Dartmouth De Gustibus: More Food for Thought

ALUMNI may be distressed to learn that one of the new dining facilities in the College area, McDonald's on Route 12-A between West Lebanon and Plainfield, New Hampshire, is being joined by two more - Burger King and Pizza Hut.

Take heart - all is not grease and gloom in the North Country. Some ancient inns maintain high culinary standards, and beyond the curves of country roads hide innovative restaurants. Operating in them are knowledgeable hosts and darned good chefs, some of whom (ah there, coeducation) are women. In most instances the restauranteurs are here in an escape from the "rat race," an emigration by which we all (excepting the deserted metropolitan diners) benefit.

A month in the past football season seemed the proper time to assemble an expeditionary force to assess those menus within a reasonable distance from campus. A four-week span looked right since September's local vegetables couldn't be compared fairly to those imported in December, and meal prices, because of you-know-what, could have changed within several months.

We agreed to a cop-out in the winefields. That Californians don't come to New England to sample the vin du pays has been for some time an accepted theory. And the recently publicized Great French Wine Fraud (chalked on a Cruse et Fils cellar vat, "Can be used for Beaujolais in the U.S.") does seem to leave us all on our own, hosts and patrons alike. Lists are there for your perusal, from St. Emilion to Liebfaumilch to Medoc, not to discourage. We took, where offered, house wine by carafe or glass and some comfort from the accompanying New Yorker cartoon.

Further preparation for our furtive sorties came from Wall Street analyst Ray DeVoe Jr. New York magazine printed his calculation that the cost of good living (dining out) has in the past year far outstripped the "normal" inflation rate. By 40 per cent, his figures show. However we found few entrees priced at more than $8.00.

After no little soul searching, we decided not to mention the Hanover Inn in this demi-guide. Reasons: possible conflict of interest, a sin much in mind these days; because the fare at the Inn is already well-known to our readers; and because our identity is well-known to the Inn's nice waitresses who ply us with extra cookies. But there, we did mention the Hanover Inn. The same goes for the Dartmouth Outing Club House, a summertime (only) refreshment worth a drive from Nipissing.

Years of experience had convinced the group leader that a Dartmouth alumnus cheerfully ingests cold oatmeal if only, while spooning it, he can view autumn colors on the N.H.-Vt. hills. Therefore, aided by the return to Eastern Standard Time, our investigations were conducted objectively, without views, at dinner time or, as the reader may conclude, completely in the dark.

And dark it was when Tallulah's, some 20 miles down 1-89, winked out of Eastman's seeming wilderness. Find the main entrance, first right after turning left under the interstate from Exit 13, and follow the numerous discreet signs. Persist: it is worth the effort if only to experience the unorthodox dining areas conceived by Emil Hanslin, the warmth of the big fireplaces, and the many variations of lighting.

Our marble-topped oval table for two wasn't far from a low round one for six where seating was at squat modern couches. And to the right, an old buggy seat opposite....

But food was the main purpose: We shared the house pate ($1.50) and gave a rouse for Chef Timothy Holland. Our fellow-investigator left none of his veal marsala ($7.75). The chicken cordon bleu ($6.25) was plump, juicy, piping hot, and delicious. Vegetables accompanying the seven entrees available that evening were cooked al dente as we think they should be. Prime ribs and beef Wellington are added to the dinner menu on weekends.

Don't plan on salad with the meal - platter-sized plates are provided at the salad bar, as are fresh-baked bread and four selections of dressing, all of which can be rated the real thing.

Tallulah's Surprise (dessert) has to remain that because we hadn't the room tO sample it, but probably nice manager JohN Waterbury who is somehow mixed up the restaurant franchise with John Clover, a recent Tuck grad, will tell (or sell) yOu what it is.

Anyhow, we're going back for lunch. average $2.00. A peachburger? Telephone (603) 863-4477.

Wells Wood is in the home of the late artist Maxfield Parrish, and is a handsome place high on a hill south of West Lebanon off Route 12-A. It is operated by Thomas and Rosalind Wells. The former told us "hat the latter keeps a sharp eye on their kitchen, particularly on the sauces, and our six-member sample of the menu confirmed his assertion: chicken almondine (56.95), breast of capon cordon bleu ($7.95), baked stuffed shrimp ($7.50), seafood Constantine in wine-cream sauce ($8.95), brochette de boeuf ($8.25), and crab mornay ($8.50). The above are accompanied by a relish tray, tossed salads, and Jason's All Natural Homemade Banana Nut Bread. We didn't meet Jason, but his bread is fine.

