
DATE: Sunday, September 28, 1997            TAG: 9709260418

SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS     PAGE: 05   EDITION: FINAL 

COLUMN: ON THE TOWN IN PORTSMOUTH 

TYPE: RESTAURANT REVIEW 

SOURCE: Sam Martinette 

                                            LENGTH:   79 lines

PORT NORFOLK PUB OFFERS HEFTY LUNCH

My long-time friend Carlton Pillar, a scenic technician supervisor with Sce/Con Scenic Services in Port Norfolk, where they build movie, television and stage sets, has recommended for some time that I try lunch at the Port Norfolk Pub & Restaurant on Mount Vernon Ave. He said that you get a lot of food for a little money.

He was right, and I might not ever have gone in based on the exterior of the building. The restaurant and pub is located in an industrial district along Mount Vernon, and draws much of its clientele from the working men and women who toil nearby.

The pub, owned by John Harrison, is nothing fancy inside; three pool tables dominate a long room set with tables along one wall, with a few more tables near the door, and a stretch of bar against the far wall. But if you don't care for fancy, and you want a lot to eat, you'll get it here.

I tried cook Susie Broadbent's homemade chicken noodle soup ($1.25), a heaping bowl of noodles with chunks of chicken, and ordered what turned out to be a giant cheeseburger ($2.05, with chips and pickles), while Carlton had soup and a grilled cheese sandwich ($1.65). David Puryear, dining with us, had a club sandwich ($3.50, with chips).

Other sandwiches include a BLT ($1.95); chicken salad ($1.95); barbecue ($2.50); ham and cheese ($2.15); and hot sausage ($2.10). A ham and turkey sub with fries is $3.75, while a rib eye steak sub is $4.95.A dozen chicken wings is $4.40, and a basket of fried shrimp costs $3.95. Soups, such as chili or beef vegetable are $1.25.

I enjoyed my lunch, and there was plenty of food, just as Carlton said, but I'm sorry I didn't go by for Friday's $4.95 lunch special, which is a 12-ounce T-bone with a baked potato and salad, or shrimp and a crab cake with fries, slaw or baked beans. Wednesday's special is always an Italian dish, spaghetti with meat sauce ($3.75), or lasagna ($4). The specials on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday vary, I'm told, but include the likes of beef tips and gravy over noodles, chicken and dumplings, a grilled Italian-style chicken breast, or pork chops, usually priced at $3.75.

Day manager Angela Gallagher told me the lunch rush starts early at Port Norfolk Pub, and by noon the place is usually filled. We had a late lunch, around 1 p.m., and except for a country tune on the juke box, you could hear a pin drop.

``It's quiet usually after the first rush,'' Gallagher said. ``People like to get in and get out fast. Some of them only have a half-hour for lunch so they call ahead and we'll have it ready for them when they get here.''

Broadbent has worked at the pub for six years, waiting tables and cooking, and said people shouldn't let the pool tables put them off. ``I would bring anybody in here to eat,'' she said. ``The place doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside it's completely different. I've had so many people say they've been by many times and didn't realize that we had food.''

The pool tables are used mostly in the evening, Gallagher said. ``It's usually the same crowd that comes in for lunch, and everybody's real friendly in here. We have a lot of championship players who come in and play, and two pool leagues play during the week on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.''

``It's a place to hang out after work, drink a few, and shoot some pool,'' Broadbent added. ``I like it,'' she added. ``I've been here so long I call the owner, John Harrison, dad.''

Mark your calendar for Wednesday, Oct. 8th, if you're interested in sampling the wares of nearly 40 restaurants, caterers and other food vendors, including Portsmouth's own Kate's Catering Service. The 6th Annual Gourmet Gala to benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is set for 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. that night at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott. Tickets for the event are $35 per person. For information, call 622-3317. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by SAM MARTINETTE

Day manager Angela Gallagher and cook/waitress Susie Broadbent serve

customers at the Port Norfolk Pub.

Graphic

AT A GLANCE

Port Norfolk Pub & Restaurant: 722 Mt. Vernon Ave., 399-7557.

Food: soups, sandwiches, daily lunch specials; full ABC.

Prices: most sandwiches $2-$3 range; specials $3.75-$4.95.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 a.m., Mon.-Fri.; 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Sat.