McEwen's on Monroe

McEwen's on Monroe Restaurant Review:

Exposed brick and heavy wooden tables lend McEwen’s a classy ambience, but patrons tend to dine in jeans and sneakers. McEwen’s adds a gourmet spin to classic Southern cooking, but it does so without an air of pretension. Signature dishes include grilled wild salmon with local sorghum butter and sweet potato-crusted catfish. Vegetarians get the special treatment as the chef whips up surprise meat-free meals for those who order the “Trust Me Vegetarian Plate.” Appetizers, such as the Southern-style spring rolls with chow-chow and spicy cabbage or the Tennessee purple-hull pea hummus, are particularly inspired. And the small plates menu with grilled beef tenderloin sliders or grilled steak and tots (with homemade bacon cheddar tots) is appropriate for light dining over after-work drinks. For dessert, enjoy a slice of the signature banana cream pie. The wine list is extensive, and the staff well versed in its delights.