New Kid on the Block: Boulevard Tap & Grill (Bonus Blog)

Although this restaurant was not our original list of 15 restaurants, it opened since we started, and we decided to do it as a bonus blog.  This restaurant is located in the Town and Country shopping center, in the former location of Dublin Pub and D’Arcy’s Pint. Boulevard Tap & Grill has done a great job of remodeling and upgrading the interior of the restaurant.  The former banquet room has been completely upgraded into a game room, which provides an open area that offers games as well as the full-service restaurant.  We definitely recommend this game room.

As for the shoe, we had a tale of two horseshoes.  One of our shoes was served with cold fries.  The cheese sauce heated them up somewhat, but they didn’t have any crunch. They seemed to be old fries that just needed to be served.  The other shoe was served with fresh fries, making the experience much more enjoyable.  We decided to try the pot roast horseshoe because it had been highly recommended.  Even though the meat had good flavor, it just didn’t mesh with the other components of the horseshoe.  The best part was the cheese sauce, and we rated it as one of the better that we’ve had. It tasted similar to Mexican queso.

Our out-of-town friend Holly joined us in this quest, and it was her first experience with the Springfield horseshoe tradition.  She wanted to share this venture with the most knowledgeable horseshoe connoisseurs that she knows (and that was only us). Holly ordered the Philly cheese steak shoe, and she loved it.  We both took a bite and determined that it was what we should have ordered.  Since this restaurant is new, we can cut them some slack. However, it does have the potential to be a great horseshoe restaurant because of the excellent cheese sauce.  With the right meat and fresh fries, it would be a total winner.

Cheese: 87
Meat: 85
Fries: 75
Overall Score: 80

A Horseshoe of a Different Color: Catie Girl’s

Catie Girl’s restaurant is located in the heart of downtown Springfield and is known for having an extremely unique menu.  Illinois Times voted it “Most Original Menu” in 2010.  Most people will probably be surprised by the fact that Catie Girl’s offers a horseshoe on their menu, so this made it one of our most anticipated stops on the Quest.  Catie Girl’s has a reputation as one of the most unique, eclectic atmospheres in the city.  On first glance, the menu may appear to be traditional, but once you read the descriptions, you realize that it is anything but.  The chefs put a very unique twist on their menu items.  A great example is the macaroni and cheese, which is made with pepper-jack cheese and pulled pork.  It’s not your grandmother’s mac & cheese.

With such a unique menu, we knew the horseshoe at Catie Girl’s was going to be unlike anything we had ever had before.  The horseshoe was served with jalapeño cornbread as the base of the shoe.  The cornbread was able to add a different taste to the shoe without being overly spicy.  It added to the flavor, but it did not dominate in any way.  The meat on the horseshoe was barbeque pulled pork, which had tons of flavor and a nice kick that went well with the jalapeño cornbread and the pepper-jack cheese sauce.  In terms of the cheese sauce, it was not nearly as spicy as we expected when we learned what it was made of.  The pepper-jack was mild and excellently complemented the overall horseshoe.   Adding to the uniqueness of the horseshoe, the fries were not one style, but three.  These tri-colored fries were made up of sweet potatoes, russet, and Yukon gold.  Although all of the ingredients do not sound like they should go together, they did.

Catie Girl’s has by far the most original horseshoe we have experienced on our Quest.  Sometimes unique is not always best, but in this case, it worked brilliantly. Everybody may not enjoy this horseshoe. If you are new to horseshoes, or are a picky eater, this is not our top recommendation.  However, if you’re in the mood for a unique horseshoe experience, Catie Girl’s is your place.

Cheese: 94
Meat: 93
Fries: 92 
Overall Score: 95

The Redemption Shoe: Lindsay’s Restaurant

Lindsay's Restaurant is one of eateries located in the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel in downtown Springfield. Lindsay’s is named after the famous poet Vachel Lindsay, who was born in Springfield, IL. Lindsay’s is one of the more upper scale restaurants on our Quest, and one of the very few places we were able use a cloth napkin and quality silverware. The overall atmosphere of the restaurant is casual, but a little bit of class can go a long way. Horseshoes are served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so all hotel guests or visitors can enjoy a horseshoe from 6:30 am-10 pm. Our original intention was to review another breakfast shoe at Lindsay’s, but after some discussion, we decided that a regular horseshoe would be a much better addition to the Quest. Our reason can be justified by a quick rehashing of the 2009 World Horseshoe Cook-off controversy.


