Blanck's Supper Club, Johnsburg - Tuesday October 30, 2018

This evening we went to the southeastern side of Lake Winnebago to the town of Johnsburg in search of Blanck’s Supper Club.   In 1952, Bob and Hazel Blanck bought a tavern in a building that also housed the town barber shop and the couple’s living quarters.  Over the next several years the barber shop moved and the building was remodeled and expanded into the barroom and dining room that exist today.  Three generations of Blanck’s have run the Supper Club over 65 years, and they still own and operate it today.   

We arrived about 6:30 and found a seat at the bar.   The barroom decor featured a deer head and two large walleye mounts.   We relaxed at the bar and Paul had his usual BOFS and I had a vodka tonic.    The bartender offered us menus. The menu was a combination of a typical supper club menu and a bar and grill menu.  They offered some interesting specialty dishes which we decided to try. Paul ordered the Blanck Special, an eye of porter steak with a baked potato, and I ordered the Haddock Supreme with broasted potatoes.  

The dining room was surprisingly full for a Tuesday, which was nice to see.   Our salads were served at the table along with a relish tray of sorts which included carrots, tomatoes, onions, and cheese. I ordered the crumbly French Roquefort dressing which was excellent.  Never having seen a menu with a cut called “the eye of porter”, Paul was interested to try the steak.  He was not disappointed.  It was excellent.  My haddock filet was very good, but the crab meat mixture on top was a bit too rich for me so I’d skip the “supreme” next time.   The broasted potatoes, served with sour cream, were good.

Most of the supper clubs we have visited have been around a long time, but many have changed ownership over the years.    The ones that have remained in the same family over multiple generations tend to have very good food and service, and Blanck’s is no exception.