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SKANEATELES, NEW YORK (April 25, 2004) — My favorite getaway is going to a rambling old inn, where I can park my car, hang my coat, walk downstairs to the dining room and back up to my cozy room after a nightcap at the bar.
We found the perfect inn a few years ago. It's in the charming little village of Skaneateles, just southwest of Syracuse in the Finger Lakes region.
The Sherwood Inn has been around since 1807. It's a rambling old building that takes up much of downtown Skaneateles. There are 25 unique and welcoming guest rooms. Fine cuisine is served in a lovely dining room that exudes old fashioned elegance and on an enclosed porch that runs the entire length of the building and overlooks Skaneateles Lake. A menu of hearty fare is available in the roomy, old-fashioned tavern.
We spent two nights at the inn, enjoying casual fine dining both evenings. They had just introduced a new spring menu. We had the opportunity to sample some of the new menu items as well as traditional favorites, all emphasizing upstate regional cuisine.
The menu caters to all palates and price points, with entrées like Yankee pot roast ($15), penne pasta with chicken and andouille sausage ($14), pecan-crusted salmon ($18), sriracha-spiced swordfish ($28), orange-glazed duck breast ($27) and seared sirloin Diane ($28).
Fresh seafood arrives daily from Boston. Sea scallops, cod, swordfish and salmon are available in several preparations, simple to sublime, priced from $22 to $28.
The first night, we began with one of their new appetizers, strawberry and ricotta galette ($8). A galette is a rather flat pastry that can be topped with most anything. In this case, a rectangle of puff pastry was topped with sweet herbed ricotta cheese and fresh strawberries, served over baby greens and drizzled with balsamic glaze. A tasty and colorful start to the evening.
Salads are a la carte, available as small or entrée salads. We ordered the small portion of hearts of Boston bibb ($5). Actually, it looked more like a small wedge of iceberg lettuce, but worked just fine with the crumbly blue cheese vinaigrette drizzled on top, crowned with julienned radish and an oblong slice of English cucumber.
One of the "Sherwood Classics" is pecan salmon ($18), a 7-ounce portion of pan-seared Atlantic salmon crusted with crushed pecans and drizzled with maple syrup. Fresh asparagus accompanied, as well as simple and effective house rice pilaf.
Colorado loin lamb chops ($26) got my attention. Two good-sized chops were charcoal grilled to a perfect medium-rare, finished with a port wine demi-glace and served with white cheddar au gratin potatoes that could have been a little cheesier, for our liking. This was good grown-up comfort food.
For dessert, we had apple crisp a la mode ($6). It was a bowlful big enough for two to share. The crisp wasn't particularly crisp. In fact, it was at the bottom of the bowl as though it was plated upside down for some reason. The apples were definitely fresh, with a perfect firmness.
Dinner for two cost $86 before tip, $15 of which accounted for a mixed drink, a small bottle of Perrier sparkling water and an enjoyable glass of Columbia Crest Grand Estates Shiraz from the state of Washington.
The inn has received the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence every year throughout the last decade.
The next night, our waiter started us out with a basket of assorted artisan breads and a wonderful house-made cheese tapenade (shredded cheddar, chopped olives, capers and anchovies). The bread is made in the inn's bakery, Patisserie, located in the carriage house behind the inn.
For an appetizer, we ordered a spectacular new menu item, spring vegetable gnocchi ($8) — house-made ricotta cheese gnocchi tossed with fresh tomatoes, roasted leeks, baby spinach and fresh mozzarella, finished with basil-infused olive oil. It's also available as an entrée for $20.
A seasonal entrée returning to the spring menu is seafood pappardelle ($28). Shrimp, scallops and mussels are tossed with fresh tomatoes, roasted fennel and leeks along with pappardelle (flat ribbon pasta) in a saffron-thyme cream sauce. The pappardelle dish was very good, but the grilled New York strip steak ($28) was excellent. Not just the meat, topped with roasted wild mushrooms and finished with a truffle compound butter, but the accompanying vegetable "hash" — diced sweet potato, sliced Brussels sprouts and chopped leeks. All we could say was "Wow!"
For dessert, we shared a Nantucket tri-berry tart ($5), fresh berries and whipped cream overflowing the pastry crust. It was a generous portion. Two of us could barely finish it. Dinner for two cost $85 before tip, $14 of which covered two mixed drinks and a small bottle of Perrier. A full breakfast buffet is served each morning, complimentary for house guests, with muffins, Danish, bagels, fresh fruit, granola, yogurt and daily egg preparations.
Service was friendly, relaxed and professional — from the wait staff to the hostesses to the seasoned bartenders. Everything was just right — just the way it should be.
Staying at the Sherwood Inn is a very special experience. It's about an hour and a half drive from Watertown, a drive well worth it. We've been to the Sherwood before and will, without a doubt, be back again.
The Mother's Day menu is posted on their Web site — www.thesherwoodinn.com — as well as dining and room specials in effect until May 9.
TIDBITS
¦ Before heading to Sherwood, we swung by picturesque Cazenovia, just east of Syracuse, and stopped for lunch at the historic Lincklaen House www.lincklaenhouse.com. In the Seven Stone Steps Tap Room we enjoyed seafood bisque with lobster essence and a hint of sherry, curried chicken salad on croissant and baked oysters stuffed with bacon, scallions and goat cheese.
¦ While in Skaneateles we had lunch at Bluewater Grill, where we had a very tasty Mediterranean fish stew with clams, mussels and lobster and a delightful cobb salad — mixed greens tossed with bacon, egg, blue cheese, avocado, grape tomatoes and balsamic vinaigrette.
¦ Heading back north, we exited Interstate 81 at Parish for gas and stumbled upon G&F Italian Pizza & Restaurant at 2972 E. Main St. We could tell by all the vehicles parked outside that this was the place locals go for lunch.
There were more than a half-dozen pizzas available by the slice, along with subs and salads, wraps and wings, lasagna, ziti, manicotti, stuffed shells and more.
A slice with sausage and a slice with fresh tomato, basil and roasted red pepper were both terrific, with a fabulous crust. We got some meatballs and marinara sauce to go — equally enjoyable warmed up the next day.
You can contact restaurant reviewer Walter Siebel via e-mail: wsiebel@wdt.net.
Sherwood Inn
28 W. Genesee St.
Skaneateles, NY
685-3405
www.thesherwoodinn.com
A 200-year-old classic inn with an excellent menu catering to all palates and all price points.
DINNER HOURS: 5 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday
5 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday
4 to 8 p.m. Sunday
LUNCH: 11:30 a.m. seven days a week
APPETIZER PICKS: Spring vegetable gnocchi
SALAD PICK: Hearts of Boston Bibb with julienned radish and crumbly blue cheese vinaigrette
ENTRÉE PICKS: Colorado loin lamb chops with port wine demi-glace; strip steak with a hash of sweet potato, Brussels sprouts and leeks
RATING: 4 FORKS
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