Captain's Quarters Riverside Grille: Reviewed May 26, 2007

New Chef Steers Captain's Quarters into luxury dining

By Marty Rosen
Special to The Courier-Journal

Billowing sails at twilight. The Belle of Louisville churning its way upstream, as cheery as a floating carnival. The businesslike surge of freight-laden barges. Bright red canoes skimming under soaring shorebirds.

For years, it was the Ohio River — not the food — that lured diners to Captain's Quarters Riverside Grille.

Captain's Quarters' lightly breaded calamari is dusted with bright red spices that lend heat and color. Try the chili sauce for dipping. By Arza Barnett, The Courier-Journal

It was a place where the most reliable option was a fried fish sandwich and a bottle of beer. To be sure, in recent seasons, the more upscale portions of the menu had grown more interesting, but execution was hit-and-miss.

Not this season. Earlier this spring, a new chef came aboard, and based on a couple of recent visits, Rick Adams (formerly of the L&N Wine Bar and Bistro) has raised the standard so much that diners will have a hard time tearing their attention away from the table.

Visual flourishes abound on the new menu. One night, a plate of flawless pan-seared tuna ($22, with a salad and accompaniments) was surrounded by whimsical squiggles in the shape of Chinese characters.

On that early visit, we encountered stale croutons in a Caesar salad ($4.50/$7.50), some side dishes that didn't work (noodles decked out with mangos) and what seemed like relics of an old menu.

But in recent weeks a newer menu has been deployed, and the fare has quickly advanced to a very high level. One night, pan-seared scallops ($19.50) looked like clouds at sunset, settled calmly amidst a glittering pool of crimson and gold pureed peppers.

Every element of the dish was framed in contrast. Crisp brown circles were etched into the creamy white flesh of the scallops; the pepper coulis was fringed in a deep, umber silhouette.

Although Captain's Quarters offers indoor dining (behind soaring glass, under lofty ceilings) and an expansive, noisy bar area, I can't resist the outdoor patio, a terraced hill where every seat offers a view of the river and Harrods Creek.

The expansive nature of the space means that servers trot up and down like mountain goats — and the carry from kitchen to diner can be long.

But on our visits, food seemed to fly quickly to the table. One night, my pal Pat ordered De Mer Fettucini ($18). It arrived piping hot, its lithe lemon alfredo sauce — light, tart, and creamy — still beautifully intact. A few plump, pink, meaty mussels garnished the plate, but the pasta itself was packed with tender shrimp, chunks of crab and baby scallops that lurked like secrets in a treasure chest.

The menu still includes casual fare: fried cod sandwich ($10), burger ($8), pizzas ($9-$10), hot brown ($12) and the like, but with cooking of this caliber, options such as steamed Maine lobster ($24 a pound), Kentucky bison ribeye ($25) and chipotle shrimp and grits ($19) have an even greater pull.

There are thoughtful signs everywhere.

Instead of the old, baroque Greek salad, brimming with the usual clichés, the new version ($9) is reduced to classic simplicity — just immaculate lettuce; creamy, crumbled feta; a few rounds of Roma tomatoes; and light, lemony vinaigrette.

Ringlets of lightly breaded calamari ($9) are dusted with bright red spices that lend heat and color; and though the marinara served alongside is as dull as tomato paste, a sweet-hot chili sauce had us dipping happily away.

And there could be no better way to while away a mellow evening than peeling steamed shrimp ($9.95 for a half pound; $15.95 for a full pound) and sipping a bottle of beer or a glass of wine.

Freelance restaurant critic Marty Rosen's review appears on Saturdays. You can e-mail him at cjdining@gmail.com.

Captain's Quarters Riverside Grille

5700 Captain's Quarters Road, Harrods Creek, KY www.cqriverside.com

502-228-1651

Rating: 3.5 stars