Fish king

There's loads of good seafood at the Lake Ripple Restaurant

by Jim Johnson

75 Worcester Street, North Grafton
839-5184
Sun. noon-8 p.m.
Mon.-Tues. 11 a.m.-8 p.m.
Wed.-Thurs. 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
Major credit cards
Full bar
Not handicap accessible

The sea's the theme at Lake Ripple Restaurant, in the dinner selections and in the decor. According to the menu, you can enjoy "dining at the water's edge" -- no matter that the water is Lake Ripple in land-locked Grafton. The seafood's fine, fresh, and plentiful, and if you time it right, you can enjoy the sun setting over the water.

It's obvious that the the regulars who dominate the place come for consistently good home-style cooking, a comfortable setting, friendly service, and prices that won't empty the wallet.

Newcomers are made to feel at home, too. And, with the restaurant's many direct-mail discount offers and advertised specials, there are newcomers aplenty.

A friend and I arrived mid-evening as a somewhat senior crowd seemed to be moving out and families and couples settling in. In the entry-way, fliers advertising specials hung from clothespins. A bar was located to the right. To the left, the dining space -- split into four areas -- overlooked the lake. The walls were knotty-pine. Ceiling fans cast a welcome breeze.

Menus arrived promptly, and we viewed our appetizer options in the menu's "Set Sail" section. Although much looked like standard pub fare, the menu stressed that choices like chicken fingers and onion rings were "homemade." (The menu also notes that the restaurant is "chef owned.")

Not surprisingly, seafood dominated the appetizer list with choices like steamers, fried clams, fried smelts, and shrimp cocktail. Some choices seemed more like entrees, like the half-rack of smoked barbecue ribs.

I hadn't had steamers in ages and was delighted to receive a large bowl (for $5.95) brimming with good-sized clams. They were sand-free and sweet, served with the standard broth and butter on a glass plate shaped like a fish.

Not a fan of "slimy things with icky necks" (not her words but obvious in her expression), my friend opted for boneless Buffalo chicken fingers ($5.95), apparently as homemade as the non-Buffalo version. Obviously hand-cut, these bite-sized pieces of tender breast meat were infused with just the right amount of fire (unlike many versions that have the sauce slathered on as an afterthought).

The truly budget-conscious will keep to the "Light Fare" part of the menu -- a variety of sandwiches, subs, and triple-deckers all under $5.50 and served with french fries and pickles. A price notch higher is "Pasta Fare," where the most expensive item is veal parmigiana with pasta ($10.95). Baked lasagna ("homemade," of course), linguine, rigatoni, and ravioli in various guises and combinations made up the balance of the section.

I was tempted by some of the "Land Fare" choices like prime rib ($14.95), broiled sirloin ($12.95), or even a rack of those ribs ($12.95). Some of the house specialties were tempting, too, like shrimp Alfredo ($12.95) served over fettuccini, chicken scampi ($9.95) sauteed in garlic butter, and chicken Virginia ($11.95), breaded chicken breast fried and topped with smoked Virginia ham, bacon, and brown gravy. But, if self-control hadn't prevailed, my tablemate (also my good friend and personal trainer) would have, and I kept to the healthier choices.

That wasn't hard. Despite the myriad fried fish choices, I had several options, like Cajun or lemon-pepper haddock ($9.95) and broiled scallops ($10.95). Ultimately, I went with the broiled seafood platter ($17.95), which offered a choice of plain, butter, or lemon butter. My friend chose the baked stuffed haddock ($10.95).

I asked for very light butter, and that's what I got, with my entree none-the-drier for it. Each morsel was moist, thanks to carefully timed cooking and enough broth to moisten but not drown the shrimp, scallops, and haddock. The entree's success, in part, resulted from the separate cooking of the featured ingredients, which came in individual dishes. Too often, despite the varied cooking times required, they're placed in a single dish to the detriment of at least one component. Here, all three were excellent and almost bountiful enough to qualify as three separate main courses.

The baked stuffed haddock was exquisite, the fish cooked to perfect flaky tenderness, the cracker-crumb topping moist, delicately seasoned, and lightly buttered.

We rationalized the need for more fruit in our diet and split an order of strawberry shortcake ($3.50) with sinfully buttery biscuits and a virtual pillow of whipped cream.

We spent about $20 each. You can pay far less, especially if you take advantage of daily specials like roast lamb on Sundays for $8.95, baked stuffed scrod on Tuesdays for $7.95, or all-you-can-eat roast beef on Wednesdays for $6.50.

If I were scoring restaurants, I'd knock off a few points for soft drinks served in paper cups and for a server who, unlike the others, seemed somewhat distracted and aloof. But neither detracted from a fine and friendly dining experience.