We're back! And this time with an actual dinner review (none of that silly lunch stuff here now!). Enjoy!
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After a visit to Olean for a friend’s afternoon wedding reception, Joe and I decided to take a short excursion to
Ellicottville Brewing Company. This took us on a nice scenic drive of about 28 miles to the small ski resort town of Ellicottville, NY. Joe and I are both SUNY Fredonia alumni; during our last year or so there, a second Ellicottville Brewing Company (or EBC) opened up in the village. On any stop through Fredonia (or to it, back when we still had friends going there), EBC is a welcome sight and a great break on any road trip. On Saturday, we visited the original location for the first time, and we definitely found it a very enjoyable experience.
The first thing we noticed upon entering was that this EBC location is much more spacious than the Fredonia one. The interior has the look of an old ski lodge—almost everything is wooden and rustic, with detailed moldings, old black and white photographs of skiers from the 1950s or ’60s, and chairs actually made from rough-hewn branches. We waited at the door for about a minute (not very long on a Saturday night), and then the hostess greeted us and actually apologized for keeping us waiting. I was kind of surprised—on a busy Saturday night, I expect to wait, but I guess things are a bit different in Ellicottville. She seated us right afterward, and within a couple more minutes we had our drink order placed for a pitcher of Blueberry Wheat beer.
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| With apologies to the random people at the bar... |
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| He looks like he has a halo and like he's in deep thought. |
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| Still somewhat chipper (and hungry) after driving to Olean and then to Ellicottville! |
If you’re going to a place where the word “Brewing” (or some variation) is in the name, you should expect good beer. EBC doesn’t disappoint! The Blueberry Wheat is my favorite, but they also have an Oatmeal Stout, “Nut Brown,” Pale Ale, and something Joe sampled later on called “Pantius Droppus” (he liked it, but it was too malty for me). Like the Rohrbach Brewing Company in Rochester, you would have to be crazy to order a Budweiser or Coors in a place like this. In our pitcher of Blueberry Wheat, they actually threw in some blueberries. I know this violates the
Man Law of “no fruit in beer,” but I thought it was a nice touch. (Joe drank it; he’s the manliest man I know!)
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| Our beer! |
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| The beer taps |
Onto the actual meal: for a starter (sorry, appetizer—we’ve been watching too much Gordon Ramsay), Joe and I ordered mushroom bruschetta. It sounded too interesting not to try! The menus at each EBC location differ, and at “EBC East” in Ellicottville, they offer four different kinds of bruschetta: traditional, mushroom, steak, and pepper with goat cheese. The mushroom bruschetta was such a great start that it was almost too great; the rest of the meal had a lot to live up to. This dish consisted of four slices of Italian bread topped with a piece of ricotta cheese, arugula, and the cooked, marinated mushrooms. When the waiter first set the plate on our table, I detected the earthy scent of the mushrooms. The taste, although it started out a bit salty, finished nicely with no bad aftertaste, and we could easily pick up the traces of rosemary and the dish’s white truffle oil (fancy!). Our only (very minor) complaint was that the ricotta could have been a bit warmer—it tasted cold in comparison to the mushrooms and bread. That’s an easy thing to ignore, however, and the mushroom bruschetta serves as a great twist on a classic starter dish! (As an added bonus, check out the exquisite presentation—most of the meal came with square or rectangular dishes such as this one.)
For dinner, Joe ordered the Summer Salmon, which consisted of a grilled salmon topped with a cucumber and tomato tapenade with rice and asparagus on the side. After the excellent mushroom bruschetta, this dish really had to impress, and sadly Joe did not think that it did. He said for the most part that the meal was just bland. Everything was cooked fine—although the salmon was grilled too long and looked a little black around the edges—but mostly everything lacked seasoning. The saffron rice didn’t have a saffron taste, and I saw Joe add salt and pepper to it at least a couple of times. He had the same complaint about the asparagus—cooked well, but no real flavor. The presentation also lacked the same refined look as the bruschetta, since it was served on a bizarre beer bottle plate—cute, but not really fitting for this meal. The one thing that saved the entire meal from disaster was its side: a crisp Caesar salad with romaine, a house-made dressing, and “well-fired croutons,” according to Joe. Overall, however, Joe said that this ambitious meal was a letdown.
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| Joe's dinner with beer bottle plate! |
My meal was probably a bit less fancy, but mine was far from being a letdown. I ordered the falafel burger, which I thought was another unique twist on a classic. If you’ve never had falafel, I’ll explain it: it’s a Mediterranean food made from fried crushed chickpeas (same stuff used in hummus!), and it’s usually flavored with curry and other spices. It typically comes in a pita and is topped with tzatziki (a cold yogurt and cucumber sauce). Falafel usually consists of several smaller pieces of fried chickpea—EBC’s falafel burger was essentially one big falafel in a bun. I actually didn’t eat the bun because it was too big and instead just ate the falafel with my fork. I think it would have worked better in a pita. I know EBC was probably trying to get away from that traditional side of the dish, but it’s tradition for a reason: the bun is too big for the falafel burger. Unlike Joe’s meal, the falafel packed a lot of seasoning. In some places I actually found the curry too overpowering, but for the most part it had just the right amount of flavoring. I ordered a salad for my side dish, which I usually do because I hate french fries, and I loved its presentation in a neat little square bowl. The salad itself had a mix of romaine, arugula, and herbs, and the shaved parmesan and lemon balsamic dressing on it complemented the flavors nicely. My meal turned out perfect, except for the burger bun. This leads me to believe that the menu might be hit or miss; some of their dishes are quite ambitious, and sometimes you can only offer so much innovation on tradition.
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| Great presentation... except for the plastic cup of dressing? |
On the night we dined at EBC, a jazz band, the Paul de Ritter Quintet, provided some entertainment. They even went around taking requests. After our meal ended, we sat at the bar with an old acquaintance from Fredonia and her boyfriend, since they also attended the reception. There we just talked, listened to the music, and drank a little bit more of EBC’s great custom brews. This must have been a festival weekend in Ellicottville, for there were bands in some of the other bars (and one out on the street). Maybe not every aspect of the meal was perfect, but I think we couldn’t have asked for a better night.
Our overall review is four out of five stars. The beer, the bruschetta, and the atmosphere definitely make Ellicottville Brewing Company a worthy excursion.
Rating: 4/5 stars
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