Hmm revisited - blue light special...

Reader note: the intended review of a couple of contractor "open houses" was OBE last night and will appear in another edition soon.

I would be glad to take credit, but I fear the only thing I can take credit for is sharing the perception of how to “improve” Catamarans. I had intended to let it simmer for a while before visiting the establishment, but despite my “wait and see” comments, a spur of the moment invitation to go have appetizers and check it out last night was accepted, and over the bridge we went. After parking, the first thing I noticed was the blue signs in the windows were no more! Nary a Bud nor Miller sign to be seen! Good idea! I was sure that was because of my harangue yesterday, but alas, I fear I was beaten to the punch. But, it’s a step in the right direction. As I mentioned yesterday, I have never been in Catamarans before the “upgrade”, so I really don’t have a basis from which to judge what happened. Apparently they have changed the entrance so that there is a “stand” by the door along with a small bar, and there is a partition between that and the “dining room”. We said we were just interested in apps and a drink, but were told that the dining room was filled, but we could be seated upstairs. Oh, did I mention that there were several pictures of the “new Chef” in the vestibule? Anyway, we were led through the dining room which had several white tablecloth tables, and what appeared to be several “office party” groups occupying consolidated tables. There was some fairly nice art on the walls. But up the stairs we went into the “bar” area escorted by one of the servers from the dining room (with a very tidy white shirt).

I don’t think the “upgrade” has risen beyond the ground floor because (caveat again) it didn’t look “new” to me. There was an “entertainment” area with a raised bandstand with several light fixtures on the ceiling that looked straight from star wars (I think including one of those multi-faceted mirrored spheres that rotate). The bar area was beyond that, along with a pool table, some sort of video game at the bar, and a bar that extends the considerable length of the room. I thought it was a very nice bar, had sort of an antique feel to it (despite multiple flat screens affixed to the walls). We were approached by the “bar server” and asked about drinks. The server attire in the bar area is less formal than downstairs as it consisted of a tee shirt and shorts. Okay, the bar is an informal place. I don’t believe names were offered. There are wines by the glass, but apparently suds (despite the lack of external advertising) is the drink of choice, as there are 16 on tap. Our server was able to recite all from memory, and when we commented he replied “well, after 7 years you learn something”. When asked if the new chef was in the kitchen this eveninng, he replied he sure is, and would be glad to come out and have his picture taken with you.. Um, no, that’s okay.

Turning to the menu (one menu does all), there are the usual array of starters, salads, burgers, and main courses. I didn’t take notes, but as I recall, a lot of the main courses had “names”. Popping Shrimp, or Island Chicken, (I can’t do them justice) but you get the idea. Some just said Salmon with such and such sauce. Sort of odd.

We ended up sharing an order of Fried Oysters (half shell and steamed an option), Lobster Corn Fritters, and a Seafood Stuffed Portobello Mushroom, along with a Fordham copper ale and a couple of glasses of (old reliable) Kendall Jackson. We were all fairly happy with the food, although I would have liked my oysters to have been just a bit longer in the fryer, as they were just over the “soggy” stage, but not quite to the “crunchy” level. The mushroom had plenty of seafood, and the Fritters, served in a paper bag, were hot and (I am never sure how to punch up lobster) rather mild. Portions good, mine served in a metal basket, the others on rectangular plates.

So, with no baseline to compare against, I can’t really judge the food. What we had was not bad, so maybe there’s some promise. Will have to try dinner sometime. As we were leaving a band started to show up, so not sure how that fits into the overall “whole new level” concept touted for the place.

Oh, in the Enterprise this morning there is an advert on page 12 for Catamarans proclaiming “Chef Robert Hesse Overwhelming Success!” (in less than a week! My oh my!) along with a picture of him labeled “Robert Hesse – Permanent Chef”. Maybe after reading about the beer signs he looked at the “executive chef” comments also. Maybe not. Oh, and there’s a line about “More Hells Kitchen Contestants Arriving Weekly”. What the heck are we supposed to do about that? Yippee! Another contestant here, honey, let’s go! I would prefer to let the food speak for the chef rather than the other way around. We’ll see how this approach stands up in the next few months. January through March are the dark days for restaurants. And, given all above, not sure how they expect you to

DFD