We rolled into town around 8pm on a Thursday night feeling hungry and thirsty. By the time we checked into our hotel and pulled up a list of possible places to eat, there were only 2 options left that weren't fast food. We tried the other first only to find that the internet lies, and its kitchen was closed. Inching closer to famished, we plugged the address for The Smokestack into our GPS and crossed our fingers.

We almost didn't make it in since the entrance wasn't where we expected and we had to search around the building on foot through the dark streets of an unfamiliar city. We breathed a sigh of relief when we found our way in and were given a table and menus. After a long debate over our relative level of hunger and willingness to consume carbs, we ordered fries with garlic and asiago, Fried Brussels Sprouts, and a White and Green flatbread pizza. As we were waiting for our dishes in what felt very much like a brewpub retrofitted into an old warehouse, some local musicians started playing the blues. 

With some seriously good music, the other tables filled quickly, and despite fatigue from a long road trip and hunger, we found ourselves slowly savoring our food so we could listen to just one more song. The venue was definitely loud, and pretty high-energy, so not what we were aiming at to relax over dinner after a long drive. However, every morsel was tasty and the Fried Brussels Sprouts were out of this world. All-in-all, we are definitely fans, and if we ever find ourselves back in Dubuque, we'd go back.