Iowa River Power Restaurant brunch, dinner menu returns to Iowa City with new Supper Club at The Highlander Hotel

IOWA CITY — An old Coralville favorite is reigniting the flame of a bygone era at The Highlander Hotel in Iowa City.

The former Iowa River Power Restaurant, which closed in November after being forced out by its landlord, is being rebirthed as The Supper Club, with Sunday brunch and dinner service four nights each week.

“It really is a good fit. You take an iconic restaurant, an iconic hotel, smash them together, and bam,” said Angela Harrington, owner of The Highlander Hotel in Iowa City. “I really envision this as a full-service resort. Thanks to Danise (Petsel), it’ll have a full-service restaurant with all the trappings of a true supper club.”

Brunch service starts March 24 and will run every Sunday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Cost for adults is $32.95, and includes non-alcoholic beverages.

Dinner service, from Thursday through Sunday, starts April 4.

For reservations, email hello@highlander.us or call (319) 354-2000. Open Table online reservations will be available starting this week.

With virtually “the exact same menu” made by the same staff from Iowa River Power, diners can expect the iconic prime rib, filet, lobster, duck, seafood and more that made the former restaurant popular for more than 45 years.

In addition to serving a formal dining room and family-friendly dining room with capacity for 100, The Supper Club also will serve hotel guests daily with a more limited menu, in addition to complimentary breakfast.

In contrast to modern a la carte offerings at most modern restaurants, the supper club style is more inclusive at a flat rate with a salad, sides, bread and entree.

“The nice thing about a supper club is you get what you pay for. Most restaurants have gone to this (style) where you have your salad, potato, vegetable, bread and entree, and now you pay $100,” said Petsel, former owner of Iowa River Power. “But if you order off a supper club menu, you know exactly what you’re paying for those. It’s a leisurely, heartier-feeling food.”

The new collaboration for The Supper Club also plans to incorporate entertainment with dinner, in true retro style, including a grand celebration planned for June with the Glenn Miller Orchestra.

The Highlander Hotel, which underwent a $10 million restoration after Harrington purchased it in 2019, was a renowned supper club in its heyday in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s. In the ’90s, it became franchised as a Radisson hotel before turning into a Clarion property.

The renovation boosted the standing of a highly distressed property with its award-winning commercial renovation, pulling it out of a rut as a hotel previously ranked dead last by customers in Iowa City.

Today, the hotel’s new branding and restoration with modern aesthetics offers a call back to the free-spirited vibes of the ’70s, when the building off Interstate 80 housed “the highest revenue producing supper club in all of Iowa,” according to Harrington. Since the renovation, it also has been designated as a historic local landmark by the Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission.

“It speaks a lot to the era,” she said. “ (Petsel’s) menu matches the level of luxury and service that the hotel is. She’s the cherry on top.”

The duo met at the suggestion of a mutual colleague, who noted their similar personalities and business acumen. The pair started to collaborate over the last couple months after Iowa River Power’s last brunch service on Nov. 26.

“I have the food, she has the beautiful space,” Petsel said.

“It was a great opportunity for both sides,” Harrington concurred.

Comments: Features reporter Elijah Decious can be reached at (319) 398-8340 or elijah.decious@thegazette.com.