THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 21, 1996 TAG: 9601180056
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Restaurant review
SOURCE: BY DONNA REISS, RESTAURANT CRITIC
LENGTH: Long : 114 lines
MEMORY IS a motif at chef Monroe Duncan's new Virginia Beach restaurant Suddenly Last Summer.
Duncan has honored memories of his Southern heritage in several restaurants over the past 20 years. Southern playwright Tennessee Williams' work inspired the name of this restaurant.
The menu from Duncan's original Suddenly Last Summer restaurant in Norfolk (1979 to 1984) is displayed here as a keepsake.
In October Duncan moved his culinary staff to this site - known briefly in 1995 as California Cafe and for 40 years previously as Isle of Capri. During several visits, we have enjoyed excellent service and a number of fine meals, despite a few disappointments.
The room is comfortable, with neutral tones, bright paintings and flamingo pink accents - the bird having become a trademark of the chef and the name of one of his former restaurants.
Fortunately, many dishes from earlier restaurants have been revived here. Also fortunate is the expansion of the menu to include excellent etouffee, gumbo, lamb and a luscious banana foster flambeed tableside by host Tony Klementzos. (Klementzos worked with Duncan at the original Suddenly Last Summer and more recently at Piranha's and Monroe's in Norfolk.)
One of the most satisfying aspects of our experience here has been good service from staff members who have sampled the dishes they describe. They also stir the sauce for an excellent tableside Caesar salad with perfectly crisp hearts of Romaine (though we prefer our Parmesan shaved rather than grated to an almost flavorless powder).
Among the starters, best have been the gumbo with its distinctive file flavor and generous assortment of sea fare, and an appetizer-sized portion of shrimp Savoy a la Seay, a buttery dream dish that Duncan has perfected. The lemon butter in the tomato angel hair, however, was excessive, drowning both the pasta and the ordinary fried calamari that came with it. Abundant with puffy crab, pumpkin soup was pleasant but a touch pasty.
For a lovely, lighter beginning, a salad of crispy sweet Boston lettuce was tossed with refreshing watercress, feta cheese and other goodies. Of the two salad dressings we sampled, strawberry vinaigrette reminded us of liquefied gelatin dessert, but tomato gorgonzola had an interesting zing.
At two recent dinners, we enjoyed rack of lamb, available roasted or blackened. At our server's recommendation, we ordered the latter with its smidge of charred spiciness and tender, tasty meat. Last time, the ginger chutney and mustard sauce were just right as accompaniments and the $17.95 price tag reasonable. Another meat dish, dubbed tournedos Talleyrand, showed off the kitchen's talents several ways, topping fine pieces of beef with gently seasoned crab cakes (a little shell in the mix the only problem). A cognac demiglaze could be brushed aside if its richness was too much, which my companion thought it was not.
Tuna fillet Paul Bocuse did insufficient honor to the chef that gave the dish its name. This preparation, braised with onions, tomatoes and white wine, was a comforting but not very flavorful combination. For our vegetarian friend, the kitchen prepared pasta with a similarly insipid white wine sauce and the same blend of broccoli, carrot and squash served as a side dish with dinners, undistinguished except for too few crisp French green beans.
Other dinner choices should provide sufficient options for everyone. Salmon, flounder, pork chops, lemon chicken and the seafood lasagna that is one of Duncan's signature dishes and is described rightfully on the menu as ``drenched in brandied basil cream,'' a warning for weight-and-cholesterol watchers.
Dinners included good, soft Italian-style bread. With some dishes, thinly sliced potatoes were baked golden for a nice change from mashed. An affordable wine list disappoints primarily by the few options by the glass - only three selections at $4.95 each. Klementzos says the list is being revised and expanded.
Sweets are simple sorbets or extravagant multilayer mud pie, nicely balanced Key lime pie, a standard bread pudding and the exciting ``tableside pyromania,'' an expert version of the lush bananas Foster.
We highly recommend the a la carte brunch. On Sunday, Suddenly Last Summer serves freshly squeezed orange or grapefruit juice, French toast with Vermont maple syrup, poached eggs smothered with yummy crawfish etouffee, plus an assortment of egg dishes. Fresh fruit garnished our plates.
We went in a morning mood, ordering side dishes of cheesy grits and fragrant applewood-smoked bacon, but brunch eaters will find selections such as a burger or crab Newburg sandwich or paneed sand dabs or pasta with chicken breast. All will enjoy the basket of fresh banana muffins and sweet rolls.
Owner Rex Harrison has brought in a talented team with popular executive chef Monroe Duncan to oversee the kitchen. Service is usually knowledgeable and courteous. On one visit, we were bothered that a table of smokers was seated next to us in the nonsmoking section. On balance, however, we expect to enjoy many wonderful dishes in every season from Suddenly Last Summer. After Memorial Day, the restaurant staff plans to serve lunch and to open on Mondays.
ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
ROY A. BAHLS
One of the featured entrees at the new Suddenly Last Summer is this
Poached Norwegian Salmon Filet.
Graphic
BILL OF FARE
Suddenly Last Summer, 313 Laskin Road, Virginia Beach. 422-5588.
Cuisine: Eclectic American regional with classical European
influences.
Atmosphere: Neutral gray-blues, black lacquer chairs and bright
paintings; pink bistro paper adds a casual mood.
Prices: Breakfast-brunch $4.95 to $12.95; dinner starters $4.95
to $8.95, main dishes $13.95 to $17.95, desserts $1.95 to $4.50.
Children's portions on request.
Hours: from 5 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, from 5 to 11
p.m. Friday and Saturday, from 5 to 11 p.m. Sunday. Brunch from 11
a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday.
Reservations: Recommended weekends.
Smoking: 25 percent of dining area plus bar.
by CNB