In August 2009, Springfield, Illinois was host to the 100th Annual National Horseshoe Pitchers Association World Championship, but more importantly, was also the site of the 1st ever World Horseshoe Cook-off. The cook-off featured 9 restaurants from around the area, and pitted each horseshoe against one another to take home the title of world’s best. Lindsay’s horseshoe was named as “best overall horseshoe”, but was later disqualified for not preparing the horseshoe at the judging site. Lindsay’s Restaurant is located one block from the judging area, so they elected to assemble the horseshoe within its own kitchen and bring the completed horseshoe to the competition. The 1st ever World Horseshoe Cook-off ended in controversy and the full story can be read at the SJ-R.


Lindsay’s horseshoe was once crowned the best overall horseshoe in the world, and the Horseshoe Quest of 2011 has allowed them a chance at redemption. Lindsay’s is now competing for the coveted title of “Best on the Quest”. Now, without further ado, let’s get to the review.


Lindsay’s features only three meat choices for the horseshoe: hamburger, turkey, or ham; but with a big smile and a friendly waitress, you might just be able to get some bacon on the shoe as well. The horseshoe was definitely good, but unfortunately for Lindsay’s; it is not the best overall horseshoe on our Quest. On the plus side, the french fries on the horseshoe were fantastic, and are currently tied for the highest score. The fries were natural cut and still had some of the potato skin left on the sides. They were freshly prepared, so the crispiness and temperature definitely boosted the score. The hamburger was good quality and with the addition of bacon, we felt comfortable awarding the meat with a pretty solid rating. The burger was not the best one we have had throughout the Quest, but it was good enough to earn its rating. The cheese sauce was a yellow sauce, but it was able to hold its weight in this horseshoe. The sauce had a nice mild flavor and complemented the fries very well. The sauce by itself may not win any awards on our Quest, but the combination of the cheese sauce and the fries is certainly enjoyable. Lindsay’s makes a pretty good overall horseshoe, but it doesn’t make the “Best on the Quest”. Lindsay’s may not take home a title, but they should feel proud of the horseshoe that they entered. Hopefully that is enough redemption for Lindsay’s Restaurant.

Cheese: 83
Meat: 85
Fries: 90
Overall Score: 84

A Taste of Germany: Hallie’s on the Square

Hallie’s on the Square is located about 30 miles north of Springfield in Lincoln, IL. Hallie’s is known for its disproportionately large schnitzel sandwiches, but they also serve the schnitzel as a horseshoe. This restaurant has built quite a reputation around Lincoln, and has been serving up schnitzel for four generations. We knew that this horseshoe was going to be a lot to handle since the schnitzel generally is about the size of a dinner plate. The restaurant was easy enough to find, and we had no trouble finding a parking spot in downtown Lincoln. We entered the restaurant and we were immediately able to grab a table. As we began to scan through the menu, we noticed an odd policy. Hallie’s allows patrons to bring their own beer, and they will provide the glasses or ice at no additional cost. We have never really come across a BYOB policy at any restaurant in Springfield, so we were definitely surprised by this. Regardless, we made the trip to review the horseshoe, so that is exactly what we will do.

