We had been anticipating going to Tarry Lodge ever since we heard that Mario Batali was opening a restaurant in Port Chester. He is one of my favorite chefs out there and I had never been to any of his restaurants. Obtaining reservations was not the easiest feat for Terry Lodge, we called two weeks in advance and got a Wednesday night reservation at 9PM, which may have turned out to be a good thing.
We arrived early and after checking in with the hostess went to the crowded bar to wait for the rest of our party and our table to be set. I could tell right away I was going to enjoy this place as one person was enjoying a pizza at the bar that looked delicious.
We ordered the Cantalupo wine by the glass as it seemed to be a good choice for the money at $12, I held off from ordering the Barolo as it was twice as much and we were attempting to make this a reasonable outing. The Cantalupo turned out to be a great choice, and it was served in a very generous small carafe. We were seated and our party joined us shortly.
To me I could just have a great meal with just good Wine, bread, and olive oil. That is how our meal at Tarry Lodge started as they put a basket of house made focaccia bread, and seasoned olive oil with whole olives on the table. It’s a good cheap way to win me over.
I couldn’t not get a pizza so we decided as table we would get a pizza for an appetizer, we ordered the Guanciale, Black Truffles, and Sunny Side Egg pizza for $14. We are huge truffle fans and it sounded unique. We also order “Nancy’s Chopped Salad” at $10 to go along with it. The pizza was tremendous, the fresh mozzarella, shaved black truffles, and Guanciale (Italian Bacon of sorts) was an earthy, cheesy, salty harmony in my mouth. The salad was a nice accompaniment consisting of crisp romaine, green olives, red peppers, mortadella, and some other items chopped and dressed lightly. The salad was good, but the pizza was incredible.
I ordered a second glass of wine, a primitivo to go with the pasta dish. It is an ancient vine that produces this wine grape, and the wine tastes it; earthy rich, dark cherry aroma. It was a good choice; I am starting to think it’s not my careful choosing, but more the carefully chosen wine menu by Mario or his team.
For the dinner course I ordered the Orecchiette pasta with Fennel Sausage and Rapini (broccoli rabe) at $15. My wife had the Grilled Tuna with Beet Vinaigrette at $21. Our dinner companions ordered the Osso Buco alla Milanese with Fregula Verde $25, and the Fusilli (pasta) alla Crazy Bastard $15.
The Orecchiette came out nice and hot, it was a thick obviously either house made or very carefully procured pasta, I have never had it like this, it was very good. The Orecchiette combined with the delicious fennel spiced sausage, tomato sauce, and broccoli rabe in perfect harmony, so simple but how come I can’t make it this good? Ha
I of course helped myself to tasting the rest of the courses as well. The Tuna was cooked appropriately to a medium rare doneness and the beet vinaigrette was a unique touch, it was very good. The Osso Buco was out of this world. Just pull off the bone with a fork tender, some the best if not the best I have ever tasted. The Fusilli alla Crazy Bastard, was tomaty and cheesy, a nice simple pasta dish. The pasta was cooked just right.
It is hard for me to remember desert. My senses were full at this point, but I do believe we got a chocolate cake which was quite good and split it while we enjoyed the last sips of our wine.
I have to say it was a great restaurant experience and we will return. Judging by how hard it was to get reservations several months after its opening and the quality of the food, I think Tarry Lodge will be around a long time. Deliziosa!
-T
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