Propylaeum Tea Room

I thought that the turkey was very tasty. The Reuben was very light on sauerkraut but I could still taste it. Overall, the Reuben had a sweet flavor to it. The pumpernickel bread was thin, but delicious. The dining room was beautiful with charming china and silverware, delicate teacups, and an atmosphere that states "this is a tea room". The service was excellent! Our server brought out our separate checks pre-prepared in less than a minute after we requested them. This is a nice atmosphere for dining, with delicious food. The sandwich was a little small, but the complimentary cinnamon rolls helped round out the meal. I had the vegetable chips for a side and they were good.

This was a delightful change from the last Reuben I ate (at Cafe Camille). I'll be honest, the Reuben didn't wow me. I prefer a thicker, chewier bread. The sandwich became soggy because I (FOOL!) forgot to turn the sandwich over while I ate the first half. I'm a sauerkraut lover, so I was disappointed in the amount of kraut. With the style of bread, I'm not sure how you'd wedge more on there, but the taste really didn't stand out. The dressing tasted great, but I wished there were more of it. As for the turkey, I heard a lot of people raving, but it was a bit thick for me (I didn't ding points for it, I'm just stating a preference) and it didn't really add much--not enough difference in taste, somehow. Overall, it was a pleasant sandwich, but nothing to write home about. The atmosphere, though, was really nice. It was a very welcoming (okay, a BIT girly) tearoom, and I loved the tea. Black tea but not cheap tea, and it was brewed perfectly. Also, points for serving it in real china cups and saucers. Our waitress was really nice, and she seemed impressed with the Reuben group (and hey, a little pretending we're all secretly famous is an ego boost few could resist). Of course, there were also the complementary cinnamon rolls handed around after lunch--I know Mitch wasn't the only one whose Reuben-rating acumen may have been compromised. I am already making plans to take my mother-in-law on a downtown excursion this spring and the Propylaeum Tearoom is already on the itinerary. I may not order the Reuben, but I wouldn't rule it out.

The Propylaeum has a parking lot on the north side, accessible from Delaware. You'll want to park there instead of along the street. The building is lovely, and I was especially struck by the beautiful branches adorning the front doors. The docent directed me to the dining area, and along the way I saw that all the ceilings had beautiful decorations painted on them. The tables in the dining room had lace tablecloths, covered with glass, with cute snowman centerpieces. The place settings were porcelain, with linen napkins, glasses, and metal flatware with both salad and dining forks. Tea was served in china teacups from a silver teapot. Our server was elegant in a black suit and bow tie, and she was very polite and friendly. Our sandwiches were served with garnish of a lettuce leaf, a tomato slice (which I ate: it was tasty), and a quarter pickle spear. We had the choice of potato salad or vegetable chips with the sandwich. I chose the potato salad, which was made from red potatoes and mayonnaise sauce, with some other colorful bits thrown in: it was good, but not exceptional. The vegetable chips on Chris's plate looked like TERRA brand Exotic Vegetable Chips. The sandwich was on a perfectly toasted dark pumpernickel of medium thickness. It had three thick slices of smoked turkey: obviously processed, but tasty. There was a thick slice of Swiss that I could actually taste, and a little bit of well-drained sauerkraut that I could barely taste. I'm not sure if there was any thousand island or not: if there was, it was quite a small amount, which probably helped keep the bread so nicely crisp. After our sandwiches our server brought out cinnamon rolls, which were lightly frosted and served with butter on the side: they were pretty good, but not the gooey flavorful masses I'm used to. The sandwich was of a good size--not overly large--and with the tomato, potato salad, and roll, I was pleasantly full afterward. Chef Mike came out at the end to ask about our experience, and the response was favorable from the whole group. Overall, it's not often you find a Reuben in as elegant a setting as this (especially since the Eagle's Nest and the Ayres Tea Room have stopped serving them), and the sandwich did justice to the setting.

What a nice establishment. I'll definitely come back again--it hearkens back to a day when everything wasn't mass-produced fast food. The Reuben itself wasn't my favorite, and gives testimony to why Reubens should be made with corned beef.

Definitely needed more sauerkraut and Thousand Island. The turkey was okay but corned beef would be better. The potato salad was a good side. The dining room was exquisite!

Lovely atmosphere to enjoy the tasty turkey Reuben. The Reuben was accompanied by red skin potato salad that was delicious. The pumpernickel bread was excellent! Cinnamon rolls post-meal was a nice touch.