We were told to be on time for our reservation, and were, but the meal took a long time to come. Wells Wood's Oak Room is baronial in size, but the tables were so close together that serving was difficult and those attempting it seemed harrassed. A surprise for two of the party members arrived with the pre-dinner drinks: the "water on the side" with the J. & B. was straight gin, while the "vodka martini on the rocks" turned out to be ice water with an olive. Quick thinking and ingenuity solved that problem without more than 30 seconds' delay.

To be fair, we should add that our visit was the evening of the Princeton game, an event which brings enough visitors to the area to strain the capacities of most restaurants. Telephone (603) 675-5360.

A nice thing happened on the way out of the Norwich Inn. We stopped to chat with Mr. and Mrs. Bill Dibble, who got into the inn business a few years ago in a standing jump from a completely unrelated field. "No credit cards," he said, "but we do take personal checks. Haven't lost $100 on bad ones in over four years." "And that's because only nice people come to country inns," added Mrs. Dibble.

Nicely proportioned is what the Norwich Inn is a graceful, baywindowed dining room with a capacity of about 40. Have an unhurried drink in the pleasant lobby and contemplate six or seven dinner choices, changed daily. Filet mignon wrapped in Vermont bacon costs 58.50. One friend tried roast leg of lamb, a portion he pronounced ample and juicy. The Yankee pot roast was tender and tasty, despite a subversive comment from a waiter who volunteered he thought it not quite up to his mother's. There is a good salad bar which you can raid with individual wooden bowls.

Chef Wilfred Beriau is a product of the Culinary Institute. Bill Dibble rates high Beriau's coquille St. Jacques ($5.90), liver and bacon, and roast long island duckling.

The Inn is a cheery place for lunch, too, offering entrees from $1.25 to $2.75, plus two weight watcher's specials (turkey and sirloin) at $2.65. The homemade pies and breads (which may be bought to take home), I announce with both experience and caloric regret, are superb.

It is not true that Al Foley '20, professor emeritus, is a permanent installation: He knows a good thing when he's found it, that's all. Telephone (802) 649-1143.

How to find the Village Hearth? As you enter Lebanon from Hanover, take a left into the parking lot which adjoins the Mall. Go up a ramp leading from the Mall; it might help to follow your nose. Presiding over the grill in full view is part-owner Dave Carver (son of the late Fred Carver '27) who says the butt steak is his best seller. The junior-cut at $4.25 is a thick challenge; maybe you'd want the mansized after a full day of skiing. There are two sizes of fillet - king ($10.25) and mignon ($7.25) - and of sirloin ($7.25 and $6.25). All come with potatoes (the "steak fries" get high marks), vegetables, help-yourself salad, homemade bread in individual loaves, and coffee.

If you're not a beef person, there are seven seafood possibilities listed, plus spaghetti and meatballs, the latter also in children's portions at $1.65.

The Hearth has two dining rooms and two bars and a combo on weekend evenings. We'd rate it a high satisfaction to steak lovers, at prices a noticeable notch under most area dineries of its class. Watch out for the good cheese in the brown crocks - it is good, but leave room for what's coming. Telephone (603) 448-4649.

The Hotel Coolidge has been in White River Junction a long time and is a name familiar to many alumni. That is not entirely to its advantage, part-owner Bill Cook wryly admits. Dartmouth men of a certain era can now jump back over their conclusions and take another look. For some years now the Coolidge has enjoyed a reputation as having one of the finest cuisines in the area, if not New England.

We can all thank August Zollikofer who transported his culinary talent to White River from Switzerland without once breaking stride. Chef Ronnie Lougee has made another successful transfer as successor to Mr. Z. The MAGAZINE'S (temporary) dining association unanimously and without qualification endorses: wienerschnitzel ($6.50), schnitzel a la Holzstein ($6.75), cordon bleu de veau ($6.50), paupiettes de bouef ($6.25), sauerbraten ($6.25), and Hungarian beef goulash ($5.50). A menu note asks that we add 25 cents to the above entree prices, adding the optimistic hope that high food costs are "temporary."

