Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 19, 1993 TAG: 9302190356
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOLORES KOSTELNI SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
READERS GUIDE US BACK FOR ANOTHER TRY
Just as a new broom sweeps clean, the first months of the new year present me with a refreshing look at previously reviewed restaurants. Many good reasons direct my return visits: Chefs come and go; menus change; an originally unfavorable review needs updating; and most important, letters and phone calls from readers guide me back.\ \ TASTE OF INDIASince reviewing this luncheonette-size establishment in Salem's Lakeside Plaza in July, many readers have called and written telling me how much they enjoy the food. Indeed, as the area's first Indian restaurant, it offers abundant portions of unusual, tasty fare at exceptionally low prices.
During my return visits, which have spanned the past four months, I sampled many of the same dishes I had had for the first review. Much to my delight, there is noticeable improvement.
Both the vegetarian ($1.50) and meat-filled turnovers samosas ($1.99) are freshly fried and made plumper than before with goodly amounts of ingredients that are now more easily identifiable.
Dinners served in a thali, the compartmentalized dish, include a pleasantly spiced, tender chicken ($5.99) or beef curry ($6.99). These hearty stews include copious portions of basmati rice, two vegetables, yogurt sauce, salad and nan, an Indian pita-style bread. On one occasion my basmati rice was characteristically fragrant, sticky and thoroughly delightful. At a recent dinner, though, it was tasteless and watery with a scattering of pale carrot threads.
Butter chicken ($4.99) features skinless thigh meat combined in a red sauce. So tender is this chicken, the meat literally melts in your mouth. It would be better if only the butter were folded in at the very last moment before serving so it doesn't separate and create oily lakes on the surface.
For dessert try gulab jaman ($1.99), the light, fluffy deep-fried cheese and cream-of-wheat balls served with a drenching of sweet syrup.
Meals are a great dollar value, especially the lunch buffet, which features 14 tasty, exotically seasoned items for $4.99. This buffet encompasses just about everything on the lunch menu, giving you the opportunity to sample a wide array of food.\ \ TEXAS STEAK HOUSE & SALOON
A revised menu with catchy names and five kabob meals is what's new here. Everything else remains the same, much of it mediocre, including room-temperature baby back ribs (full rack $10.95, half $6.95). These are actually bones with a spare amount of meat that have no grill scars or brown broiler marks, just lots of barbecue sauce. Uncle Clem's chicken ($8.95), a chicken breast with ham, mushrooms and melted cheeses arrived partially cooked and had to be returned.
The Yellow Rose of Texas Awesome Onion ($4.95) and Wacko Willie's Chili ($1.95-$2.95) remain well-made and worthwhile ordering.
This is the place for steaks. I have no beef with the One Armed Bandit ($13.95), a 16-ounce bone-in strip, and the Texas Big Bone ($14.95), a one-pound T-bone. These are flawlessly prepared, tender and really good.\ \ THE INN AT UNION RUN
A new husband-and-wife cooking team, Patrick and Higgins Stewart, produces tasty, rustic preparations that not only look lovely but deliver flavor and pleasure, too. Although the menu is expected to change weekly, some recommended entrees served during my visits include chicken with artichoke hearts ($12), poached salmon with lemon dill or saffron sauce ($15) and smoked pork stuffed with spinach and apple with a sheer Dijon-laced applejack sauce ($14).
On the negative side, the dish called paella ($12) was a disappointment. Although it contains a few of the same ingredients as the world-famous dish, this one lacks the characteristic texture and saffron color and flavor. I missed the traditional garnishes, among them pimentos, cooked green peas, Spanish olives, hard-cooked eggs, clams in the shell.
Because there is no selection of salad dressings, you get what the house has decided. In one case the house sesame dressing was too cloying and heavy to be served after the entree and just before dessert. Technically, when the salad is served at this point, the dressing should be balanced and acidic, such as a vinaigrette. Its purpose is to cleanse the palate for coffee and a finale.
Annoying is the only world I can think of to describe the menu situation. A single menu - just one - under glass and in a frame, is given to your table. You look and decide, then pass it around. It's a computer-printed menu, with adequately dark letters. The pressure builds to make a quick decision so that everyone else has enough time to do the same, and it begins the evening on a silly, even uncomfortable, note.\ \ THE ROCKBRIDGE RESTAURANT
During December I received several telephone calls from folks who wondered where the good food had gone. These must have been off nights which, unfortunately, hit every restaurant from time to time. When you encounter meals you're dissatisfied with, speak with someone in authority and explain your situation.
After two recent visits, I have no complaints about the caliber of food or the preparations. Grilled salmon atop a bed of grilled vegetables ($13.75) was immaculately prepared. An evening's special, chicken with vegetables ($7.95) couldn't have been better: tender, succulent meat enhanced by a tomato-based, vegetable-laden sauce.
Restaurants require constant attention and vigilance, and even with attentiveness, there's less than perfection on occasion. Paul Milione is an adept, talented chef who can cook with the best. I've enjoyed many superb meals from his hands, and I continue to recommend his restaurant.
Dining Out's evaluations of restaurant accessibility to the handicapped are conducted by the Blue Ridge Independent Living Center, a nonprofit organization.
Dolores Kostelni has extensive experience in the food industry, having worked as a restaurant consultant, manager and chef.
\ TASTE OF INDIA\ Lakeside Plaza, Salem 986-0027\ HOURS: 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m.; 5:30-9:30 p.m.\ PRICE RANGE: Lunch, $2.99-$3.99; dinner, $5.99-$6.99.\ BEVERAGES: Wine, beer, soft drinks.\ CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED? None\ NO-SMOKING SECTION? No\ RESERVATIONS REQUIRED? No\ HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE? No\ \ TEXAS STEAK HOUSE & SALOON 4092 Electric Road 772-8036\ HOURS: Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Friday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Saturday, 4-11 p.m.; Sunday, 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.\ PRICE RANGE: Lunch, $1.95-$6.95; dinner, $4.95-$18.95.\ BEVERAGES: Full-range.\ CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED? MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover.\ NO-SMOKING SECTION? Yes\ RESERVATIONS REQUIRED? For large groups\ \ THE INN AT UNION RUN Lexington 463-9715 HOURS: Tuesday-Saturday, 5:30-10 p.m.\ PRICE RANGE: Dinner only, $11-$18.\ BEVERAGES: Full-service\ CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED? None\ NO-SMOKING SECTION? As requested\ RESERVATIONS REQUIRED? Yes\ \ ROCKBRIDGE RESTAURANT at RAMADA INN\ Interstate 81 and U.S. 11 North Lexington 463-9655 HOURS: Seven days a week. Lunch, 6 a.m.-2 p.m.; dinner, 5-9:30 p.m., Sunday-Thursday; 5-10 p.m., Friday-Saturday.\ PRICE RANGE: Lunch, $3.25-$6.75; dinner, $5.95-$15.95.\ BEVERAGES: Full-service\ CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED? Visa, American Express, MasterCard, Discover.\ NO-SMOKING SECTION? Yes\ RESERVATIONS REQUIRED? For eight or more persons\ HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE? Yes ||||||||||||||||||||| JUNK
Memo: Correction ***CORRECTION***