Simply put, this horseshoe was not one of our favorites. The cheese sauce…well let’s come back to the cheese sauce in a moment. Lets start with the best aspect of the horseshoe and then work our way through the other components. The schnitzel was pretty decent and was hands down the best part of the horseshoe. As you can see from the picture below, the schnitzel nearly filled the entire plate. Hallie’s makes a homemade schnitzel hot sauce that complimented the meat pretty well. The sauce could be compared to spicy ketchup, only with some extra spices mixed in. The schnitzel would make a very filling meal by itself, but as a horseshoe, it can be quite a challenge to finish. In most horseshoes the fries and cheese sauce make or break the horseshoe. In this case, they ruined it. The cheese sauce can be compared to the nacho cheese that came out of a machine in our high school cafeteria. It had way too strong of a flavor, and was way to thick to be put on any horseshoe. The cheese was by far the worst part of this horseshoe and completely derailed the shoe. The fries were nothing to talk about either. They were soggy and really had no flavor at all. Because of the terrible cheese sauce, we almost couldn’t taste the fries at all. All the fries seemed to do was add bulk to the horseshoe. If you find yourself at Hallie’s, please don’t order a horseshoe and just order the schnitzel sandwich instead. The horseshoe is a Springfield tradition for a reason. Lincoln, Illinois may have a very good schnitzel, but we will take good horseshoes over excellent schnitzel any day.

Cheese: 59
Meat: 85
Fries: 68
Overall Score: 68

Past Meets Present: Maldaner's Restaurant

Maldaner’s restaurant is located in the heart of downtown Springfield and has been in existence for over 100 years. When the topic of horseshoes comes up in Springfield, nobody will ever mention Maldaner’s as the hot spot for a horseshoe. However, Maldaner's is known for its excellent food; so when we found out that they served horseshoes at lunch it immediately became a must for us to visit. The horseshoe itself was very traditional and did not offer anything out of the ordinary. We went with the Springfield original and ordered hamburger for the meat. The horseshoe was very conventional and never differentiated itself from the other horseshoes in the Quest. No one part really stood out as great, yet no part was poor, it was all-in-all average. If you went to Maldaner’s for your first horseshoe experience, you would find it enjoyable; then again a few weeks later you would not be talking about this outstanding Springfield tradition.

The cheese sauce was decent and was by far the best yellow cheese sauce we have had on our Quest, but the competition in that category has been pretty weak. The sauce wasn’t something that we would ever rave about. It was much like the rest of the shoe, tasty at the time but nothing out of the ordinary. The meat was the best part of this horseshoe, and it was a very good hamburger. It was clearly high quality meat and was grilled fresh and not frozen. The fries were acceptable, but again nothing that will make you want to come back for more.

The quality of this horseshoe was definitely high, but the overall shoe will not take the top spot in any category. It is definitely worth trying, but if you are new to horseshoes, it would be best to make the journey somewhere else. If you do have a Maldaner’s horseshoe you will not be disappointed at the time, but as time goes on it won’t be able to hold its own weight.

Cheese: 83
Meat: 87
Fries: 83
Overall Score: 83

The Gold Standard: D'Arcy's Pint

D’Arcy’s Pint in Springfield is one of the major players in the horseshoe game and we knew it would be a real competitor for the top spot in our Quest. After its start up in 1998, D’Arcy’s rapidly became one of the town’s favorite destinations for horseshoes. As an Irish themed pub and grill, one may not necessarily associate Ireland with horseshoes, but D’Arcy’s Pint gained the reputation as having one of the best shoes in the city. Over the years, D’Arcy’s has expanded to a new location, but even today, you can still expect about a 30 minute wait just to grab a table. You may sometimes ask yourself, “Is the wait really justified, when I can go to five other horseshoe spots right around the corner?” The short answer is: yes. In all the times that we have been to D’Arcy’s, we are hard-pressed to remember a time when we ever had a bad horseshoe, or even bad service. The restaurant has gained a reputation for providing consistently high quality horseshoes with great service to top it off. D’Arcy’s has two bars as well as an outside patio that add to the atmosphere of the place. On a Friday or Saturday evening, you might be able to grab a seat in one of these areas, instead of playing the waiting game with a table. D’Arcy’s has a full menu complete with many tasty Irish and American specialties, but we were here for business and were one step closer to completing the Horseshoe Quest of 2011. Our original goal was to get the “horseshoe of the week” and we had been holding out until the ‘Gyro Horseshoe’ was the featured shoe; but we found ourselves impatient and decided to review the buffalo chicken horseshoe.

