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019 /mi 'aaunr 'apds3ud9aa iv/-jgastronomyThe Roger Sherman Inn lives up to its imageBv LOU GERBERThe classic New England inn is a rare stereotype, in that it exists in real life as we typically think of it in storybook terms. The beneficiaries of this happy fact are the diner and the discriminating traveler.The Roger Sherman Inn, less than a mile north of the center of New Canaan, answers well to this description. It is in fact an “inn” of modest proportions, quietly advertising guest rooms, apartments and suites. But it is primarily a restaurant with a comprehensive, sophisticated menu, and very good food.The place is, by definition, big — so there are a handful of dining rooms from which to choose. My recommendation would be to do just that — “choose” — if you can. especially during the week, when you are apt to be dining there on the same night that some abstruse professional society (or something similar) is having a private dinner meeting in a room reserved for such occasions.With long-awaited spring finally here, porch and flagstone terrace dining will be available soon — and a prettier, more seasonal setting would be hard to find.The Roger Sherman’s menu is varied and extensive, offering 21 entrees plus a daily special. It leans toward French — but sau-erbraten. a capon curry, broiled Maine lobster, and a few other dishes render it more continental in flavor. The same holds trueacross the appetizers, soups and desserts.Of the dozen appetizers, most are fairly standard (various shellfish and cocktails, for example) — but a few are inspired, like fresh fruit au cointreau. Others, though not imaginative, are simply good, solid and welcome items on any menu: prosciutto ham with melon, mushrooms a la Grecque, escargots Bourguig-nonne The latter were excellent — firm but not too chewy, and authoritatively garlicked.The pate du chef, a fair test of any kitchen, gets mixed marks. Importantly, the flavor was excellent. But the fine points went wrong. It was served sliced en croute (more fitting to a terrine than a true pate) and the pastry was heavy to a fault. The pate texture was too fine. And although properly served on generous lettuce, the garnish (aside from one lonesome ripe olive) was a solitary, long, quarter of dill pickle — not only heavy-handed. but taste-inappropriate.The entrees include six seafood dishes — sole two ways (amandine or paupiette), scampi, scallops with bacon, crabmeat au gratin and lobster. The day’s special was Shad Roe,THE ROGER SHERMAN INN195 Oenoke Ridge New CanaanDinner: Daily except Sunday, 6-9:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 6-10:30 p.m.Major credit cards accepted.966-4541just into season and fresh from Chesapeake Bay. It was beautifully prepared, and topped per tradition with crisp, tasty bacon. According to my resident expert native-Virginian — my wife — it equalled the best you’ll find in Tidewater country where this dish is legion. And the price was a friendly $7.50. Accompanying green beans were beautifully al dente.In the veal-fowl-other category are veal cordon bleu, sweetbreads, coq au vin and “breast of guinea hen sous cloche” (cute for “under glass”). There’s also a boneless duckling, filled with “cherries, mandarines and sauce a I’orange.” That’s not either-or — it’s all together. Unorthodox certainly, but it could be interesting.Among beefs are a filet, a sirloin and Chateaubriand. A literal translation from the French of the latter (“a house on fire”) isContinued on page B14
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Westport Fairpress
Westport, Connecticut, US
Wed, Jun 08, 1977
Page 61
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USA 16 Sep 2024
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