A look at the Farmhouse Grill and how it differs from the Farmhouse Restaurant
The Apple Valley complex, located on the Sevierville-Pigeon Forge line, is a multi-purpose facility. It is designed to fill all of your apple-based tourism needs. In addition to the hotel, the Apple Valley Creamery, the Christmas and Candle Shop, the Apple Barn and the Cider House, the complex is bookended by a pair of sit-down restaurants – the Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant and the Applewood Farmhouse Grill.
For years, scholars have wondered about the phenomenon of two very similar restaurants that are so close together. Maybe, they speculated, the Grill has a significantly different menu from the Restaurant. Or perhaps the Restaurant serves old-timey, down-on-the-farm style meals while the Grill serves new-fangled, down-on-the-farm style meals. In this article, I will settle for posterity, exactly what purpose the Applewood Farmhouse Grill serves.
The Applewood Farmhouse Grill is the second of two restaurants on the wider Apple Barn complex. While you might assume significant differences between the two, the Grill is just a slightly adjusted version of the Restaurant.
IN THIS ARTICLE
About the Applewood Farmhouse Grill
Apple Valley is built upon the foundations of an actual working farm and orchard. The Farmhouse Restaurant began life as a home on the orchard in the 1920s. It was converted to a restaurant in 1987. The Applewood Farmhouse Grill opened less than a decade later, on the other side of the complex, maybe 500 yards from the original restaurant. The main purpose of the Grill was to serve the overflow crowd from the Farmhouse Restaurant.
The menu
As expected, from its stated purpose of serving Farmhouse Restaurant overflow customers, this sister restaurant’s menu is much like the one just down the road. It’s heavy on country classics like fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken and dumplings and chicken pot pie. Each meal comes with apple fritters and apple butter – which can be purchased at the Apple Barn but not in the restaurants. You also get an apple julip drink, essentially a small variety of juices mixed. It’s not alcoholic.
Most entrees come with a choice of soup, mashed potatoes, and a choice of sides. Sides include beans, greens, fried okra, mac and cheese and other country classics.
If you want something a little less country and a little more rock and roll, there is a blackened chicken alfredo pasta. However, the majority of options are going to be certified down-home cooking. If you want something with a little kick, the Nashville Hot Chicken Mac and Cheese is probably your best bet.
The pros
It’s a little like that greatest hits album “50 million Elvis fans can’t be wrong.” If a restaurant is doing enough business that it essentially opens a copycat just down the road, you can assume it’s going to be good. And it is.
At this point, I’ve tried the majority of the menus and haven’t been disappointed. In this type of downhome-style restaurant, I’m almost always left wanting more spice and flavor, and I still do at the Applewood family of restaurants, but at least the spice and flavor are noticeable. It’s nothing that can be helped with a dollop of hot sauce. The Grill has some items you can’t get at the Farmhouse. There’s a sirloin steak, the aforementioned pasta, and a grilled chicken salad.
The Grill does also have to-go ordering.
The cons
There’s a little bit more on the Farmhouse Restaurant menu in terms of country cooking compared to the Grill. For example, the pot roast, the turkey and gravy and the chicken livers don’t make the journey from the Farmhouse to the Grill. The Farmhouse also has a chicken cordon bleu that I feel thematically would be better served at the Grill.
In general, I don’t have a lot of cons. The music selection is not what I’m looking for, but I suppose that’s more of a me thing. Country radio hits are probably appropriate for the Farmhouse eateries.
Pricing and location
The Farmhouse Grill is an affordable option. Meal prices range from $19.99 to $23.99 at the time of this writing and include substantial serving sizes. In fact, I don’t think you’re going to find a significantly more affordable menu at a sit-down restaurant in the region. The Grill is located on Apple Valley Road, right as you pull into the valley complex. Be aware the road starts at four lanes but quickly drops to two. The right-hand lane is a turn lane that peels off before you reach the valley. When you make the turn onto Apple Valley Road, you’re going to want to get in the left lane.
The Applewood Farmhouse Grill is a fine choice for downhome style dining, especially if the slightly superior Farmhouse Restaurant has a wait. The food is good and plentiful and it’s also affordable. It makes for a fitting part of a visit to the Apple Valley.
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