The Dwelling Place

The owner does everything. Food was okay but took way too long to get served. Funky décor with only one table in each room. Call ahead for groups of 4 or more.

Very nice lady. The food was average, nothing special. However there is a bathtub in the restroom that threw me off a little bit.

Now located at 814 Mulberry St.
I would rate this as 2.5 stars and rounded up, not down. Philip tells me that it probably is a solid 3 stars if you account for the other choices in Loudon, Tennessee but I’m not going to go by that. It’s not hard to cook good food anywhere that has electricity, after all.
This little restaurant is located in a vintage house right outside the historic district of Loudon. I think the word to use is ‘quaint’. Very friendly staff, if a little confused on how to run a restaurant — usually one is given a spoon to eat soup, a napkin to use with the meal, things like that. They cheerfully retrieved forgotten items, but I was a little surprised I had to ask.
The food was, unfortunately, mediocre. I had pimiento cheese on grilled wheat bread and french onion soup. The cheese spread was… well, perhaps it was made on premises, but I get a nagging feeling those premises were at the local grocery store. It was really mushy and sweet and I didn’t see any pimiento in it at all. The wheat bread was nice but there was sure a lot of it, very thick and that made the sandwich rather dry while still being OH WOW BUTTER!!! tasting from the pan-​frying (not grilling). The onion soup was okay, the croûton was toasted properly though so it turned into mush rather quickly. The cheese was melted but not browned. The pineapple tea was good though, I must say.
Philip had spaghetti and meatballs and I could tell when the dish was set on the table that it was re-​heated, or perhaps had been kept warm since the «lunch rush» (if there was one?). We arrived a little after 1pm and the pasta looked like it had been cooked hours before. Spaghettini especially gets that mushy mouth-​feel and translucent look after it’s been sitting a while, and this came mixed with the sauce ahead of time with the meatballs added later. He ate the meatballs but even he, the meatball fanatic, said he would pass on them a second time.
We were the only customers, but it was slightly after the usual lunch time on Saturday, perhaps that’s why?
Cute house (there’s a bathtub in the bathroom, I did mention it’s in an old house, right?) and friendly people but the food was not good enough to make me glad I went, and we did not choose to stop there again on our way home via the same route.
This restaurant was once on Wharf Street downtown. I mentioned to the owner that the address was not updated on Unilocal (we had to call to find out where they were now located, since it seemed worth doing that by the Unilocal reviews from the past) and she asked, «What is Unilocal?»
So anyway, I wish I could recommend this place but in all fairness I can’t. I’ve never been to Loudon, TN before and probably won’t ever again so it’s not like they’re losing my inestimable custom, but I do hope they can step it up and give their town a nice dining experience in the future.

I bright spot in downtown Loudon, TN.
Food is very good and I like their ice tea.
Friendly courteous attentive staff in a quaint atmosphere.
Try it, I think you will like it.

This isn’t just Italian. There is a southern twist.
Spinach salad, artichoke tomato pasta, roast beef with garlic mashed potatoes and gravy, pimento sandwich, chicken salad sandwich, etc.
Everything is really good here. and they have a great selection of teas. The décor is kindof ‘old ladyish’ but it’s really nicely done. Connie, the owner, is very welcoming and warm.
If you are in Loudon, or feel like taking a little road trip I highly recommend The Dwelling Place.

So Italian food meets Southern comfort food… and boy did they do a good job!
It’s small, about ten or so tables, and has a garden feel. There are actually garden scenes painted onto the walls, really giving the place a homey feel.
Good variety of teas and cider. Nice large dessert menu and I’m pretty sure our delicious banana cream pie was homemade. The food was absolutely amazing. We checked out the potato soup, the french onion, the salads and the open-​faced roast beef sandwich… All tasty.
We happened to show up a little late (after watching a show at the Lyric Theater!) and I’m pretty sure the ladies kept the kitchen open just for us. Everything was perfect!
I will definitely be back. Oh, and this gem is right in the heart of downtown Loudon so you could do some boutique shopping and what not when your tummy is full!