We were passing through Peru, Indiana at dinnertime last weekend, and stopped in at Ugalde’s Family Restaurant for a bite to eat. The purpose of our stop was simply to have dinner, but since I spotted the breaded tenderloin sandwich on their menu, I decided to do an impromptu review.
Ugalde’s is a small, family owned chain of restaurants in Northern Indiana. They seem to be quite popular, and are regionally famous for their breakfasts, and seem to do a booming business during other times of the day, also.
Their menu features a “hand breaded” tenderloin, and I questioned the waitress about it, and she proceeded to explain the breading process to me. After I made sure it wasn’t a pork fritter disguised as a tenderloin, I ordered it.
It’s pounded out a bit thinner than is my preference, but that’s a minor point. It wasn’t PAPER thin, so I can deal with that. The breading was quite good indeed. Not the best breading I’ve ever had, but quite a bit better than average.
The problem with this sandwich was the meat…it wasn’t terrible, it just wasn’t very good. It was rather bland and tasteless, and a bit tough. And that’s too bad, because everything else about this sandwich was well above par. The breading was very good, the bun was toasted nicely, and it was brought with exactly the condiments I ordered. And, the price is a bargain..$6.95 for the sandwich, and $1.00 for a MOUNTAIN of onion rings to go with it.
But the meat simply keeps it from being something special. It’s a cut above the pork fritter many restaurants pass off as a breaded tenderloin, but if falls short of that breaded goodness that we in the midwest crave.
I’m going to give Ugalde’s breaded tenderloin a 3 out of 5. It’s above average, and if I were driving through the area at dinner time and was hungry, I’d go for it….but I’d not drive out of my way for it.
Ugalde’s is located at 2943 W 800 S in Bunker Hill, Indiana, right across Highway 31 from the Grissom Air Reserve Base.
All tenderloins, all the time. 
You should try Sloane’s Fine Food & Spirits, 280 E Canal St., Peru, IN. They have a GREAT breaded tenderloin at a very reasonable price!
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I tried that restaurant on Valentines Day – 4 years ago – brought my English family there for a SPECIAL dinner. It was special all right. NOT. Salad bar was completely spoiled and disgusting. Had to pay for it even though we pointed out all the spoiled foods to the waitress. Didn’t mind paying the fresh entree we ordered, but threw it up after eating the spoiled salads. No discounts or refunds. I will never eat there again. This is March 23, 2012.