The Lamplighter

My husband and I have a lake house nearby on Kerr and thought it would be fun to venture into town (Clarksville) and get a steak for dinner one night while we were up at the lake. There were 2 – 3 nicer-​ish looking places and we decided to try The Lamplighter. It was a Saturday night and the parkinglot was packed so I figured that was a good sign. This is a little small town steakhouse with nice ambiance, decent service, and good food. I don’t think anyone from a big city foodie magazine is going to do a write up on it anytime soon– but I highly doubt anyone here would care if they did. My husband and I got the buffalo dip as an appetizer and both got the salad bar and ribeyes as entrees. I thought overall the food was good– my steak was cooked perfect medium rare– although a bit over zealously seasoned (saaalllttyyy) but no worries. I just used my fork to remove some of the seasoning and we were good to go. I also got the mac and cheese as a side and it was pretty awesome. Maybe better than the steak. For serious. I would come back to The Lamplighter next time we’re up at the lake and want to go out to eat.

Always a great meal at Lamplighter. Food is fresh and cooked to perfection. Our go to place in Clarksville. Especially love access to the lake!

Oh how I wish I didn’t live over an hour away from The Lamplighter! This was only my second visit here and it was tough to decide what to get, there’s so many good things on the menu!
I started off with the onion crisps, which are large thin breaded onion slices that are fried perfectly crisp. A side of homemade ranch dressing really took it over the top! Then it was onto the Reuben sandwich with a twice baked potato. Both were excellent.
Toasted rye bread with swiss cheese was smothered with corned beef piled high. A delicious homemade thousand island dressing was next and then topped off with tasty sauerkraut. It was a handful of messy goodness.
The twice baked potato had bacon, sour cream, and topped with melted cheese. I ended up asking for more butter and sour cream once all the «twice baked» was gone and found out they make their own butter there. Impressive! The sour cream has a sweet flavor with a hint of lemon in it. Lovely!
Our waitress came by often to check in to make sure everything was going well. Unfortunately no room for dessert this time, but I’ll be back!

Ate here last fall with my wife last fall for dinner. I got a cajun pasta dish and she ordered a steak. There was no one in the place and the service was slow and scarce. My pasta was ok but nothing to brag about my wife’s steak was flat, grey, and full of gristle. This place isn’t cheap so I expected better. Also, the salad was nothing but the core of the lettuce with some cheese thrown on it. We told the waitress about the steak and she agreed it looked bad and sent it back. Twenty minutes later we got a steak that looked worse. The steak was flat, grey, and round like a pancake. I told the waitress that was a round eye steak not a ribeye and I wasn’t paying for it. She told the cook and he got mad, she said, but the manager took it off and I refuse to go here ever again. Remember before eating here this like most places down here are a tourist trap set up to make money off fishermen.

The food was very good. There was a group of 9 and we ordered various appetizers and they were all good. The wait staff was slow but we were in no hurry. I would come back again.

I’ve been eating at the Lamplighter for years in all its different representations (Robert’s, Conrad’s) and this is the best food they’ve ever had. I eat their several times a month and always like to try something new. I can’t remember the last time I had a bad meal. Favorites include the Hot Crap Dip (big enough for several meals), Fried Mushrooms, Catfish Bites, Calabash Shrimp, Mecklenburger Hamburger (order it pink), Stir Fry, Onion Rings. The chocolate cake is huge and excellent. As is the banana pudding (made fresh & packed with bananas and nilla wafers). They have a wide range of huge salads on the menu and all the ones I’ve tried are tasty and filling. They recently redecorated inside and the new ambiance is nice. I especially love all the different lanterns hanging from the ceiling.

My girlfriend and I spent the weekend in Clarksville for a getaway. We decided to try the Lamplighter for breakfast. The menu was huge! The waitress was very friendly. Eggs were good, and the spiced French Toast was delicious!
We decided to try Lamplighter for dinner and unfortunately were very disappointed. We barely saw our waiter — he never refilled our drinks or took away our appetizer. Appetizer was crab dip, and it was unappetizing. My girlfriend got the 12 oz ribeye steak and it was very thin. She had to send it back. I got shrimp scampi and it tasted like plain linguini with some boiled shrimp on top. My side dish, green beans, looked like they were straight from a can.
Would only recommend this place for breakfast.

Love coming here when I do! Friendly staff and delicious food!

On behalf of my entire family I want to express our gratitude and thanks to the staff of Lamplighter Catering. The meals you provided us during our 3 day stay were delicious and abundant! From the setup of the first meal to the final pick up, we appreciate your timeliness. Also, thank you for your flexibility and accommodating us when we had a last minute change in our order. We all felt and experienced southern hospitality in every interaction. We would jump at the chance to recommend Lamplighter for any catered event in the Clarksville area. Again, my deepest thanks! Sean Retzloff, Rochester NY

Food here is average, but usually consistent. Rarely do you get a bad meal, but you rarely get a knock your socks off meal. Service is super friendly and also super slow. Don’t eat here if you are in a hurry… and that’s when they aren’t busy! Very friendly wait staff. They are usually understaffed during busy hours, so you wait for drink refills. The crab dip and buffalo dip are awesome. Sandwiches are ok. Nothing outstanding here, but you can count on leaving full.

Best breakfast in clarksville. Recommend the omelets. You can get whatever you want in them.

Great food… delicious chicken salad, hamburgers and waitstaff very attentive and make you feel like family!!!