The buffalo chicken horseshoe is probably the best selling shoe at D’Arcy’s Pint and there is no doubt as to why it sells so well. First off, the horseshoe at D’Arcy’s in almost the perfect size. There was a great chicken to fries ratio, and the cheese sauce filled the plate masterfully. The cheese sauce was served very warm, a vital trait to any shoe, since as the cheese cools it loses some of its original flavor and can lead to the entire meal being saturated in lukewarm sauce. The white cheese sauce at D’Arcy’s Pint was phenomenal and is now the leading contender for the cheese category. It is almost as if they have mastered the art of creating consistently outstanding cheese sauce, because we have never been let down by the quality of the cheese sauce. The buffalo chicken carried its own weight in the horseshoe as well. The chicken breast was wonderfully breaded and attained a great balance of crispiness and tenderness. There are various other choices for meat, but we wholeheartedly believe that you cannot go wrong with the buffalo chicken horseshoe (if you are not a fan of spicy food, don’t worry because the hot sauce comes on the side). The fries on shoe were served piping hot, as they must have just left the fryer a few moments before arriving to our table. The fries at D’Arcy’s have been used as a grading point for most of the horseshoes up to this point. We are familiar with the quality and taste of their fries, and they once again delivered a high grade. It should also be mentioned that D’Arcy’s uses thick slices of Texas toast on their horseshoes. Some horseshoes try to get by with using regular pieces of toast, but the difference between the two is definitely noteworthy.

Overall, D’Arcy’s Pint received the second highest score to date (behind Norb Andy’s Tabarian) and the reason it did not take over the top spot is that the uniqueness factor was not as high. We can get a buffalo chicken horseshoe at twenty different places around Springfield, but we can only get a ‘Joe Rogers Chilishoe’ at one place in the city. If you are looking for the best buffalo chicken horseshoe, it is probably at D’Arcy’s Pint. There are still a few stops on our quest before we can say that with all certainty, but there is no doubt that this will be hard to top. If you have never tried a horseshoe or are taking somebody to get a horseshoe for the very first time, take them to D’Arcy’s Pint. You won’t regret it.

Cheese: 94
Meat: 92
Fries: 90
Overall Score: 94

The Wildcard: The Track Shack

This leg of the quest brings us roughly to the halfway point of our summer-long adventure. For this stop we decided to go to the Track Shack, which is located in Springfield. This truly was a wildcard for us because we knew absolutely nothing about this restaurant or what we had waiting for us. Our immediate reaction upon seeing the establishment was, “what have we gotten ourselves into?” The place looked like a complete dive, and we both thought this has potential to be one of the worst shoes that we will have on our quest. The results didn’t quite go like we thought they would.
The first thing we noticed about the horseshoe when it came out was that the cheese sauce was the deepest shade of yellow that we had ever seen for a cheese sauce. This was not a promising start, because both of us are very partial to white cheese sauces. The sauce ended up being a weaker part of this shoe, but received a solid grade overall. It had a very strong flavor, which kind of reminded us of a nacho cheese sauce. The fries were very typical bar fries and did not stand out in any way. On the other hand, they did not take away from the show at all. They almost just blended in because of the strong flavor of the cheese and were almost just filler in some way. We gave the fries an average score, which is exactly what they deserved. The meat is where the complete shocker came for this horseshoe, both of us ordered buffalo chicken and it was absolutely fantastic. The chicken was cooked very well and had excellent flavor. The hot sauce had a great taste to it, as well as the perfect amount of hot sauce and spiciness. Both of us felt as if it was the best buffalo chicken that we have had on a horseshoe in years. The buffalo chicken was so good; it almost rivaled Norb Andy’s for the top meat score.
The Track Shack may not be the classiest establishment in Springfield, but they do know how to make one heck of a buffalo chicken. If the Track Shack could only upgrade the cheese sauce, they could be a serious contender for one of the top spots in the quest. The horseshoe was decent overall, but it could have been a little bit better. The Track Shack truly shows that sometimes you can find a great horseshoe in a place that you least suspect it.

Cheese: 80
Meat: 92
Fries: 80
Overall Score: 86