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Castle Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge
- Hours:
Wed-Sun. 11:30 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
3 reviews for Castle Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge
What a wonderful treat! We went to the Castle last night to celebrate my birthday and our friends' anniversary. These friends live in Spencer, so on route to their house on Route 9, we always passed this restaurant and I was so intrigued because well, it's a very fancy and peculiar looking restaurant basically in the middle of nowhere, or at least, not in a place you would expect to find it.
Medieval times, it is not. Instead, The Castle is an amazing restaurant with several rooms decorated with armor, swords, and other medieval embellishments. It is definitely a unique experience and reminded me of the Higgins Armory Museum than say, a steakhouse. However, it was comfortable, too, and didn't have a stiff feeling like many high-end restaurants.
We initially had a drink in the bar area and also were served toasts with a horseradish cheese spread (delicious). Then, we were escorted to our table in the Camelot Room. There are a few rooms with corresponding menus (I believe there is only one other menu). Our waitress was dressed in a tuxedo (very cute) and was very knowledgeable about the menu and extremely polite.
For our appetizer, we ordered the escargots, which were perfectly cooked in butter and breadcrumbs. Oh my goodness, I could have just eaten them for dinner! Then, we had rolls, which were my only complaint of the night, because they were a bit stale. For dinner, my husband and the husband from the other couple had the Chateaubriand, which came with a potato, some kind of yummy beet salad, a stuffed tomato half, and grilled peapods. The beef was excellent, but not as good as my dish, the game du jour, which yesterday was antelope! How many times can one order antelope? So I did. I found out from the owner (who brought out the Chateaubriand and later, the flaming coffees) that the game came from Texas, specifically a farm near Dallas. The meat was wonderfully lean, and complimented by a creamy sauce and a little goat cheese. I really enjoyed the grilled peapods, and someday wish to emulate them, although I doubt that will happen. My other friend ordered the fish of the day, the escolar, which is kind of a rarity at restaurants. It tastes a lot like swordfish and comes from almost 800 feet deep in the sea!
I'm not finished quite yet. We had to have a peek at the beautiful dessert tray, where every dessert was described fully to our mouth-watering delights. My friend and I split a piece of the chocolate cake based tiramisu with raspberry (I think) soaked ladyfingers; it was divine. However, my favorite part of the dessert was watching the presentation of the flaming coffees, of which there were two being made. The process of making them with the flaming coffee and the dessert liqueurs was astonishing and unique. And they tasted delicious, topped off with homemade whipped cream.
This review is getting long, isn't it? I just can't describe this meal in one paragraph, because it was not just a meal, but a total experience for this gourmand and friends. All of the food was delicious, the service was impeccable, and the atmosphere was perfect for our special occasions. To top it off, the ladies even received a rose. :) The price of is course, more than a typical restaurant, but every penny is well-spent and dining here makes you feel like the king or queen in all of us.
The Mr. and I attended The Castle's most recent wine dinner, featuring Chateau Montelena wines. We started with a 1997 chard that James Nicas, The Castle's wine guru, poured. We paired our delish dinners with cabs from '93 to '98. We loved them all! I thought the '93 and '95 cabs were the best. The '93 was earthy, very Burgundian. Such a treat!
As for the dinner, we are always blown away by The Castle's cuisine. If we're not attending a wine dinner there, and just going on our own, I love to start with the escargot. I LOVE the escargot. Love it! I love the bread crumb buttery topping. SO good.
But for the Chateau Montelena dinner, we were presented with a great carpaccio with a balsamic glaze drizzled across the platter and shaved parm and capers scattered about. The main course was a moist, fall-off-the-bone osso bucco with spinach pasta. I thought there was too much pasta on the plate, but hey, who's complaining. Our dessert was simple yet equally delish: slices of banana, strawberry, apple, and pear arranged around a small bowl of chocolate ganache.
I'll say that The Castle's other desserts, which are rolled over to you on a three or four-tiered cart, are amazing. Seriously. And pair the dessert with one of James's dessert wines. Make sure you ask him for his suggestion -- for dinner and dessert. He's a great guy and so incredibly knowledgeable about food and wine. He didn't win Wine Spectator awards for nothing. He's known throughout the industry, and he deserves even more recognition.
this is one of the finest traditional french restaurant around.... they have everything from escargots, to table side Chateaubriand... I have brought many a friends and clients here, and always had a great experience... What really makes this place shine is the Wine steward, and the hostess, and the Chef are all family, they really care about their customers, and go out of their way to please them.. Do try to attend one of their wine dinners... you will think you are in Gastronomy Heaven...