Each of the above comes with a choice of creamed spinach (grab it) or other vegetable; various potatoes, soup, and an appetizer. (Try the baked cheese sticks.) The meals include, too, cole slaw or tossed salad and home-made breads.

There are eight more entree possibilities on the Coolidge's menu as well, but we've never wanted to stray from one of the seven extolled above.

Peter Michael Gish '49 painted the "Barn Dance" mural in the Red Barn Lounge which includes portraits of local residents. That's another nice thing about the Coolidge - it brings together town and gown. Telephone (802) 295-3118.

A few miles up the Valley is the LymeInn (1809). Chef Bruce Balch, a Lyme native and a Culinary Institute graduate, is also a Zollikofer protege. It shows. The mushroom soup was a steaming, generous portion with plenty of mushrooms and cream. A reduced team limited our choices to three entrees: wiener schnitzel (55.95), roast lamb, and blue fish, (the latter was adjudged "mushy" which, although not a professional term, connotes constructive criticism.)

Chef Bruce is particularly proud of his special spinach salad ($1.00), and he has a right to be. The spinach is fresh, in this season flown from Florida, and the dressing is delicious. That alone would be a fine lunch. Meals are accompanied by housemade pan breads, because "It fits a country inn." Right about that, too. The entrees are listed as "Always" and "Sometimes," and taken together give diners a wide choice, with sirloin and mushrooms the top price at $8.50.

The Inn's rooms double as a gallery of prints and artifacts, suitable to its age. One could get through a lot of pre-dinner drinks in just trying to uncover the purpose of the ancient tools decorating the bar. Ray and Connie Bergendoff have owned the Inn for four years. Telephone (603) 795-2222.

Also recently renovated by relative newcomers is the Canaan Inn on Route 4 east of Hanover. Laurie and John Blizzard took over a creaky and unwinterized building in 1971 and have made it into a warm, beckoning place. Mrs. Blizzard, a former actress who has appeared with the Dartmouth Players, was behind the Inn bar when we visited, and we conclude that only someone with her energy could have taken on what three years ago must have been a pretty discouraging project.

She recommended with confidence the "Bella Cosina," which is her own department. The pastas are, too. We had the veal marsala with linguini ($7.00) and it was first-rate.

The Cosina provides spaghetti sauce possibilities from marinara to sausage at from $2.00 to $3.50, including a bowl of salad plus garlic bread: chicken cacciatore ($5.00), lasagna ($4.00), veal parmesan ($7.00), and veal scallopini ($7.50). Aside from the Italian fare, the Canaan's dinner menu offers nine entrees from which we chose roast duckling a l'apricotte ($7.50). It was good, but next time we'll listen to good advice and try the Cosina. (Entrees and accompanying vegetables are served on large - and hot - platters.)

The Canaan Inn serves a variety of breakfasts and luncheon sandwiches in the $.85 to $2.50 range. It hopes to attract winter sports patrons and most likely will. They might stay for dinner if they get a whiff of it in preparation. Telephone (603) 523-4846.

Another new addition to the Connecticut Valley is the 1775 Steak House, snug in the cellar of the old Windsor House. Don Wenz, who earned his MALS at the College last year, with his brother has transformed the brick and open pipes into a cozy spot. They report a rousing lunch business: including homemade soups at $.75 and clam chowder at $1.00. There are crabmeat salad platter ($3.00), roast beefe ($1.75), colde cut platter ($2.25), to give just a sample.

From the dinner menu we sampled fruit cocktail, all fresh ($.75); excellent shrimp cocktail ($2.50); jumbo shrimps, tender but with over-salty batter ($5.50); forkcuttable porterhouse ($6.75); chicken cordon bleu - "all right" - ($5.75). The salad bar at 1775 is attractive and for a change we decided to have salad after the meal. Our mistake; the bar was cleaned off promptly at 9:00 to make room for the Tuesday night live entertainment. Telephone (802) 674-2121.

It is presumptuous to describe the new Woodstock Inn to Dartmouth folk. However, it's possible that the implied opulence (Laurence Rockefeller and the Inn people celebrated the fifth anniversary November 24) might discourage the less affluent. It shouldn't. The most you can pay for lunch at the Inn is $3.85 for sirloin steak on toast, and there are lots of good choices at half that price. Opulence is there all right (blue velvet dining chairs are opulent, no?) in the beautiful, flagstone lobby with a 10-foot wide fireplace.

