THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, April 11, 1996 TAG: 9604090114
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 16 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: On the Town
TYPE: Restaurant Review
SOURCE: Sam Martinette
LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
If it seems I am spending most of my column time downtown recently, that's because a number of places have opened in anticipation of the coming of Tidewater Community College.
There is a genuine feeling of great things to come among the restaurant owners I have interviewed.
However, all of the action isn't downtown. As part of a property-wide renovation of the Doubletree Club Hotel at Military Circle, Morgan's Food & Spirits has opened. Morgan's is a ``brand'' name restaurant concept of CapStar Hotels, A Washington, D.C.-based company that manages the Doubletree, as well as 51 other hotels in 19 states.
One of five Morgan's - the others are in New Jersey, Colorado and Arizona - the new restaurant is filled with memorabilia, from the stuffed bear in the foyer to a soap box derby car displayed in the lounge.
``We've tried to create a free-standing concept, and every effort has been made to set it apart from the hotel,'' explained Jim Kinane, general manager of the Doubletree Club Hotel. Kinane was around when the hotel was a Sheraton and the restaurant was known as Ginger's. ``The only common thing (the hotel and restaurant) share is the lobby. We're trying to get away from the hotel environment, offering menu items similar to a Friday's or Houlihans - more of a fun-type atmosphere than your typical hotel restaurant.''
The new Morgan's (459-2211) doesn't resemble Ginger's in any way, and in fact doesn't even occupy the same space for the most part.
The new eatery has walls covered with antiques, spacious dark wood booths and lots of color. The lounge area sports an on-line trivia service that pits challengers against players in other lounges all over the country. There is a Wurlitzer-style juke box offering free play of CDs.
One corner of the dining room will have a large Lego table and kiddie movies so children can play while waiting to dine. The tables are covered with butcher's paper and equipped with crayons for aspiring artists. There is also a private dining room that seats up to 30 people for business meetings or group functions.
Unfortunately, menu prices are more in line with a hotel or airport restaurant than the upscale chains with which Morgan competes. The half-pound All-American burger is $6.95 (with fries), as is the 340-calorie garden burger (with cottage cheese or yogurt), while a buffalo burger (361 calories) is $8.25, which is low on the calorie count but high on the wallet. You can add a combination such as bacon and cheese or Buffalo wing sauce and blue cheese for an additional $1.50. Other sandwiches include a grilled Reuben ($6.75); grilled chicken or turkey breast with melted jack cheese ($5.95); a traditional triple-decker club sandwich ($5.95); a Philadelphia-style cheesesteak sandwich ($6.95); even fish and chips ($7.95).
Appetizers include coconut-fried shrimp ($7.95); nachos ($7.95 for a full order/$4.95 for a small); Buffalo wings ($6.95/$4.25); and the more unusual pot stickers (shredded turkey and Chinese vegetables in a crispy fried dumpling, served with a soy-based sauce - $6.95 for a half-dozen/$4.50 for four); and a grilled quesadilla with chicken or turkey, melted jack and Cheddar cheese, salsa, guacamole and sour cream ($7.25/$4.50).
There are soups, such as a crock of French onion ($3.95); Paul's chili ($4.95/$3.50); and a soup and salad combo ($4.95). Salads include the Acapulco (house greens with spiced beef or chicken, black olives, bell peppers, tomatoes, jack and Cheddar cheeses ($7.50); the fresh fruit fantasy, 519 calories of bananas, grapes, seasonal melon and berries, served with cottage cheese, sorbet or yogurt ($7.50); and a fried chicken salad of chicken tenders on greens with artichoke hearts and a honey-mustard dressing ($7.50).
Entrees include grilled yellow fin tuna marinated in lime juice and white wine and served with rice and vegetables ($15.25); a char-grilled boneless breast of turkey served with a cranberry relish, rice and fresh vegetables ($11.95); Fettucine Alfredo ($10.95/$6.95), to which you may add grilled chicken, turkey or shrimp for an additional $3; and a marinated roasted half-chicken ($9.95). Meat dishes include a New York strip (12-ounce portion - $16.95/8 ounce for $14.95); a grilled 10-ounce ribeye ($13.95); barbecued ribs ($13.95); and roast prime rib after 5 p.m. ($16.95/$12.95).
Morgan's signature dessert is a chocolate lasagna with layers of chocolate ganache (or icing) and crepes, topped with white chocolate shavings on a pool of raspberry sauce ($4.95).
Morgan's is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, seven days a week. The food holds up against competing chain operations, but the menu seems too pricey for my taste. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by SAM MARTINETTE
Alvin Severin is executive chef at Morgan's Food & Spirits, and
Rafequi Rozier is sous chef.
by CNB