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Short Stop is the stop for a pork tenderloin
Customers from near and far recognize the Short Stop pork tenderloin as something special
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
NEW LONDON — In the middle of what Dave Kempker calls “Hog Heaven,” sits the small, but well known fast-food restaurant, Short Stop, which is known for its Iowa pork tenderloins.
Recently, Short Stop was featured as the Henry County tenderloin on food blogger Jay Goodvin’s “The Iowa Gallivant.”
Goodvin began a journey this year to visit all of Iowa’s 99 counties in pursuit of tasting and “propping up” one tenderloin in each county. After doing research on Henry County and seeing Short Stop’s tenderloin pop up multiple times, Goodvin knew he needed to add it to his list.
Last month, The Iowa Gallivant took a seat inside the small restaurant and tucked into one of their tenderloins across form a couple of local young men splitting one of their own.
According to Short Stop Owners Dave and Deb Kempker, these men are not alone, as many share the extra-large sandwich. This makes out for a pretty nice deal as the tenderloin only cost $7.95 on its own, and customers can get an extra bun and toppings for just $1 more to split it.
These tenderloins are served on toasted buns dressed with ketchup, mustard, pickles, and onions. Of course, customers can also request lettuce, tomatoes, and mayonnaise.
“You know when the menu looks like that, the restaurant is going to be fire,” Goodvin said as he pointed to the blue and white Pepsi menu board.
A positive review from Goodvin holds some weight in the Midwest culinary world as his resume includes an 11-year culinary journey that took him to Arizona, Montana, Cape Cod, the Florida Keys, the Black Hills of South Dakota, Austin, and Central Illinois. In fact, after seeing Goodvin’s positive reaction to the sandwich, Cindy Lyons Roush said she had to try one for herself.
“It was delicious,” she said. “I moved to New London a year ago and just found out about your tenderloins. I will definitely be back.”
Alongside Goodvin’s seal of approval, many from New London, Winfield, and Mt. Pleasant boast about how good the Short Stop tenderloin is. Over more than two decades of growth, Dave and Deb say they’ve seen growth, success, and many return customers to Short Stop, including those from over 60 miles away.
“We used to call locals those in New London,” Dave said. “Now we call anyone within 60 miles local because there are people that come even further than that for our tenderloins. They come from Illinois, East of Burlington, Fairfield, and maybe even Ottumwa.”
Dave attributes their excellent tenderloin to a few key factors.
“We start with a quality-sized piece of meat, and then we hand bread them in house with our own type of breading that a lot of people don’t use,” Dave explained. “And I stay on top of keeping the fryers absolutely fresh and clean.”
These details pay off at Short Stop as Dave says he breads approximately 300 tenderloins a week during the busy season. Since Dave took over hand breading the tenderloins when the grocery store in New London closed, he says they’ve breaded 191,000 tenderloins to feed both new and old customers.
Dave and Deb Kempker started this beloved little shop in New London 25 years ago in a small building with no seating. Now, Short Stop, located on East Main Street, offers indoor seating, outdoor seating, and the same great tenderloins.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
