Mid-Michigan Dining

• 317 S. Elm Street #201
• Owosso, MI 48867
• (989) 472-9025
• Website
• Menu

The Wrought Iron Grill on South Elm Street in Owosso

I know it sounds stupid, but J and I just aren’t back on Eastern Time yet.  We had a nice vacation that didn’t involve a lot of getting up early, but sleeping in unfamiliar beds all week really took a toll on us.  We made it back to Lansing just as the storms were rolling in Friday night and J went almost right to bed.  I stayed up and caught up on some Tivo’d shows.  When I rolled over Saturday morning and the clock said 11:50, I have to admit, I was a little shocked.  That’s not all that unusual for me, but it is for J.  By the time we got up and got moving, it was a little after 1:00.  We didn’t have plans today, but needed to go somewhere for lunch.  J asked if there was any place I’ve been wanting to go…even if it was a little bit of a drive.  I mean, we are still in vacation mode.  Owosso’s not that far and there’s a restaurant just on the edge of town I’ve heard good things about.

The Wrought Iron Grill is on South Elm Street in an old warehouse that is now a mixed use building.  The Wrought Iron Grill takes up the bottom floor of the front of the space.  Around the corner there’s a cute looking coffee shop and there are lofts on the second floor.  We pulled in a little after 2:00 on a Saturday afternoon.  There were a few cars in the parking lot and one family dining on the patio so we knew we wouldn’t be the only people in the place.

We walked in the front door where we were met by a hostess.  She showed us to a booth in a room that is just off the bar.  She set down the “dinner” menus which was a little bit of a worry to me, but they had sandwiches, so we were ok.  The hostess said the waitress would be with us in a second so we started to look over the menu.

The waitress didn’t come right away, but that did give us a chance to check out the beautiful decor.  If I ever opened a restaurant, I would want it to be a place like the Wrought Iron Grill.  The floors are hardwood.  The walls are exposed brick and the duct work is part of the ceiling decor.  It is an absolutely beautiful space.  It’s got that industrial feel to it which is something I’m a fan of.  They didn’t try to cover up the fact that the building served a purpose before it’s life as a restaurant.

Several minutes later, the waitress still hadn’t come to our table.  The hostess eventually noticed and brought some water and took drink orders.  Again, she said the waitress would be right with us.  When the waitress did come, she complained about the hostess not telling her we were there.  Again, there were only four other couples in the restaurant, so it wasn’t a busy day.  I don’t know where she was hiding, but it wasn’t where she could see us or her other tables.

The Wrought Iron Grill in Owosso

Since the hostess already brought our Coke’s, we were ready to order.  J ordered the Basque Chicken Sandwich.  This was a perfectly char-grilled piece of chicken.  You could see distinct grill marks on the breast.  It was then topped with goat cheese and a roasted red pepper and served on a Breadsmith Asiago encrusted bun.  J said the roasted red pepper made the sandwich.  She loved it.  Not only did she love the sandwich as a whole, but each of the individual pieces of the sandwich were delicious.  She raved about the bread and I felt fortunate that she tore off a little piece of the chicken just so I could see how good it was.  The sandwich came with about ten steak fries.  Not kidding you here.  There weren’t a whole lot. 

I ordered the Big Daddy Burger.  The sandwich starts with fresh ground Bannan’s chuck that is char-grilled then topped with home made BBQ sauce, applewood smoked bacon, and pepperjack cheese.  The burger is also served on a Breadsmith Asiago encrusted bun that was perfectly toasted and didnt’ get soggy with the BBQ sauce.  The sandwich was awesome.  The cheese had melted into a gooey blob that mixed with the BBQ sauce.  It was delicious.  Like J, I got literally ten steak fries…yes,  I counted.  That was the disappointing part of the meal.  I felt they sort of skimped on the fries.  I was still a little hungry when we left. 

Like earlier in the meal, the waitress disappeared.  We sat with empty plates and empty glasses for quite a while.  I had even drank my water to the point the glass was empty…ice and all.  When the waitress did come back, she inquired about dessert, but we both passed hoping we could find someplace in town to try out for dessert (and we did 🙂 ). 

The bill was just over twenty two bucks.  We both loved our sandwiches…again, I reiterate, we LOVED our sandwiches.   They were the star of the show and they both shined bright.  We were both a little disappointed in the fries.  They were really good and had a great seasoning, but there just wasn’t very many.  The Wrought Iron Grill has all the makings to be a great restaurant.  Before we drove to Owosso, I read a number of great reviews in the LSJ, Flint Journal, Argus Free Press, and the Detroit Free Press, so we were excited to make the trip.  The food was fantastic.  The atmosphere was incredible (except it was a little chilly…).  The only thing that kept me from completely raving about this place was the waitress and the small amount of fries.  The waitress wasn’t the worst we’ve ever had, but there were some snarky comments about the hostess and the bill (I handed her my credit card so she wouldn’t walk away…she made a comment about hating when people don’t check it…I just didn’t want her to leave). 

Other than that, it was a great experience and I would even say that it is worth the drive from Lansing.  They have a great looking dinner menu and every now and then, it’s nice to take a drive and treat someone special to a place that’s not in your regular rotation.