I’d love to tell you that I orchestrated my visit to Uncle Sam’s Restaurant & Cafe? knowing that the review would publish in print on July 4 (Get it? Uncle Sam … Independence Day …). However, that turned out to be purely a coincidence. Still, it was a happy accident — for The Grub Spouse and me, at least.
That’s because the Fort Sanders neighborhood eatery had just experienced an unhappy accident; its air conditioning had gone kaput on a real scorcher of a day. When The Spouse and I walked inside, it felt as if someone had wrapped us up in an electric blanket. A large box fan in the corner did virtually nothing to alleviate the situation. At least the employee behind the counter immediately handed us two bottles of cold water (on the house), unprompted, as a gesture of goodwill and appreciation.
Uncle Sam’s specializes primarily in Italian fare — including pizza and pasta dishes — and also features sandwiches and burgers. Among the options are lasagna, ravioli, chicken or eggplant parmesan, an Italian sub, a gyro wrap, the Swiss burger and the double-patty Monster Burger. A familiar lineup of sports-bar appetizers and a respectable selection of salads round out the lineup.
Signature pizzas include chicken Alfredo, Hawaiian, the Magnificent Greek, Philly steak or chicken, white cheese feta and a New York meatball pizza. Prices range from $10.49 for a small to $17.99 for a large, or you can have any of these made in calzone form for $10.49. Of course, you can custom-create your own pie starting with cheese-only ($8.49 to $14.49) and choosing from among some two dozen regular (99 cents each) and gourmet ($2.49 each) toppings.
I ordered a medium supreme ($14.49). That one is topped with pepperoni, beef, sausage, green pepper, onions and mushrooms. The Spouse was intrigued by the menu’s wedge sandwiches. These are similar to calzones, except ingredients are piled on a pizza crust, which is then folded in half to make a sandwich. It’s capped off with the addition of lettuce and tomato. The Spouse ordered the Capri ($10.45), which features grilled chicken breast, mushrooms and mozzarella cheese. This meal included a side of fries.
We waited in the stream of hot air blowing from the fan until our order was ready, at which point the employee brought our boxed items to our table. We took everything to the Grubmobile so we could dine in air conditioning.
The pizza was much better than I had expected. The crust had a cheesy essence to its flavor, and it was nice and soft and chewy. The defining ingredients were adequately proportioned and represented atop the crust, and plenty of cheese was involved. The Capri wedge sandwich was pretty tasty too. It was different enough from a calzone to merit trying one for novelty’s sake, but the chicken and mushroom components were a flavorful treat in their own right. I even appreciated the fries, which were crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. Both of us had abundant leftovers to take home in our to-go boxes.
I’m confident that Uncle Sam’s lack of AC was a short-term issue that has since been resolved. You may want to verify that before you visit — and prepare to place your order to go just in case. But for solid pub grub that’s reasonably priced and convenient for UT students especially, Uncle Sam’s is a hot property in more ways than one.
The restaurant has a limited selection of what I suspect are food-distributor desserts, but we skipped them anyway to do treats at the UT Creamery, which is on Neyland Drive just off Kingston Pike. The operation is an offshoot of the school’s culinary program and featured some 16 homemade flavors that day, including Mint Champion Chip, Smokey’s Strawberry Kisses, 1794 Birthday Cake and Pep Rally Peppermint.
Serving size exemplars and a sign on the counter warn customers that the scoops are large, and that turned out to be true. I ordered one scoop of Torchbearer Chocolate in a cup, and The Spouse got one scoop of The Sheriff PB & C (peanut butter with chocolate chips), each of which cost $4.50. Both generously sized servings were rich, sweet, creamy and decadently flavorful. In addition, the staff was super friendly and helpful, and, though I’m not a big UT sports fan, the clean, modern motif of white with orange accents was a pleasant environment in which to enjoy our treats. Best of all, the AC was working just fine.
Uncle Sam’s Restaurant & Cafe
Food: 4
Service: 3.75
Atmosphere: 3.5
Overall: 3.75
Address: 115 S. 17th St.
Phone: 865-312-9933
No alcohol service
Hours: 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sundays; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays; 10 a.m. to midnight. Fridays and Saturdays
UT Creamery
Food: 4.25
Service: 4
Atmosphere: 4
Overall: 4
Address: 2712 Neyland Dr.
Phone: 865-974-5690
No alcohol service
Hours: Noon to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays
Bottom line: These two food vendors — one in Fort Sanders and one on the UT campus — offer students and the community at large tasty options when it comes to Italian fare and ice cream, respectively.