetables. Four beers on tap are crafted by the traditional German method at Tin Mill Brewery just across the street. Cocktails feature spirits from local Black Shire Distillery, also a Dierberg enterprise. Five wine flights and a beer flight offer samplings.
“We have the luxury of using wine from our vineyard just eight miles away,” says Lieser. “Our labels include estate wines and reserve blends as well as blends from the Dierberg’s Missouri and California wineries.”
For starters, my husband and I ordered the Bavarian soft pretzel to dip in house made beer cheese. The wurstteller plate showcased two German sausages made by local Swiss Meats. Scratch sweet and spicy mustards complimented the hearty sausages.
Our three dinner entrees incorporated house made sauces, gravies and sides. The boneless whiskey barbecue chicken arrived grilled and topped with tangy barbecue sauce that featured Black Shire Distillery whiskey. A tender 10-ounce strip steak drizzled with Norton onion butter included mashed potatoes and broccoli. Our favorite, and the most popular entrée, was hand-tenderized and lightly breaded schnitzel. Thin and crispy encrusted pork tenderloin with dill gravy accompanied sides of traditional red cabbage sauerkraut and warm German potato salad.
Service was attentive. We lingered over dessert that included crème Brulé, bread pudding and apple strudel beignets à la mode. The beignets perfectly capped off our hearty meal. Four pastry-filled rolls came stuffed with a homemade, but not-overly-sweet, apple filling.
Visit TinMillSteakHouse.com for more information.
Blueprints of the building hang on the restaurant’s back wall. Original wood flooring and beams add a rustic vibe. Centered in the dining area, the grain elevator shaft soars seven stories above the basement. An attached icehouse, now Celebration Hall, accommodates large dinner parties, weddings, conferences and private events.
“Our seasonal menu offers German-American comfort food with several Italian dishes added this winter,” says general manager Justin Lieser. “Chef Stewart Barteau joined us last March and previously worked at some notable St. Louis restaurants.”
“We have the luxury of using wine from our vineyard just eight miles away,” says Lieser. “Our labels include estate wines and reserve blends as well as blends from the Dierberg’s Missouri and California wineries.”
For starters, my husband and I ordered the Bavarian soft pretzel to dip in house made beer cheese. The wurstteller plate showcased two German sausages made by local Swiss Meats. Scratch sweet and spicy mustards complimented the hearty sausages.
Our three dinner entrees incorporated house made sauces, gravies and sides. The boneless whiskey barbecue chicken arrived grilled and topped with tangy barbecue sauce that featured Black Shire Distillery whiskey. A tender 10-ounce strip steak drizzled with Norton onion butter included mashed potatoes and broccoli. Our favorite, and the most popular entrée, was hand-tenderized and lightly breaded schnitzel. Thin and crispy encrusted pork tenderloin with dill gravy accompanied sides of traditional red cabbage sauerkraut and warm German potato salad.
Service was attentive. We lingered over dessert that included crème Brulé, bread pudding and apple strudel beignets à la mode. The beignets perfectly capped off our hearty meal. Four pastry-filled rolls came stuffed with a homemade, but not-overly-sweet, apple filling.
Visit TinMillSteakHouse.com for more information.
The Landmark, Lowry City
February 2025
Two-piece chicken dinners come with mashed potatoes dolloped with scratch brown or white gravy and a yeast roll. Customers choose two homemade sides such as creamy potato salad, pickled beets, crispy coleslaw or that day’s dessert salad. It’s a bargain by any standards at $10.50 or $11.50 for all white meat. Price aside, my husband declared it the best fried chicken he has eaten. I agreed. Landmark’s crispy golden crust envelopes moist and tender meat.
“We fry by hand and don’t cut corners,” says owner and entrepreneur John Foster. “On Fridays, I cut up 50 whole chickens for Sunday.”
Less than a mile off Highway 13 and just north of Osceola Cheese Company, The Landmark serves as a community gathering place serving breakfast and lunch. A beehive of activity, locals and waitresses greet each other with hellos and hugs. Likewise, my husband and I were warmly welcomed. Service started the minute we were seated at the blue Formica table.
“I grew up in this community and love it here,” says Foster, “I enjoy being the place where people come to eat and see their friends.”
Although open for years, Foster bought The Landmark at the beginning of 2023. Now age 27, he started at the restaurant as a 16-year-old dishwasher, waiter and weekend cook before attending community college. He cooks alongside his staff and bakes his yeast rolls and desserts starting at 4:45 each morning. Savannah, restaurant manager and 15-year employee, mother hens the staff.
Throughout the week, except when closed on Mondays, homemade biscuits and gravy for breakfast draw regulars. Lunch specials, posted daily on Facebook, might feature ham and beans or fried catfish. Menu staples range from pot roast with brown gravy, meatloaf and sandwiches.
Foster enjoys the art of pie making. Desserts rotate daily, often selling out. Sundays, he makes 10 pies, a cobbler and a cheesecake. For $2.75 and $3.25 respectively, we tried coconut cream, banana cream and yummy blackberry cobbler. Whole pies, ordered ahead, sell for $12 to $14.
“What I enjoy most as a small business owner is being of service to my community and my employees,” said Foster.
For more information, look up The Landmark Restaurant Lowry City on Facebook.