My wife and I met for lunch on a recent Wednesday afternoon at the Washington Platform Saloon & Restaurant. The original Washington Platform was established in the same location in 1875. Unfortunately prohibition forced the closure of the saloon until it was re-established in 1986. The current restaurant at the corner of 10th & Elm is now famous for their oysters and seafood.

Outside

The restaurant was decently crowded on our arrival at 12:30, with most customers sitting in the back dining room. There is a more casual dining space just inside the front door and next to the bar, but that was not being used much during our visit. The back dining area is more brightly lit and offers a better experience in my opinion.

Mixed Greens Salad

My wife and I both started with a mixed greens salad, which was included with our entrées ($2.95 otherwise). They make all of their dressings in-house and they include Caesar, sweet chili vinaigrette, buttermilk garlic ranch, balsamic vinaigrette, 1000 Island, and bleu cheese. I tried the sweet chili vinaigrette and was amazed by how delicious it was. The balsamic was also tasty, but we both agreed that the sweet chili was the way to go. It was great!

Cajun Grilled Snapper

My wife ordered the Cajun grilled snapper served with vegetables ($18.95). She was served a large plate of food with two big pieces of fish. I’m not really a fish lover, so I just tried a small bite. The snapper was heavily seasoned with Cajun spices and was cooked well. It did not tasty overly fishy, which I appreciated. My wife really seemed to enjoy it.

Chicken Carbonara

Even though half of the menu is dedicated to seafood, there are some other options. I went with the chicken carbonara in a Romano cream sauce with bacon, onion and sweet peas ($15.50). Again the serving size was large. I’ve had carbonara dishes before that I did not like, but this one was pretty good. It had a subtle cheese and cream flavor that let the bacon, onion, and pea mixture shine through.

Overall we had a good dining experience from the Washington Platform Saloon & Restaurant. Be sure not to skip their delicious homemade salad dressings even though the entrée plates are large and filling.