Why: Over the years, the Grant House has housed a few different food and drink establishments, each with its own personality. The past two years, it has been home to the Eatery at the Grant House, under the direction of Executive Chef Capers Ogletree. Ogletree’s focus is on a locally sourced menu. If you have not visited the restaurant for a while, it is possible the hours have been extended since your last visit.
Atmosphere: The historic house, built in 1849, continues to gain charm with the passage of time. The welcoming front walkway and porch beckon diners into a more gracious era. Diners may opt to sit in the cozy bar and enjoy a few snacks with their drinks, or enjoy full menu options in the formal dining room or the enclosed atrium-style room, where seating options accommodate a few to several guests. Tall ceilings lend a stately presence to the house and period lighting fixtures bring a warm glow. Shutters on the windows eliminate the need for drapes, allowing simple elegance to take center stage.
What I tried: To start, my dining companions and I tried the cheese rolls with bacon butter, which are baked to order, and the polenta cake topped with foraged mushrooms and parsley sauce. I settled on the New York strip steak with house-made steak sauce, accompanied by a mix of new potatoes, leeks and peppers. My dining companions had the wild king salmon with roasted beets, turnips and sauce vert, and the spice-rubbed half chicken rapini, which sat atop butternut squash. For dessert, we tried the apple crisp topped with cinnamon ice cream and the pumpkin cake with house-made mascarpone and pumpkin seed brittle with candied rosemary.
Both the polenta and cheese rolls were outstanding. The foraged mushrooms atop the cake were delicious and served as a good conduit for the cake. The textures were also wonderful. The cheese rolls are stuffed with cheese, then baked and served in a cast iron skillet topped with a big dollop of bacon butter in the center, which is the perfect finishing touch. Our entrees were all equally impressive. The salmon was kept basic and the pairings gave it pizzazz. The chicken was tender and juicy and the butternut squash was seasoned to a rich flavorful finish and pureed for a base element. The steak was tender, though slightly overcooked on one end for medium, as I requested. The steak sauce was sweet with a hint of traditional steak sauce flavor. The potato accompaniment was delicious. All the portion sizes were good for dinner. The desserts were scrumptious — the best apple crisp I have had, and the candied rosemary and pumpkin seed brittle, a treat to remember.
