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Watercolor
Café Pleases the Eye and the Stomach This week lunch was at The Watercolor Café, 2094 Boston Post Road in Larchmont. First of all, I have to admit that aftergetting stuck in some major construction traffic, I arrived at Watercolor Café late and cranky. I was in need of an attitude adjustment. As I walked toward the café I spied that first true sign of spring — outdoor tables. Although I wasn’t likely to choose to sit there, the bistro-style tables and chairs were charming and nicely set, acting as a ‘hook’ to passersby. Two lunch-hungry women had been drawn in and were busy discussing the merits of the menu posted in the window. I heard one of them say in French, “pas mal” which roughly translates “not bad.” Inside color reigns supreme. From the op-art wall sconces and hanging lamps in assorted eye pleasing colors to the brightly colored shirts worn by the wait staff, this place has a sense of style that helps to create a feel-good atmosphere. The walls have a chair rail with paneling beneath, both of which are sponge painted in soothing shades of blue. Above the chair rail is an art exhibit by local artist Annie Michel. The tables were nicely set with white cloths topped by scarves of blue batiked fabric. There were fresh flowers on each table. The upbeat decor worked its magic on my cranky mood and as I sat to join my friend I was smiling and ready for lunch. My friend and I decided to share an appetizer. Although it was hard to choose between the Prince Edward Island mussels, crispy angel hair pasta or the cornmeal fried calamari, I wanted to try the grilled lamb and chicken sate marinated in a spicy peanut-ginger sauce, served over organic field greens with a papaya mango salsa — it just sounded so great. We weren’t disappointed. Both the lamb and the chicken were tender and flavorful and the accompanying peanut ginger sauce, although spare, was very tasty. A good papaya-mango salsa can definitely make my heart beat fast. This one was good, but I would have liked to have seen a bit more of it on my plate. This appetizer was more than generous and could have easily served as a light lunch choice. When it came to our main courses , both of us opted to pick from the daily specials menu. Having thrown all diet concerns to the wind, I chose the porcini ravioli with grilled shrimp and asparagus in a basil cream sauce. My friend chose the blackened grilled scallops and shrimp with vine ripe tomatoes atop a field green salad. My ravioli arrived in an attractive bowl with more than an ample amount ofsauce topped by a skewer of grilled shrimp. The sauce was rich with butter and cream and basil. It could have easily been called a pesto cream sauce and it was very good. The ravioli themselves were quite nice but the porcini flavor was a little weak. The grilled shrimp added a slightly spicy kick to the dish which made a good balance to the sweetness of the cream sauce. My friend’s salad was presented beautifully, a mounded mass of mixed field greens with a scattering of blackened shrimp and scallops. It looked great, but maybe should have come with a warning label. Here when they say blackened they mean real Louisiana blackened. Some like it hot and I’m one of them. I can take the heat but my friend can’t, so we switched plates. I found that although the seafood was on the warm side, when paired with the salad it was perfect. The Watercolor Café has a wide selection of lunch choices from sandwiches, like the grilled portabellos with roasted peppers and fresh mozzarella or the turkey with bacon, arugula and Russian dressing on a baguette, to salads like the spinach with warm crusted goat cheese and the cobb salad with marinated chicken breast. Also available are several pasta dishes like farfalle primavera or other entrees like pecan crusted salmon. Then, of course, there’s dessert. We did share one of the tempting choices, a Grand Marnier-flavored creme caramel. This dessert was sweet and creamy and almost floating on a caramel sauce swirled with strawberry. After a quick espresso, we floated right on out. The Watercolor Café is open daily from 11:30 am. to 10 p.m. For working folks, this is a great asset — lunch anytime at all. The café has recently added Sunday brunch from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Thursday night is jazz night |
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