That's hardly a draggy pace, though, and our courses all came out quite promptly, with the only service oddity a withholding of the bread with sweetened butter until after the appetizer course. On the beef side, Whalen's complements its emphasis on prime beef with an eclectic choice of saucings, including ancho-chile butter and crawfish remoulade. The flavors were certainly bold and the spicy fire tangible, but none of the individual elements crossed into the range of overpowering any of the others. Both the steak and the crab came with nicely crisp combinations of green beans, wax beans and carrots. Appetizers we sampled included a simple but wonderful variation on steak fries that used sweet potatoes and an unusual tangy catsup with extra kick and an exotic, subtly clovelike finish.
Meals also come with salads or a choice of Irish potato or minestrone soup or a thick steak chili.
The potato soup reminded me of German potato salad with its bacony overtones and slight sweetness. Our servers were all fairly young, and although they were attentive and prompt throughout the meal, they could probably use a few more minutes in the kitchen before dinner hours mastering their knowledge of preparation and ingredients. And if you're from the Illinois side, be glad to have places like Grafton and restaurants like Whalen's, where you can have a very good meal while enjoying the spectacle and heritage of the river.