Sunday Telegram March 2, 2003 TELEGRAM & GAZETTE REVIEWER It's a good sign when you walk into a restaurant and are greeted by a display of fresh pies and baked goods. Webster House projects the feeling that lots of people have considered it their own place; they've been regular customers for a long time. We first heard of it years ago, from Ellie of the Deli; she knew her stuff when it came to food, and this was her favorite restaurant. There are two dining rooms, a function room, and a large, well?isolated bar. The decor is real: painted brick, wallpaper, murals, prints, posters, paintings, even decorative plates hung everywhere with a personal touch. Refuge for those of us bored stiff with restaurants cranked out by The Cutesy Decor factory in Themeville, USA. Potato skins, mozzarella sticks, buffalo chicken tenders and chicken fingers, shrimp cocktail, and stuffed mushrooms are the standard appetizers. Then come stuffed grape leaves, spinach pita, roast feta cheese, hummus, fish roe, spread and scallops moussaka; ?all priced at $4.29 to $7.29. Greek specialty samplers are $5.49 for two people; $9.99 for four. Baked onion soup in a crock, clam chowder, egg?lemon chicken soup with orzo, and a soup of the day are each $1.79 to $4.29. REAL CRAB Assured that the baked mushroom caps, $4.99, were stuffed with real crab, I couldn't resist. It was real crab, all right and plenty of it, with mushroom pieces stuffed into six fresh mushroom caps, topped with melted cheddar. Truly fine mushroom caps in a good portion at a low price. Soup Specialist was drawn to egg lemon chicken soup with orzo, $1.79 or, if you prefer, included with dinner in place of salad. Both of us were surprised and let down. The soup was bland, light in lemon or any other flavor, with little chicken. The house salad, on the other hand, was terrific, with imported olives, grape tomatoes, feta, a pepperoncini, cucumber slices, shredded carrots, and a clear, delicate oil and vinegar dressing with fresh herbs. Lots of fresh herbs get used liberally in Webster House's kitchen. MEDITERRANEAN The Mediterranean influence dominates the entre selection: chicken stuffed with spinach, scallion and feta cheese dressing, lamb or chicken kebab, veal a la Greque, broiled scallops with tomato, onion, basil and feta, baked lamb shanks, baked salmon wrapped in spinach leaves and pastry, fisherman's stew and Taverna baked shrimp, to name a few. The seafood selection is broad, with a few fried choices, but most baked or broiled: scallops, haddock, salmon, shrimp, schrod, clams and oysters each at $12 or less. Lobsters on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and prime rib Friday and Saturday evenings and all day S unday are priced to market. Chicken can be fried, stir?fried, sauteed with mushrooms and broccoli in Alfredo sauce over fettuccine, or served Parmesan style. There's a chicken pie as well and six kinds of chicken, all under $10.
Choice sirloins are $10.99 and $12.99 the larger one can be herb crusted for a dollar more; filet mignon is $12.99 and three veal Preparations are each $10.99. Excellent prices and all come with salad or soup as well as veg. etables. There are daily spe. cials, of course, and three on Sundays: broiled salmon, pot roast, or a chef s choice including soup or salad, Plus coffee and pie. All for $10.99. Really. Soup Specialist beamed in on baked lamb shanks for $10.99. The serving was two, nicely prepared, well?seasoned and free of the stewed texture we so often find. Good rice pilaf and excellent green beans with a little onion, a touch of tomato and pleasant herbs and spices rounded out the plate. Chicken pie, $8.49, arrives in a bowl with a disc of fresh, flaky pastry on top. It's about as good as chicken pie gets, actually as good as my wife's sister makes it and that's great. The cream sauce and seasoning set the right note; there's plenty of white meat in large pieces, with delicious asparagus and sliced carrots. Outside the pie we enjoyed good butternut squash and very well?seasoned roast potato wedges. Add in the salad; and consider the $8.49 price; it's an unbeatable value and an excellent meal. TOO BIG, TOO TEMPTING The homemade dessert list is far too big, far too tempting and far too cheap, with nothing above $3.69. Avoiding dessert would be financially imprudent. Choose from puddings, cakes, a hot fudge sundae, tortes, brownies, fruit squares and at least a half?dozen homemade pies and something I've never seen before. I grew up on baklava for special occasions, but I've never seen it made as a cheesecake. It's an?added layer on a homemade cheesecake wedge and it's a different and delicious combination for $3.69. Banana cream pie, $2.99, came on the. kind of crust which tells you that they bake lots of pies here and really know their crust ? it's flaky and perfect. We found the filling a little neutral, with the flavor coming from the banana slices alone. Different again, but no match for the cheesecake. Our excellent dinner for two, with desserts, cost $31, plus beverages, tax and gratuity making it our least expensive meal in recent memory. The menu is modestly priced, but broad and interesting and always includes six or seven vegetables, not counting potatoes. Service was friendly, Pleasant and prompt. We can easily understand why Webster House is busy. We think it should be even busier.
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