The Tenderloin:
Let me introduce you to my favorite tenderloin I have ever eaten.
This Tenderloin is from One Eyed Jack’s in Winamac, Indiana. It is the loin we use for the Facebook profile picture and one of the inspirations for writing this blog. I’ll admit that I haven’t eaten many pork tenderloins growing up being from The Corner. Since moving to north central Indiana I’ve sporadically ordered one up from a restaurant or two. It wasn’t until being scolded by my co-workers for regularly eating subpar tenderloin from a local place during lunch that I sought out to sample a nice traditional fried breaded pork loin. While driving home Indianapolis for a work trip I was advised to take a detour in Winamac to see what a real tenderloin tasted like. The giant tenderloin at One Eyed Jack’s blew me away and inspired me to seek out the best.
This is my first return visit to sample a fried tenderloin during the duration of this blog. One Eyed Jack’s The Original “Jack Jumbo Tenderloin” did not disappoint. The first thing you will notice is the size. My son and I shared the sandwich and we still had half left over to take home. Some tenderloins are giant but thin, some are bun sized but thick, but this one you get the best of both worlds. It was so wide that after we shared the tenderloin, we still had enough left over to make another sandwich. The meat is one of the thickest around; it’s one of the reasons it is so hard to finish. They use a beer batter which fries up crisp and adds an extra layer that you do not get with a traditional breading. You can also get some hot wing sauce with it, but for this trip I stayed with the less spicy BBQ sauce as I’m still recovering from a wisdom tooth removal. This seems like the pinnacle people. It is the reason this blog was started and if I ever do find a tenderloin that tops the one at One Eyed Jacks, it will be a glorious day. In the mean time, I see many future detours to Winamac to feast on the best of its kind.
The Town:
Winamac, the county seat of Pulaski County, is the smallest town I’ve covered so far. The county is also the 10th smallest by population and 3rd smallest by population density in Indiana. It does have, in addition to a great tenderloin, a beautiful park in the oxbow, a couple blocks of old buildings downtown, a giant opera house sitting in the courthouse square, and a small one screen theater that shows current movies. It seems like a wonderful place to live, but there isn’t much to do or see as a visitor. The future of the town looks bright as they have an anchor in the downtown with One Eyed Jack’s; all they need are some small boutique shops, historical museums, and a brewery, and Winamac could be a local touristy destination. That could be coming or maybe the residents don’t want that and just keep a simple, quiet town. But, either way we’ll have to go outside city limits to find some exciting things to do.
The morning started out visiting the Tippecanoe River State Park about 5 miles north of Winamac. I bought a season pass to the state parks, so we like to stop into them whenever there is one around. Before the hike, we went to the fire tower. This thing is 90 ft in the air and the top can be accessed by stairway. This is not for the faint hearted; you have over 100 steps and can see up and down the whole way up. Thinking about the other two taller towers I’ve scaled (Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Indy and the Little Sable Point Lighthouse in Michigan), this one was the scariest. In the monument and the lighthouse you cannot see outside while climbing and only gauge your height when you reach the top, plus they are connected to rigid walls. This tower only has a chain link fence and doesn’t even reach the support columns until you are two thirds the way up. The stairs also shake the whole time. The breathtaking view at the top makes it all worth it. You tower above the canopy of trees and can see for miles. The illusion feels like I was even higher than when I was at the monument or the lighthouse. After the tower, we then went on a 3 ½ mile hike using a combo of trails 4 and 5. The route meandered in the marsh along the oxbow lake and had a couple of nice views of the river. It was fairly flat and we enjoyed looking at the various wild flowers and butterflies along the trail. After that we sat in on a presentation about river otters at the nature center. I learned that if you encounter one and it wants your flip flop, just let him have it. You can always buy another flip flop, but may not be able to secure another hand or foot.
On the north central border of Pulaski County is the Kersting’s Cycle Center and the World of Motorcycles Museum. For only an adult price of $5 (kids are free) you can step into a warehouse of old and unique motorcycles, bicycles, and even cars. Walking through you can see items like the first motorcycle (which was made of wood), one of those old time bikes with the large front wheel, and a horseless carriage. Even if you are not a motorcycle enthusiast, you will enjoy roaming the aisles and seeing relics from the past. Kerstings also deals in Harley-Davidson, so make sure to buy your poker chip on the way out.
My son and I were so close to it in northern Pulaski County that we crossed the border into Starke County in North Judson to take a train ride at the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum. You can buy tickets to sit on an open air cart and ride behind (or in front of) the diesel locomotive for a 45 minute, 10 mile journey out and back. Luckily we had such a warm pleasant day to take such a trip and enjoy the fresh air. Granted, it’s not like taking to the rails in Colorado where you would see mountains, lakes, and buffalo, but the farmland is peaceful and the facts and history given by the tour guide is captivating enough to keep your interest. Our tour had some drama as the train kept breaking down. First there was a brake issue and then we had an electrical issue in the engine. Let's just say we were sure glad to be on a train rather than a plane. A second engine came and towed us back to the station and the 45 minutes took an hour and a half. They then shooed us off the train and facetiously wanted to charge us more for the extra time and excitement. Oh well, maybe we will return to take the whole trip someday… or maybe not.
After defying death on the train, we headed for some much needed ice cream and went The Point Drive-In at the point of Main St and County Road 10 in North Judson. Famous for its statue of a giant double scoop ice cream cone at the point, the ice cream itself was not too shabby. My son made a point of getting that double scoop cone and I got a banana milkshake as it has no points and felt good on my sore gums. It's a typical drive-in where you can leave your lights on and get served at your car, enjoy your sweets on a picnic table, or walk inside and feast in the air conditioning. I noticed that they have a tenderloin on the menu too, so maybe a return trip is warranted to North Judson? Well, if you ever find yourself in the Starke/Pulaski County area, crave some ice cream, and don’t have a map, surely someone can point you in the right direction.
Winamac is one of the smallest places, but houses one of the largest tenderloins. I kind of get the feeling that going there is before the start of something big. Or, maybe it is just one of those pleasant towns devoid of all of those touristy hot spots, the main attraction is just the simple, tiny town... along with the tenderloin that is.
Imagine riding around town on one of these!
by Michael Tomko
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