Peppercorns

Imaginative food, friendly atmosphere, and outdoor dining. What more can you ask for?

by Margaret LeRoux

Peppercorns Grille & Bar 455 Park Avenue Worcester (508) 752-7711 Hours Mon.-Thurs. 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat. 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m. Sun. 4-9 p.m. Major credit cards Full bar Handicap accessible

What a difference two years make in the restaurant business. When I last ate dinner at Peppercorns it was new to Worcester and undiscovered. I found the atmosphere friendly, the food imaginative, and the variety outstanding. Since then it's gained popularity with the addition of weekly, live music -- check out local jazz favorites Emil Haddad and Dick Odgren on Friday nights, and a live sports-radio broadcast packs the place on Monday nights. Peppercorns has also made a few adjustments to the menu, including new seafood offerings for the summer.

When a group of friends and I revisited Peppercorns recently we found most of the changes to our liking, especially the option to dine outdoors; too few local places offer al fresco seating. Inside, the large bar area is to your left, off to your right is the main dining room. A few weeks ago a friend and I caught up on each other's lives at an overly long lunch. Though we were the last diners in the room we never were rushed or made to feel uncomfortable.

Service at Peppercorns is its strong suit. Our waitress this evening was friendly and personable. She took our drink orders promptly -- a frozen margarita ($5), Harpoon ale ($3.75), Wachusett ale ($3.75), and a soda ($1.50) -- and returned with a basket of fresh Italian bread.

There are loads of possibilities on the appetizers list: artichoke and spinach dip ($5.99), pesto garlic bread ($3.99), crab cakes ($5.99), crab Rangoon ($6.99), and lobster ravioli ($7.99). There's also an antipasto for two ($9.99) with enough cold cuts, cheese, olives, marinated mushrooms, and pesto chicken to take the edge off if you're really hungry.

We shared the tri-mushroom casserole, a sizzling-hot chafing dish full of sliced shiitake and portobello mushrooms -- very tasty -- baked with olive oil, garlic, and four cheeses (heavy on the mozzarella) served with wedges of focaccia.

When taking our order our waitress asked if we'd like a salad ($1.50; blue cheese dressing is 50 cents extra) with our meal. Maybe I'm being picky here, because the price is certainly reasonable, but nevertheless shouldn't diners be told that salads are extra when they don't come with the meal? Many restaurants include salads with entrees. At Peppercorns, where the price of most dinner entrees is well over $10, it seems fair to warn diners of the extra cost.

Alas, on to our choices for dinner. The new summer seafood menu is heavy on fried fish: haddock and chips ($10.99), fried scallops ($11.99), and a fisherman's platter of haddock, shrimp, scallops, and clams ($15.99). There are also several sandwiches, including tuna salad and a lobster roll.

Lobster plays a supporting role in a number of dishes: chicken and lobster Nicola ($14.99), a boneless breast and lobster meat with red pepper and mushrooms in a marsala sauce served over linguine; and my choice, veal Jordyn ($15.99). Here, sweet chunks of lobster tail played off veal scaloppini heaped with sautéed yellow peppers, mushrooms, pea pods, and roasted garlic in a cream sauce seasoned with fresh sage. I love the unexpected richness fresh sage adds to a sauce. In this case, it was almost overkill, with the lobster and cream, but an indulgence that was well worth it. Alongside, I was served a plate of angel hair pasta with marinara sauce. It was not a good match with the sophisticated veal and lobster in cream sauce combination. After one taste, I set it aside, but it didn't go to waste; it was delicious for lunch the next day

My friend who tries fish and chips almost anywhere, rated Peppercorns' version "best of the summer." The haddock was huge, the crispy batter light, flavorful, and not at all greasy. The fish was cooked perfectly, flaky and tender. The fries were hot and crunchy; the cole slaw stayed chilled in its own little crock. This meal was a real winner.

Less successful was Jamaican jerk shrimp ($12.99), described as jumbo shrimp served with fiery herbs and spices over linguine. The half-dozen shrimp were only medium size and half-heartedly seasoned. The sample I had was almost totally lacking the kick of good jerk seasoning.

The fourth member of our group was satisfied with a simple dish, chicken piccata ($10.99), two generous slices of boneless chicken breast sautéed in lemon butter and topped with capers and sliced mushrooms. Accompanying the chicken were mashed red potatoes and a medley of summer squash, zucchini, broccoli, and cauliflower.

We pondered dessert. At lunch, I enjoyed the restaurant's Toll House cookie pie ($3.99), a throwback to childhood with its cookie-dough-tasting pie filling, served warm with chocolate syrup and topped with whipped cream. Peppercorns features a pudding of the day ($2.99), which on this visit was tapioca, something you either love or hate. Since none of us loves it, it wasn't hard to avoid; we were filled without dessert. The bill for all four of us was $82.90 before tip.