|
|
|
One of the latest additions to the restaurant row that is Shore Road, Katie’s Cafe is perfectly situated en route to or from Perkins Cove, and features both an elegant bar space and a stylish yet rustic dining area. Putting a fresh spin on some standard New England ingredients, Katie’s injects a bit of flair into the dining scene with an assortment of delectable food match-ups and some killer cocktails.
A good-sized bar and lounge area affords an ideal place for a pre-dinner cocktail or two. Backed with stark white bead-board and fitted out with a couple of flat-screen televisions, the long room is light, crisp, and clean, shaded by trees in the afternoon sunlight along its idyllic location. Setting and atmosphere aside, the true test of a restaurant bar is not in the surroundings, but in the make-up of the drinks. In this case the martini was poured to perfection, bone-dry but just a little dirty, exactly as requested, and topped off with a generous row of olives. If you don’t know what you want, or are simply looking to explore, there is a substantial cocktail menu as well as a number of wines.
The drinks are just the beginning, and their masterful execution sets the perfect tone for a meal of expertly-rendered dishes. Katie’s bills itself as specializing in “eclectic New England cuisine”, and the menu is a quirky treat, bringing a few new twists to old favorites and melding some traditional dishes with a subtle, sophisticated edge.
It starts teasingly with their appetizers. A lump crab cake comes with sweet & sour braised vegetables and a three-mustard remoulade sauce, while spring rolls are given an orange and chicken treatment with an added spark of chili sauce. The starters lead into a selection of small and large plates, but both offerings are substantial enough for a meal, and allow for some flexibility in these economically worrisome times.
Relying on customary New England components - duck, lobster, scallops, cod - Katie’s keeps things simple but does them so well they seem like new. That is certainly part of the genius to their mac and cheese.
There is a reason that I’ll order anything to do with lobster when in Maine: this is simply the best place on earth for such seafood, and when paired with an American classic, it’s a win-win situation. Katie’s Lobster Mac-and-Cheese is made with Conchigliette pasta, white truffle oil, and a three-cheese sauce, served in a deep dish and filled with lobster meat. Over-the-top? Yes. Rich? Absolutely. Too much? Never.
At a time when comfort food is all the rage, other restaurants have attempted this dish, but never has it been done this well. Usually one has to pick and choose when they’re going to indulge in a bite that has lobster in it, so sparsely is it dispersed among the pasta and the cheese. Here, there is literally lobster in each and every forkful – succulent, full-bodied morsels of the Maine crustacean run throughout the dish, battling deliciously with the richness of the cheese, and ultimately reconciled by the sumptuous addition of the white truffle oil.
Katie’s soars to the same palate-impressing heights with their other dishes, mostly thanks to some clever left-of-center combinations. The Filet mignon comes with pancetta-and-basil-wrapped shrimp, the meat cooked to a juicy medium-rare and accompanied by some artfully-arranged steak fries and seasonal vegetables. Pan-seared diver scallops are joined by Andouille sausage and red Himalayan rice, while a cumin-encrusted duck breast is served with radicchio-endive marmallada on sweet potato crisps and an orange honey bur blanc sauce (a signature dish of Chef Gary).
Amidst the invigorating offerings, the staff keeps things moving along at a decent pace. Manager David Carme manages to make the hustling and bustling required in a busy restaurant seem effortless and easy, yet he cannot mask the efficiency and elegance that the restaurant currently commands. It is said that the early years of a restaurant are always the toughest, but under Carme’s watch it’s off to a grand start. Hospitality, location, and a solid collection of entrees (in both taste and presentation), are the winning trio of any decent restaurant, and Katie’s looks to become another must-eat destination of Shore Road.
