Post Road Tavern

Marlborough's Radisson Inn takes a new look at (toll) road food

by Margaret LeRoux

Post Road Tavern
at the Radisson Inn
75 Felton Street, Marlborough
480-0015
Lunch Mon.-Sat. 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.
Brunch Sunday 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Dinner Mon.-Fri. 5:30-10 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 5:30-11 p.m.
Major credit cards
Full bar
Handicap accessible

The menu at the Radisson Inn Marlborough's Post Road Tavern notes the hotel's intent to re-create the "warmth and hospitality of old Boston's Post Road taverns." We can vouch for the hospitality. When two of us arrived well past six on a weeknight, we were offered our choice of several tables by a gracious hostess. The room was frigid and I remarked how chilly it was as we were seated. "I thought I was the only one who was too cold," our hostess replied. Within moments, the whirring of the air conditioner had quieted to a low hum, and we dined in comfort, grateful for the staff's concern.

The restaurant's decor gives a vague impression of the colonial era: a low ceiling, light fixtures that look like street lamps, and antique utensils on a wall display. The layout offers several corner spots for privacy, good for the single diner/business traveler who doesn't want to feel conspicuous. A woman dining alone was engrossed in a novel; a few other hotel guests lingered over coffee. The Radisson chain is well-known in the Midwest for making its guests feel welcome; attention to hospitable details are welcome here, too.

The menu is full of Post Road lore and history of Marlborough industry: very interesting reading. For example, did you know the origin of the milestones that can be found in every town along the Boston Post Road? They were part of that frugal Ben Franklin's scheme to raise revenue. Franklin was the deputy postmaster for the colonies and originated a fee for every mile the mail was carried; the milestones marked the mileage and helped in calculating the fee.

We read more historic tidbits as we took in the menu, which, though tending to be somewhat unimaginative, offered diners a decent selection of fish, beef, and chicken fare. We bypassed the appetizers, opting instead to share a Caesar salad ($7.95). The tavern also offers onion soup ($3.95), chowder served in a sour-dough bread bowl ($5.95), and a mandarin orange salad with toasted almonds ($7.95).

The wine list has some appealing selections, and I noticed a few labels not often served by area restaurants. Prices are reasonable, from $14 for a Fortane de France cabernet to $39 for a Chalk Hill Cabernet, and $42 for a Cakebread Chardonnay. There are also several options by the glass. We both chose red wine, a Rodney Strong Merlot and a Saint Francis Cabernet, both $5.75.

Back to our salad; we were served an over-sized bowl containing chunks of romaine and croutons, with slices of cucumber and a couple of cherry tomatoes on the bowl's edges. There was a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese on top but no fresh grated pepper was offered. Nor could we detect any hint of either garlic or anchovies, two important ingredients in a Caesar salad. As she served us, our waitress noted that rolls would be out of the oven shortly. When they came in a basket snugly tucked in a napkin, we were disappointed. These were frozen rolls re-heated, nothing homemade or special about them.

Main courses at the Post Road Tavern offer diners, who may well be visitors to New England, a sampling of the area's seafood, including baked scrod ($12.95), baked sea scallops ($14.95), Atlantic salmon ($15.95), littleneck clams and shrimp scampi over pasta ($15.95). There are a couple of chicken dishes, including a temptingly described variation of coq au vin: boneless breast of chicken with pearl onions and mushrooms in a Beaujolais demi-glace ($12.95), and pasta primavera ($11.95). Beef choices include sirloin steak ($17.95), and a grilled rib eye steak ($15.95). My companion chose one of the evening's specials, steak Delmonico served with a rosemary spiked au jus ($15.95). Honey roasted duckling with mandarin orange and roasted macadamia nuts ($16.95) was my choice.

The duck meat, a generous portion of breast and leg, was firm and almost well-done but flavorful. This duck was certainly worth the extra effort to extricate it from the bones. The skin, sweet with honey, was crispy and not at all greasy. However, the accompaniments, canned mandarin orange sections and two stale macadamia nuts, detracted from rather than added to this dish. I had chosen wild rice pilaf, but the rice was predominantly white, with only a few grains of the sweet, nutty wild rice that is so delicious with duck.

My companion's steak was tender and flavorful. The roasted potatoes, a special, were very good, in fact one of the highlights of the meal. Roasted with bits of bacon, they were crunchy and delicious.

For dessert we shared a slice of lemon cake topped with raspberry puree, a bit dry for my taste, but the decaf coffee was freshly brewed and full bodied. The bill including tax but not tip was $61.75.