Fox Valley Restaurant
Fox Valley Restaurant is a white-tablecloth establishment founded in August 1990 by Anthony Mangold and Sue Lemieux. The couple started the restaurant as an outgrowth of Lemieux's dessert business, which operated out of a local meat-and-three just north of Maylene. When the restaurant was put up for sale, they purchased it and gradually phased out its regular specials to make way for more innovative dishes.
The result became a nine-time winner of the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence and earned an on-air plug from American Idol winner Taylor Hicks. The restaurant's most famous dish is the "steak and cake", pairing a grilled filet mignon with a crab cake, one of the specialties of the house. Although the menu and wine list are top tier, the restaurant prides itself in keeping a casual atmosphere.
Fox Valley occupies space in a small strip shopping center at 6745 Shelby County Highway 17, at the intersection of Highway 44, close to another intersection with Fox Valley Farms Road. The restaurant has expanded from its original space into a former video store in 1992 and a former bar in 1999. A Shell station still shares the shopping center.
In 2007 Fox Valley began selling its signature crab cakes as a frozen entree at area Western Supermarkets. Western's Darwin Metcalf guided them through the process of creating a retail product. They are currently considering adding their signature herb raspberry vinaigrette salad dressing to supermarket shelves.
References
- Goodman, Sherri C. (May 6, 2007) "Pinching off more of the market." Birmingham News.
External links
- Fox Valley Restaurant website