Have you ever had the ill-fated experience of returning to a restaurant that you had previously enjoyed… only to find that the food and/or service had, apparently, gone straight down the tubes? Most of us have. And this situation is not as uncommon as you might think. The restaurant business is extremely volatile. Ownership and/or management changes hands… the chef departs for greenery pastures… or shit just hits the fan… and all bets are off.
I recently returned to two restaurants upon which I had, fairly recently, bestowed very positive reviews… And both encounters, unfortunately, turned out to be thoroughly disappointing.
I first reviewed The Gables at Chadds Ford (423 Baltimore Pike, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania) in June 2014. The restaurant, which was placed on the National Historic Register in March 2002, was purchased by its current owners, Ann & Dan Kolenick, in 2011.
My initial review was based upon several luncheon visits; and all items sampled – Salmon Wrap, Waldorf Chicken Salad Sandwich, BLG with fried green tomatoes, and Steak Frites – were nicely done. A recent dinner, however, was quite a different matter. And this is not an unusual happenstance. Many restaurants are capable of putting out a perfectly acceptable lunch, which is a relatively easy meal to prepare; on the other hand, that very same kitchen may also have difficulty dealing with the more stringent demands and subtle complexities of an adequate dinner service… And that appears to be at least part of the problem here.
On a positive note, my dining partner’s Mushroom Soup – roasted shitake, crimini & oyster mushrooms swimming in a French onion base topped with Gruyère presented in an iron crock – was an excellent starter… Not so the Fried Green Tomatoes. The menu description sounded inviting, but execution fell short. The tomatoes were inordinately hard, the panko breading in dire need of seasoning. The burrata added bland to bland; and the tiara of marinated piquillo peppers provided a splash of color, but, interestingly enough, precious little in the way of flavor.
Entrées also missed the mark. My Pesto-Encrusted Pocono Trout wasn’t particularly exciting; and the accompanying mound of surprisingly tasteless Thai jasmine rice did little to improve the situation. My dining partner’s Shrimp Primavera Fettuccine had possibilities, but looked like it had been dropped onto the plate from ten thousand feet. The shrimp – which were pristinely fresh and crunchy, by the way – rather than being placed on top of the dish were buried under the fettuccine, which, in turn, was drowned in a so-so blush smoked tomato sauce.
Even proprietor Ann Kolenick’s Chocolate Espresso Cake, which garnered first prize in the 2015 Kennett Chocolate Lovers Festival, failed to measure up, exhibiting the telltale signs of an extended exile in the nether regions of the fridge.
As we exited, we noticed a tour bus in the rear parking lot, which undoubtedly meant that a large party had taken over the second floor banquet facilities. This may help explain the reason for kitchen’s shortcomings on this particular evening… but it certainly doesn’t excuse them.
My second disappointing experience came at the Terrain Garden Café (Concordville Town Centre, 914 Baltimore Pike, Glen Mills, Pennsylvania), which I had initially reviewed in April of this past year (2016).
My two previous visits had been highly satisfactory with starters like House-Made Ricotta and Baby Gem Salad. The latter, an interesting combo of romaine hearts, fried chickpeas, pickled baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, sweet potato wedges, freshly sliced avocado, and zippy avocado vinaigrette. Of particular note was the Macaroni & Cheese Skillet, an incredibly addictive appetizer/side dish loaded with chunks of ham, cheddar cheese, and topping of herbed breadcrumbs
Entrées were no less impressive, boasting a rich and succulent Lamb Shank, Pan-Roasted Trout Filets, Chicken Torchon and ethereal House-Made Gnocchi with wild mushroom ragù. Everything – from the homemade bread presented in a miniature flower pot to the delicious Neufchâtel Cheesecake – hit all the right notes.
A return visit, however, just over a year later, proved to be somewhat akin to the original Star Trek “Mirror, Mirror” episode of being beamed up into a strange parallel universe. It was the same restaurant… and yet it wasn’t. For starters, it was a rather balmy day. And, upon arrival, the restaurant’s interior felt inordinately warm. When I queried the hostess, she replied that while the AC was not on in the vestibule, it was in the restaurant proper.
Well, yes and no. Since the restaurant is a converted greenhouse, it doesn’t take much to warm it up… but it does take a helluva lot to keep it cool. Whether the thermostat was set too high, or the AC just couldn’t keep up (with the sun through the glass panes and the patrons’ body heat), I have no way of knowing. What I do know is that the temperature was definitely on the uncomfortable side throughout the entire meal.
Then there was the strange case of the wait staff’s attire. I’m certainly accustomed to jeans & tee shirts, which constitute the uniform of choice in many eateries. Fine by me (in fact, I think I was dressed in shorts this particular evening). But all the servers – and I do not exaggerate – looked like they had purchased their sartorial finery at the very same Salvation Army Thrift Store. And some of these outfits were way beyond “funky”; they were downright weird, which I did not recall from my previous visits. Like I said… a parallel universe.
But the biggest issue was the food… Not all of it. But it was basically the feeling that, gastronomically, things simply were not up to the same high standards as they had been during my previous visits. My dining partner’s Roasted Beet Salad companioned by Neufchâtel, fennel, arugula, and a first rate citrus vinaigrette was excellent; my Eggplant Fritters with tzatziki was good by not exceptional.
Moving on to the entrées, my partner’s presentation of Sea Scallops – new potatoes, asparagus, lobster roe butter, and sorrel salad – was beautifully prepared and presented. On the other hand, my Pork Belly was something of a horror. Yes, it was fatty… But this wasn’t the melt-in-your-mouth kind of fatty typically characteristic of pork belly; rather, this was on the gristly side; and what there was of the meat was chewy and stringy. The accompanying spicy carrot salad, obviously meant as a foil for the fat, was so highly seasoned it was nearly inedible.
To the restaurant’s credit, I was not charged for the pork belly; and our server asked if I wished to order something else. At this point, I was somewhat skeptical so I opted for the above mentioned Macaroni & Cheese Skillet, which I had previously enjoyed and that I thought would be a safe bet… But even this dish was lacking, as the chunks of ham had been replaced by what looked (and tasted) like slices of hot dog.
Dessert only added insult to injury… The Triple Berry Buttermilk Cake, boasting lemon curd and vanilla bean buttercream, was long on density and extremely short on flavor.
I’m not quite sure what the problem is here; I just know that the difference between my first two dining experiences and my most recent visit was palpable. I think a bit of fine tuning may be in order.
Bon Appétit!
TAD
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