THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 4, 1996 TAG: 9608010277
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Restaurant Review
SOURCE: BY LORRAINE EATON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 88 lines
In Richmond, stumbling across the tiny diner with the art deco decor and the extensive chalkboard menu seemed like a stroke of serendipity.
At the point where Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head touch, where the fields for new restaurants never lie fallow, it was, well, a relief.
Millie's, the 8-year old restaurant in Richmond, has garnered rave reviews by such exalted food gods as Bon Apetit.
The new site at the beach should follow suit.
Don't be fooled by the name or the looks. Millie's Diner is anything but a diner. In fact, it's a culinary palace in disguise where the food is prepared with imagination and presented with flair.
Consider two appetizers: duck ($6.95) and salmon ($7.50).
Not just any duck dish. Duck lasagne.
Executive chef Blake Schumpert starts this one the day before when the duck is cured in salt, bay leaves, peppercorns and garlic. Then it's cooked slowly in its own fat for three hours, until it glides off the bone and onto a flat lasagne noodle with mushrooms. One person at our table said it was the best duck he ever ate.
The house-cured salmon with herb salad and fresh dill is a lighter appetizer, but no less creative. To draw the moisture out of the salmon, Shumpert cures it in salt, sugar and assorted herbs. The fillet is served with a fresh herb salad - fennel tops, basil, tarragon, coriander or any other soft, green herb that is available fresh - and topped with dill oil. The unusual combination of herbs and salmon was one of the memorable parts of the meal.
The entree menu graciously offers ``lighter fare'' which includes marinated flank steak and house-smoked salmon sandwiches ($6.95 and $7.50) and lamb burritos ($9.95). Tempting.
The regular entree menu includes risotto with grilled vegetables, barbecued mahi mahi and Thai shrimp over linguini. We opted for pan roasted chicken with whipped potatoes and portabello tomato ($14.95) and a grilled beef filet with sherry vinegar, mushroom ragout and a potato cake ($17.95).
The rest of the menu seemed so imaginative that plain old pan roasted chicken seemed out of place. We ordered it out of curiosity. If the chef (assisted by sous-chefs Joel McLendon and Joe Merolli) makes lasagne with duck and burritos with lamb, what might he do with chicken?
What Schumpert does is simply salt and pepper the bird and roast it in a pan with the skin on. The result is a savory, crispy seasoned outside and a juicy inside. But what we really raved about came on the side: mashed potatoes so smooth that they could have been whipped up by a hurricane . . . and seasoned by an Irish granny.
The making of mashed potatoes, I think, is becoming a lost art. My aunt's mashed potatoes were so revered that they merited mention in her eulogy. Schumpert seasons his with salt, white pepper, roasted garlic puree and ``lots of butter and cream.'' We all agreed that we'd come back just for a plate of them.
For the beef filet, the spices and flavors were again swirling. The large, nine-ounce filet comes perfectly cooked (of course) and with a sauce that is a reduction of sherry, sugar, wine and veal stock.
On the side was a potato cake with a simple taste that defied its complexity. It's first cooked in a pan in clarified butter, then shifted to the oven, and then the process is repeated. No sense in trying this one at home. Millie's has it down pat.
After all that, we did it: We ate dessert.
Again, the menu is creative and traditional. The steamed ginger pudding with butterscotch sauce ($4.50) had us doubting at first. But the combination works well in this smooth, sweet treat.
Aside from the food, a couple of other things must be mentioned. Gordon Rainey was our waiter. He not only suggested the perfect wine from the extensive list, but he also gave us a few free tunes on the jukebox including his fav, ``Summertime,'' by Dave ``Baby'' Cortez.
A jukebox is a great thing in itself. But a jukebox in a great looking restaurant with a great chef and a great waiter? What a find!
They say it's always a mistake to go back to a place where the night seemed like magic. Stay away from Millie's? Not a chance. MEMO: MILLIE'S DINER
Where: Milepost 10, beach road, Kill Devil Hills
Phone: 480-3463
Prices: Appetizers from $3.75 to $7.95. Entrees range from $12.95 to
$17.95 Dessert: $4.50
Hours: Brunch daily from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dinner from 5:30 to 10:30
p.m.
Drinks: Full bar. Extensive wine list
Children's menu: Available
Credit cards: All major credit cards accepted
Smoking: Smoking section available
Handicapped accessible: Yes
Music: Juke box tunes include Al Green, James Brown and other
classics by CNB