Spillway 112 3rd Street, Harpers Ferry, IA 52146

"My husband and I were both very impressed by our first time eating here. Our waitress was excellent. My husband ordered one of the tenderloin sandwiches that ranked in the top five in the state and he thought it was great!"

"The Spillway is awesome. Halfway between nowhere and the back of beyond along the Mississippi River in far Northeast Iowa lies the very small historic town of Harpers Ferry, where fishing and hunting isn’t a sport, it’s been a way of life since the beginning of time. And today, we discovered a timeless rural supper club. Read that; ‘Bar and Amazing Grill & Pizza Joint’. The Spillway is a destination worthy of a national tour of local greats proving that home town beats big town every time. We passed by this place for years traveling on the Iowa side of the Mississippi between Lansing and Marquette. Then we see that the Spillway is a top five finalist in the Iowa Pork Producers annual best Iowa Pork Tenderloin sandwich competition. Well, what do you do? You go see for yourself, obviously. And Spillway is a major contender. Now, where to begin: The Spillway atmosphere is magnificent. Awesomeness as only a dark old river bar can be. You know you have struck rural gold when you walk into a dimly lit tavern and see over 25 trophy buck deer head mounts on the walls. If eating at the bar isn’t your thing, the other side of the place is a well lit dining room of the kind you only find in this region. Nothing fancy, but sufficiently functional to host the Pope to one of the best tenderloin sandwiches in Iowa. We tried both the traditional breaded, and the no-breading grilled with various condiments. I’m a purist. Breaded, generous onions, dill pickles, and yellow mustard. My wife goes for grilled. But, we had the ultimate judge with us. My 92 year old mother. She is a breaded, tomato, lettuce, no onions, person. We all loved our sandwiches. Yes, Spillway is a righteous competitor for the 2023 Iowa title. Mom says hers was the most tender and flavorful pork she has had in ages. And Mom is picky: well earned in her centennial decade. Spillway breading is a light golden crispy crust that reminded me of a really well done tempura, fried to tenderloin sandwich perfection. The onion rings were equally perfect, as were the bar standard crinkle fries. I congratulate Spillway in leaving off the salt. Us older folks appreciate the lower sodium standard. Many thanks. Beyond our target tenderloin lunch today, Spillway’s menu is something I’ll return to explore. Especially the burgers and that awesome looking thin crust pizza. Could be a national pizza destination too, but needs further research! Value? Just look at the menu picture. Enough said. While I can be as much a beer snob as anyone, spending stupidly for a so-called craft beer, Spillway wins the day. $1.50 PBR long necks. That’s VALUE. Say what you want about PBR, but it’s one of America’s oldest beers and what was good for my great granddad is good for me. Just go with the place and the rare moment gracing you when you find your way to Spillway."

"Great food and super staff, Awesome burg and great tenderloin"

"This place has got such a friendly vibe! And great place to grab a drink ! We got some finger food from the menu and one of our order had meat(we are vegetarians and the menu didn’t say so). The staff were so nice about it and got us a replacement dish! Definitely recommend when your in town or on route through the town!"

"Great small town bar. No beer tap but they have Toppling Goliath beers on tap. Quick note to vegetarians: the broccoli cheddar bites have meat. I found out the hard way, and the manager was great about fixing it even though I didn't complain about the issue"