The Broiler
Redwood Valley’s Old School Steakhouse
by Terry Ryder Sites
The Broiler Steak House in Redwood Valley has beengiving its customers exactly what they want for sixty years. Everything about a visit there brings great comfort. Large, deeply padded booths give each dining party a lot of real estate to relax in. Tasteful glass partitions between the booths provide a rare level of privacy for conversations during your meal. The lighting is soft with quiet landscape paintings lining the walls.
The first thing you see upon entering the restaurant is an entire wall dedicated to photos of local sports teams sponsored by The Broiler. This truly is a family-oriented business. Owner Joe Fernandes Senior worked his first day in the restaurant at the age of nine. A photo of his Uncle Tony—who opened the Broiler in 1966—shows him posing with a prize-winning lamb during his years with 4-H. Joe moved from busser to cook, server to manager, and finally became owner. The tradition continues as his son, Joey Fernandes, currently manages the restaurant after his own years working as a teenaged apprentice.
Diners entering the restaurant often wear smiles of happy anticipation. They know what to expect and they are more than ready to eat a hearty and delicious meal. The menu is simple, consisting of various versions of beef, chicken, lamb, and pork. Also on offer is plenty of seafood—prawns, scallops, lobster, halibut, salmon, and shrimp. Chicken or seafood pasta is available, too.
The Broiler is most known for the steaks and other meat dishes that are charbroiled over an oak wood pit. The char that results from this expert cooking is the secret ingredient. I love the thick and juicy lamb chops that are served in a group of three. It is an exquisite moment when the mint jelly meets the charred lamb. Steak lovers rave similarly and I’m sure the seafood people are equally transported. Prices here are not low, but with the unfailing quality you always get full value for your money.
Many restaurants no longer bring a breadbasket and butter to the table at the start of a meal—a casualty of the low-carb trends popular in modern diets. The Broiler is happily retro on that score. I guarantee that a basket of fresh, warm sourdough bread paired with a generous dish of butter will show up on your table. In fact, if you’re coming for dinner at The Broiler, it's best to save the diet for another day.
Your server will also bring a big salad bowl filled with yesteryear favorites like iceberg lettuce, beets, and garbanzo beans. When it comes to the dressings, Irecommend the housemade Thousand Island. After the salad your main course will arrive. There will be nothing on the plate but meat and the potato of your choice (take the baked with sour cream). You will be too busy digging in to miss a side veggie. If you are still hungry after the generous entree, dessert classics on offer include chocolate cake, cheesecake, ice cream, anda surprising peanut butterfudge pie. House wines are local and reasonably priced at $10 a glass.
Guests who need to wait for their table can sidle up to the bar and order a cocktail. Large tables accommodate big parties, while solo diners can eat comfortably at the bar. Also worth noting are the banquet rooms, available for individual parties and organizational events.
Banquet service is efficient and friendly. Seniors like the 3:00 opening on Sundays, which allows them to have a nice dinner and still get home before dark, even in the winter. Two people with smaller appetites can share a dinner for a nominal “extra plate” fee.
In the fifteen years that I have been coming to The Broiler, not much has changed. They understand that eternal truth: if it isn’t broken, you don’t need to fix it. Everyone is welcome, from little kids to young couples to grandparents. Joe Senior says, “We love it that you come to us to celebrate your anniversaries and birthdays, or simply to satisfy your cravings on a Tuesday night.”
The restaurant is located in a large, nondescript building down a country lane in Redwood Valley. You will have no trouble parking, as they have a huge lot. It is somewhat mysterious how such a happening restaurant ended up in such a remote, countrified setting. But when you're next craving some old school steakhouse deliciousness, you will be delighted that they did.
The Broiler 8400 Uva Drive, Redwood Valley
(707) 485-7301
broilersteakhouse.com
Open Tuesday - Sunday
Check website for hours and other information.
Terry Ryder Sites lives in Yorkville with 4 cats and 1 husband. A graduate of Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Clown College, she writes a weekly column for the online Anderson Valley Advertiser.
Steak photo courtesy of The Broiler. All other photos by Terry Ryder Sites.
