DINING REVIEW
Village Inn: Comfort food with flair
It feels like a time warp. The tiny comfy Village Inn at the very end of Ferry Road on Grand Island is housed in historic territory in what was once called Ferry Village. The building, more than 100 years old, and steps from the river, provides picnic tables in season outside, ruffled curtains, captains’ chair and a menu of house-made comfort food inside.
The six-stool bar in the middle of everything is enhanced by a quaint tall cooler appliance called a Bevolator which must date back to the 1930s but seems to work better than my 15-year-old refrigerator.
The Bevolator stores 40-some kinds of beer. This is a full bar, however, and we do mean full. In addition to hard liquor, and a nice wine list, one of the serving guns actually holds loganberry drink.
Welcome home.
I referred to “comfort food,” but you should know that this is sustenance with a little individual thought behind it. It’s not just the (sometimes leaden) stuff we remember from our childhoods. This is comfort with flair.
As in my Fresh Tomato, Roasted Red Pepper Soup, for instance. It had the most intriguing little slash of hotness to it. As in the Companion’s Meatloaf ($10.95) — not bad mashed potatoes either, I should add. Another soup, Seafood Bisque, was dense with the flavor of the sea.
We had ordered from the evening specials board — I was the one who opted for the Liver and Onions ($9.95), oh so cleverly. The liver was thinly cut, making it difficult to saute rare so it was slightly better done than I like it. But they certainly tried hard to meet my specifications and though the dining room was jampacked, the server checked back to make sure I was happy with the way it came out.
Actually I was happy — the liver was tender and nicely seasoned. The onions were soft just the way I like them in this combination. And the mashed potatoes and accompanying salad were pretty great, too. Check up one polished plate.
Others in our party went for “Black and Blue” ($12.95), a great big slab of roast beef sandwich, ordered rare and cooked rare. And served pretty generously, by the way. Enough, I was told, for lunch the next day.
On the regular printed Village Inn dinner menu, you’ll find items such as grilled Chicken Dinner (two boneless breasts for $11.95), Shrimp Dinner (sauteed or breaded, $12.95). There’s a Strip Steak Sandwich (eight ounces on a garlic roll with potato and veg, $15.95). Fish Fry is served Wednesday and Friday and costs $8.95 or, slightly larger, $9.95.
Desserts are one of the great glories of the Village Inn because they are made in house and there’s a bunch of ’em. Bread puddings are the big deal, changing from day to day. We were lucky enough to visit on Peach Melba Bread Pudding night ($4.95) — a new flavor for me and I’m a great bread pudding fan.
But, just to make decisions a little harder, there was Double Chocolate Silk Pie as well.
That pie was a revelation because it was much more dense than the one I’m used to. High and almost fudgy, it was piled on a gotta-be-homemade, shatter-at-the-very-touch-of-a-fork crust.•
VILLAGE INN
Three stars
WHERE: 1488 Ferry Road, Grand Island (773-5030, www.villageinngrandisland.com). It’s the kind of place where they have loganberry loaded in the bar serving guns, liver and onions on the menu and homemade desserts. This homey little country restaurant is quintessential Western New York.
FAVORITE DISH: Peach Melba Bread Pudding
NEEDS WORK: Food is of heart-(and stomach-) warming quality
PRICE RANGE:Dinner entrees with salad or soup start at $9.95.
SERVICE: Very good
HOURS: 11 a. m. to 10 p. m. Monday through Thursday; 11 a. m. to 11 p. m. Friday and Saturday.
WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: A couple of steps.
PARKING: On the road.
RATINGS:Stars reflect the overall dining experience at the time of The News’ visit — including service, ambience, innovation and cost.
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