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New Castle The Arsenal on the
Green Built by the federal government as an arsenal in anticipation of the War of 1812, this handsome, cupola-topped building facing the green has served a variety of purposes, among them a school. In 1980 it was restored into a restaurant called the Newcastle Inn, nicely authentic and catering to bus tours and private parties. The restaurant was abruptly closed in 1994 shortly after a fire at the David Phinney Inn and restaurant, leaving historic New Castle without its two key dining spots. Along came local caterer Mimi Pawlowicz, who was born and raised in New Castle and took her culinary studies at Johnson & Wales University. She reopened the restaurant in 1995 and revived its original name, saying the inn name was misleading. Mimi inherited an elegant building with two large, high-ceilinged dining rooms on either side of the entry hall and more rooms for private parties upstairs. She converted the former rose dining room into the casual Cannon Tavern for lunch and dinner and added seating for dining in the bar. The more formal dining room in blue and white was reserved for elegant dining at night. Traditional American fare is featured. The dinner menu includes seafood, steaks and chops, from chicken topped with lump crabmeat to classic surf and turf. Shrimp with sundried tomatoes in puff pastry, brandied chicken, veal oscar and New York strip steak au poivre or bordelaise are among the possibilities. Lighter, less expensive items are offered in the tavern. (302) 328-1290. Entrées, $14,50 to $27. Lunch, Tuesday-Saturday 11 to 2. Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday 5 to 9, Sunday 1 to 8. Tavern menu, 11 to 10 or 11. Jessop’s
Tavern The former Green Frog tavern, a dark pub with mediocre food, gave way in 1996 to this cheerful pub and Colonial-style dining room. It’s named for Abraham Jessop, a cooper who built the original structure in 1724. Top-to-bottom renovations added a fireplace, a modern kitchen, wood plank floor and nautical oil paintings. The locals were quickly impressed with the large portions of substantial American food at prices out of the past. Proprietors Tika and Dick Day raise pub grub above the usual genre in classics like shepherd’s pie and fish and chips, as well as hefty sandwiches and such appetizers as English flat bread and steamed crayfish. The chef shines at dinner, producing a variety from stuffed river trout and pepper-crusted fillet of salmon to chicken fricassee, turkey cutlets, porterhouse steak and prime rib with caramelized onions and brandy-glazed mushrooms. Swedish apple pie with vanilla custard sauce, bread pudding, fruit cobbler and angel food cake topped with seasonal fruit and whipped cream are among the desserts. (302) 322-6111. Entrées, $6.95 to $16.95. Lunch, Monday-Saturday 11 to 3. Dinner, Monday-Saturday 5 to 10. Cellar Gourmet When a chiropractor purchased the 1802 Janvier House in the early 1980s, he was determined to turn the basement into a badly needed healthful and informal family restaurant. With a dirt floor and low ceiling, the project was quite a challenge and the front wall fell in. Now shored up with a new wall, the interesting room has local scenes etched into tables and benches built into the rocks. We looked around and then settled down for breakfast at the counter between one of the old guard, who filled us in on the background of old New Castle, and a gadabout who kept interrupting to talk about places down the bay. One of us naturally had to try the "famous original tastiest-healthiest waffle in the world." It turned out to be overrated – a hazard of superlatives. Also merely adequate was the sunshine cereal, a hearty combination of oatmeal, almonds, sesame seeds and much more, served with whole milk rather than skim, for shame. Under new ownership, the lunch menu offers salads, sandwiches, light bites and vegetarian items. Desserts range from a variety of ice creams to warm caramel-apple pie, and at one visit included a sticky bun à la mode. (302) 323-0999. Open Tuesday-Sunday, 9 to 4. Material excerpted from Inn Spots & Special Places / Mid-Atlantic, by Nancy and Richard Woodworth. Copyright 2003. Wood Pond Press E-mail feedback to: Home
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