Friday, May 19, 2006

Yardley Inn boasts lovely views and delicious `tiers of taste'

Susan Sprague Yeskes
Trenton Times Staff Writer

In many restaurants the appetizers can compete with the entrees for sheer volume. Often they are so large they guarantee the diner won't be able to finish the main course.

At the Yardley Inn in Yardley, Pa., executive chef Dominick Zirilli has taken care of that problem with his "tiers of taste." For $16, diners can choose three items from the appetizer list that are served in smaller portions than the traditional appetizers.

Just enough, in other words, to tease the tastebuds and gear up the palate for the main course to come.

That turned out to be just one of the pleasant surprises that awaited at the Yardley Inn on a recent beautiful Sunday afternoon. With flowers in bloom, the temperature reaching past 70 degrees and the Delaware River passing by at a languid pace, we found our way to the circa 1852 former stagecoach stop.

The inn has withstood the passage of time and two recent floods, both of which closed it temporarily. The more recent one, in April 2005, forced owners Bob and Robin Freed to completely replace the main dining room, which fronts on the river, giving diners a pleasant view.

The updated dining rooms are nicely done, with low ceilings and lots of wood trim.

Equally appealing was the menu, which is large enough to offer a varied selection, but not too big to overwhelm.
Much of it is a reflection of the customers' preferences, said manager Michele Mohollen.

"We really talk to our guests and see what they like," she says.

When Zirilli created his lobster with mac and cheese, $9 for an appetizer portion, Mohollen didn't think it would last.
"It's been a year and a half and I wouldn't dare to take it off the menu," she says, thanks to the clamor of satisfied customers.

It's a claim that is easy to believe. Pink chunks of lobster peek through the light, creamy sauce that covers tiny pasta shells, a very grownup version of a childhood favorite.

Zirilli's tiers of taste, $16, have three levels; we chose a mini brie tart with a sweet berry sauce, a trio of moist, crunchy fried oysters and a fresh mozzarella and tomato salad. All three were reduced portions, upscale and clearly constructed with care. By positioning the tiered tray in the center of the table, it was ideally located for sharing.

Spring is the season of vidalia onions and Zirilli has used them for an inspired entree. His roasted vidalia onion, $15, is stuffed with wild mushrooms and Maytag blue cheese and finished with a green onion vinaigrette. Soft and rich, this is the kind of dish that makes the tastebuds demand more.

Huge chunks of crab made up most of the jumbo lump crab cakes, $25, with just enough breading and egg to hold them together. A pan-roasted free-range chicken, $22, was crunchy on the outside, moist and tender inside. It came perched on a fragrant mixture of fingerling potatoes, spinach, roasted red pepper and garlic jus.

But the standout, which alone is worth a trip to the inn, was Zirilli's award-winning Niman Ranch pork shank, $25. Braised to tangy perfection in sake, the pork is meltingly soft.

Since the dish won the Philly Cooks 2006 Best Entree award in January, Mohollen said they have increased their order for pork shanks from 40 pounds to 240 pounds each week.

Desserts, $6 each, were less impressive. Among those we chose, only a dish of pleasant rice pudding was made in-house. A raspberry tart, Oreo cookie pie and molten lava chocolate cake were made elsewhere and did little more than satisfy a craving for sweets.

But that didn't dim the enjoyment of the evening meal.

Zirilli came to the inn as a sous chef to former executive chef David Cunningham, who brought with him years of experience at some of New York's finest restaurants. Zirilli used the opportunity to learn from him and, when Cunningham left, was ready to craft a menu of his own.

It's that menu, a blend of country and city, that so impresses the inn's customers, making them come back for more.