No, really, it's a beautiful space, and on some days atmosphere is almost as important as food and drink.
Which unfortunately weren't stellar. The sweetness of muddled cucumber, lime and mint all but obliterated Hendrick's Gin in the Spring Martini. The Man Up Manhattan embarrassed itself with cranberry juice and Drambuie.
In the Portuguese Mussels and Clams, the mussels and sausage were delicious. The sweetbread that came with the meal was not quite right for sopping up white wine and garlic butter.
Salads were green and fresh. My caesar shared its plate with roasted tomatoes and sausage on flatbread. Shepherd's pie was served in a very hot skillet. It was tasty, but to answer the rhetorical question on the menu: no, we needn't say anything.
My date's "New Orleans style" meatloaf had never been to the bayou.
The most striking thing about the evening was the pace of service. Although the room was half-full with no one else waiting, it took the hostess nearly 15 minutes to seat us.
While hanging out by the coat closet, we watched one woman leave swearing to never return, then overheard an argument between a server and our hostess over table assignments. We wondered if we were being punished for not making a reservation.
Speed picked up as the evening progressed. Dishes were cleared as we finished them; water and coffee got refilled unobtrusively. We felt taken care of and not rushed. "It's like service from a bygone era," we joked. "1993."
http://www.lilysonmain.com/
