A deer-leg lamp is not standard steakhouse equipment, which is one clue that this Devils Lake dining room has its own way of doing things. The meal starts downstairs, amid dark wood, old memorabilia, saloon-style details and wood-burning stoves, before many diners head upstairs for dinner.
The contrast between the two levels gives the place a pleasing old-school rhythm. Downstairs is more bar-oriented, with its collections and conversation; upstairs, the main dining room settles into warm lighting, cozy décor and a calmer setting for a long supper.
Start downstairs, then head up for supper
The first-floor bar is more than a waiting area. It is a full visual introduction to the restaurant, furnished with antiques, Western-inspired touches and enough memorabilia to keep your eyes moving around the room. Fairy lights in parts of the interior soften the darker wood and help keep all that décor from becoming too solemn.
The bar can also be a place to eat, with indoor seating and the full menu available there. It makes sense for a more casual meal, a drink before dinner or a group that prefers the livelier lower-level setting.
Upstairs is where the supper-club character comes into focus. Tables are generally conducive to conversation, though the room can be moderately noisy at busier times. A quieter table can be requested from the host.
The main dining room is on the second floor, reached from the first-floor bar area. Accessibility details are not established, so that layout is worth knowing before making plans.
Steaks with proper side dishes
Steak is the center of the menu, with ribeye, filet mignon, top sirloin, sirloin strip and prime rib among the familiar choices. Cuts are cooked to order, and the appeal is straightforward: substantial portions, careful preparation and the sort of plate that invites you to slow down rather than hurry on to the next stop.
There is room for some personality within the steak list. A New York pepper steak brings more seasoning to the table, while the Cajun blackened ribeye offers a bolder route for diners who want their beef with a little more fire.
The sides do not play a token role. Potatoes au gratin, garlic mashed potatoes, baked potatoes and fries give a steak dinner its necessary ballast, while salads and mushrooms round out the plate. Burgundy mushrooms and au gratin potatoes are especially fitting choices when the goal is a classic, hearty supper.
Prime rib, of course, belongs to the same leisurely category. This is food designed for an evening when a salad, an entrée, a drink and dessert all sound reasonable.
Do not skip the popovers
Before the steak arrives, the popovers deserve serious consideration. They come with honey butter and have become a house favorite for good reason: light in texture, rich in flavor and much more memorable than the routine bread basket.
They also set the tone nicely. A popover is a little old-fashioned, a little indulgent and exactly right in a restaurant that makes room for a full supper rather than merely a quick entrée.
Other starters give a table plenty to share. Spinach dip or spinach queso arrives with tortilla chips, and its creamy character makes it an easy opening move for a group. Barbecue wings, sweet-chili wings and poutine take the appetizer list in a more casual direction.
The sampler platter adds a regional note with chokecherry barbecue sauce. That small North Dakota flourish is a good reminder that, while the menu has the broad comforts of a traditional steakhouse, it is not trying to be generic.
Fish, comfort food and a few curveballs
A table with mixed tastes will not be stranded in beef territory. Broiled walleye is a natural choice in this part of the state, while pot roast, meatloaf and chicken Parmesan keep the menu grounded in familiar comfort-food territory.
The stuffed salmon is a more dressed-up alternative, pairing flaky fish with a cream-cheese-and-herb filling and wrapping it in prosciutto. It is the sort of entrée that suits someone who wants a special-dinner plate without ordering steak.
Shrimp gets several turns as well. Shrimp diablo comes as a generous fettuccine dish in a creamy buffalo-style sauce, while shrimp fra diablo has also appeared among the seafood selections. These are not timid, garnish-size shrimp dishes; they give the menu a distinctly broader reach.
Then there is the occasional surprise of a sushi roll of the day, including a spicy-crab version. Menus and specials rotate, so that particular roll should not be treated as a standing promise, but its presence says something useful about the kitchen's willingness to move beyond the expected.
Drinks and a classic finish
The beverage list supports both a steak dinner and a more relaxed stop at the bar. Cocktails and wine are available, with a substantial wine selection for the supper-club side of the evening and rotating beer choices for a less formal approach.
Draft options have included Fargo Beer, Lake of the Woods draft and Guinness. A pint downstairs before moving up to dinner fits the room particularly well, though a glass of wine and prime rib is every bit as much in keeping with the place.
Dessert is not an afterthought here. Cheesecake, truffle cheesecake and crème brûlée offer three different versions of a proper finish: creamy and familiar, deeply chocolate-leaning, or gently crackling beneath its caramelized top.
A multi-course meal can easily stretch from popovers and spinach queso through soup or salad, then steak, walleye or pot roast, and finally dessert. Knoephla soup has also appeared at the table, another comforting option when the evening calls for a little more than one course.
A place for a birthday, a date or a fishing-trip dinner
The mood is flexible without becoming vague. Couples can treat the upstairs room as a date-night destination, while families and larger groups can settle in with appetizers, several different entrées and dessert. Birthday dinners fit naturally here, but so does a repeat stop after a day around Devils Lake.
Service adds to that ease. Servers are attentive without turning the meal into a production, checking in regularly and helping diners navigate steaks, specials and the broad mix of entrées.
Free parking is available in a lot with ample space. Seating is indoors on both floors, and waits can range from none at all to a short pause, with longer waits occasionally possible.
Rotating specials and seasonal menu changes give regulars a reason to look beyond their usual order. Still, there is no need to overthink the first visit: begin with a honey-butter popover, choose the steak or comfort-food plate that sounds right, and leave enough room for cheesecake.