Dinner entree prices are also reasonable: we had roast prime rib of beef ($7.55), its rareness exactly as requested, and excellent salmon steak ($6.20). Except for

Saturday and Sunday, lunches are served in the friendly coffee room.

Dinner menus are changed daily, we were told by Peter Wynia, the sous chef who, in a switch from the usual pattern, came from Holland to North America to study. He said that he and German Chef Hans Schadler suit menus to New England. Seafood is sped post-haste from Boston and last month lobster was usually available Fridays ($10.50), in case anyone recalls what lobster is. Telephone (802) 457-1100.

Three generations of the Alafat family are now involved in operating Lander'sRestaurant, Route 120 between Hanover and Lebanon. One of the youngest, Terrie, however, is mainly occupied by her sophomore studies at the College. Grandfather Mike Sr., at 72, still checks his kitchen out of an early morning. And Grandmother Elizabeth takes over the exotic cooking when the Lebanese chef vacations.

Lander's, named for the owner of its original location, destroyed in the Lebanon fire of 1964, is going strong in its 42nd year, its enormous following attracted as always by generous portions and low prices.

The menu lists, if counted correctly, a boggling choice of 16 Near East dishes, four Italian, nine conventional entrees (top price $5.95 for sirloin and filet mignon) five fish entrees, and 11 sandwiches ($1.75 top). And now, adds Mrs. Mike Jr., "Roast beef every night." These except for the sandwiches, come with Syrian bread and salad, the latter a generous melange of greens, peppers, tomatoes, and celery.

On our visit we had lamb shish-ka-bob ($3.50) and rolled cabbage ($2.95). The lamb was tasty, but the cabbage man would have been happy with more spices. For 400 more the bobs are served with deep fried tomato slices in batter. They're great.

The plebian hamburger there takes on impressive qualities. Mike Jr. once revealed the reason for this: It's made of trimmings from the tenderloins and sirloin.

Good (family) management is responsible for Lander's tariffs, even today. That's why it's often not easy to find a parking place in their enormous lot. Telephone (603) 448-1243.

If you've followed the peregrinations of the intrepid tasters so far, please don't leave now because we've saved what we consider the best until last. The top award, at least four WIN buttons, is bestowed on Casey's Tavern in Hartland Four Corners, Vermont (Route 12 off Route 5, north of Windsor).

Casey's atmosphere (there's a reward if we get through without using ambiance) is great: There's no escaping that people there care a great deal about good food and getting it to you in the most pleasant and relaxing manner possible.

John Casey, who has been in Hartland for four years (the restaurant has been open for one), says he is "having a ball," and everything about the little restaurant in the old stone house convinces you that he's telling the truth. Where else would an old auto horn signal from the upstairs kitchen that an order is ready?

Maureen Casey is in charge up there and hooray for her. They are "still developing the menu," but it's hard to imagine how the quality could be improved. They produce a flat maximum of 200 meals per week (Thursday through Sunday nights only), enabling them to keep their standards high.

The escargots ($2.00 for a half dozen) were great. Six of us tried five entrees out of the seven listed: beef kabob ($5.95), chicken breast tarragon ($4.95), trout amandine ($5.95), baked stuffed shrimp ($5.95), and scallops provencals ($5.95). All were pronounced the best. We didn't get to sample the charbroiled steak ($7.95) and chicken teriyaki ($5.50), but they looked mighty good going by. All were served with a choice of two from: broccoli, baked potato, deviled carrots, or three bean salad. All were good but the salad rated best. Would it be proper here to quote one thoughtless gourmet? "Let's hear it for the three bean salad." There were apologies that the house cheesecake was all gone, but there wasn't anything wrong with the apple brown betty and hard sauce. The menu also has a vegetarian plate at $3.50 and the salad bar at $2.50 with soup or $3.60 with oysters or escargots.

And the homemade bread, both white and dark, of which you get to slice as much as you like. "Don't forget about the bread," a younger family member cautioned frequently. We haven't.

"Surprisingly good, isn't it? It's Gallo. Mort and I simply got tired of being snobs."

Besides being Class Notes Editor of thismagazine, Joan L. Hier dines out whenpermitted off the Hier hilltop in CornishFlat, New Hampshire. As to qualificationas a judge of cuisine, she once served"some sort of potluck" to Julia Child i"Berlin in the mid-50s and remembers thatPaul Child "stood on his head a lot.