Originally Posted by
msu2001la
The Midnight Special might fit the bill. It's advertised as a road bike that fits up to 42mm tires, has disc brakes and a steel frame.
https://surlybikes.com/bikes/midnight_special
Most people here would describe any drop bar bike that fits 40mm tires as a gravel bike, but Surly calls it a "road plus bike". It ships with 650b, but can fit 700x42.
This one looks promising too, fortunately there are dealers locally for both Soma and Surly. Hopefully we are in a post-pandemic world in the not too distant future and I can test ride bikes again at shops.
Thanks.