
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, January 14, 1994                   TAG: 9401200312
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DOLORES KOSTELNI
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Long

REVISITING PARGO'S WAS WELL WORTH IT

Just as Janus, the Roman god of January, reflects on the past and gazes into the future, I, too, take a refreshed look at previously reviewed restaurants during the first few weeks of a new year. Pargo's, the Roanoke restaurant I evaluated in June, has made remarkable improvements in hospitality, service, meal preparations and plate arrangements. My several visits over a period of three months have been pleasurable eating experiences.

Its convivial atmosphere, tasty American pop food and reasonable prices add up to good dollar value and secure Pargo's reputation as a great place for lunch and dinner. So that it would have a clean slate, I decided to approach the menu without reference to past meals, thus avoiding specific comparisons and negative influences.

Only once was there a flaw with the thick part of a chicken breast arriving incompletely cooked. The waitress quickly whisked it away. Because the accompanying cream of broccoli soup satisfied me and my lunch hour was running short, the manager gave gracious apologies and full credit for it. A few weeks later I ordered the teriyaki marinated chicken sandwich ($5.45) again and took delight in its tenderness, flavor and complete doneness.

Buffalo wings ($4.95) spiced just right and crispy to the bone, make a great starter as well as a filling light lunch. I dote on barbecued baby back ribs (half slab $7.45) as an appetizer, too, even though it's classified as a dinner. (Side dishes come in their own casseroles, and I usually keep them - a mountain of the compulsively fun to munch-on curly fries called frygos and crunchy, bright steamed vegetables - to eat with my main course.) The ribs sit regally on a dinner-sized plate leaving ample room for maneuvering them with a knife and fork.

A seafood quiche ($6.25) loaded with small shrimp and other briny bits and generously topped with creamy, burnished hollandaise sauce ranks second to none. As part of a Sunday champagne brunch, it's elegant and outstanding.

My introduction to the Christiansburg Pargo's took place on the first Sunday of the New Year, and it couldn't have been better. A complimentary glass of champagne ($1.95 for each refill) made a bubbly partner to any of the menu's brunch dishes ($2.95 - $9.95.) I thoroughly enjoyed expertly grilled filet mignon, two poached eggs sporting bright creamy yolks and firm whites sitting atop a mountain of onion-and-green-pepper-spiked homey hash browns, a soft croissant with strawberry preserves and a small au gratin dish heaped with tipsy fruit, a combination of canned and crisply fresh in a light, liqueur-laced sauce. A scrumptious personal banquet priced at a rock-bottom $9.95.

In reality, I didn't have room for it, but I couldn't resist the Mount Kilimanjaro-sized piece of creamy, plain cheesecake ($3.95) to finish off my meal and baptize my year with a sweet beginning. It's the old fashioned kind: High and dense with a sugar cookie crust.

Juicy, lemony grilled spring chicken breast served with rice and steamed cauliflower, broccoli and carrots ($7.95) fills any dieter's requirements for low fat and minimal calories, especially if you request no butter on the veggies. It bears a special "tlc" design next to its listing on the menu specifying it as one of the "thin, lean choices" for healthy alternatives.

I applaud the broiled salmon filet ($11.95), an occasional special and catch of the day, for its freshness, preparation and abundant size. When I'm in the mood for beef, I look no farther than the nudist burger ($4.95), a thick, plain, beefy good burger adorning a soft roll with lettuce, tomato, red onion slice and kosher pickle neatly arranged on the side of the plate with a separate dish piled high with frygos.

The Christiansburg and Roanoke Pargo's feature identical menus and specials so that patrons will know what to expect. Of the all the Pargo's restaurants, these are the only two that are privately owned. All of the other Pargo's belong to the Shoney's chain. The name originated with a former Shoney's CEO who combined the given names of his twin children, Pharr and Margot, to coin the acronym.

Outstanding in design and layout, both Pargo's buildings exhibit attractive, comfortable environments arranged with adequate space between good-sized tables, contained traffic flow and excellent noise control. The sometimes witty but always sophisticated and meaningful art of Mercedes Reinhart of Hampton enhances it all.

For casual, upscale dining, I recommend Pargo's in Roanoke and Christiansburg. Management's continued vigilance and attention to quality and the details of daily operations has produced two smoothly run businesses. Competent chefs, courteous servers and a generally caring attitude combine to make this one of the better places for reliable food and great value.

\ PARGO'S Roanoke 220 South next to Hunting Hills Plaza 989-3189

\ PARGO'S New River Valley

off 460 West near K-Mart & NRV Mall, Christiansburg

381-2265

\ HOURS: Sunday through Thursday 11 a. m. -11 p.m.

Friday and Saturday 11 a. m. - 1 a.m.

\ BEVERAGES: full-range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages

\ PRICE RANGE: Lunch: $4.25 - $10.95

Dinner: $5.65 - $12.45

\ RESERVATIONS REQUIRED? No. But there is a call-ahead system so your name is registered while you wait at home. The number in Roanoke: 989-1715. The number in Christiansburg: 382-2019.

\ CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED: Visa, MasterCard, American Express

\ NON-SMOKING SECTION? yes

\ HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE: yes

by CNB