Shelter Harbor Inn

New twists on old treasures

by Johnette Rodriguez

10 Wagner Rd., Westerly, (401) 322-8883
Open daily, 7:30-10:30 a.m.,11:30 a.m.-3 p.m., 5-10 p.m.
Major credit cards
Portable ramp available for front steps

There are only a few places in Rhode Island where Yankee tradition meets nouvelle cuisine with as great an outcome as at Shelter Harbor Inn. Step into the foyer of this 1810 Colonial farmhouse, with its wide floorboards, low ceilings, and flowered wallpaper, and you feel history oozing through the cracks. The main dining area, with crackling logs in the fireplace (not imitation ones), dark beams overhead, and thick pillars planted in the middle of the room, keeps you in the 19th Century.

And so do many of the menu items - cider-braised pot roast, jonnycakes, finnan haddie, and chicken potpie. Nestled among them, however, are the results of more recent influences, such as pasta and risotto, eggplant caponata, and Caesar salad and hazelnut-encrusted chicken. Our party of seven ate our way through Shelter Harbor's menu like a band of samurai gourmands, taking on one culinary adventure after the other.

The six-year-old in our wild bunch pronounced the child's steak portion, with asparagus and French fries, "very good." His brother liked his lobster salad sandwich ("no bread, please"), and the two of them were delighted by a large slice of yellow tomato -- "Did you ever see such a thing?" The three-year-old chomped on chicken fingers and fries, and the adults pondered their own menu choices.

Bill zeroed in on two long-time favorites, the smoked scallops over capellini ($9.95), as an appetizer to split four ways (it's listed as an entree under the "tavern menu"), and the French onion soup ($4.25). The latter had sufficient melted Jarlsberg to compete with the volume of soup, and the former enough smoked scallops for each of us to savor, along with its thyme-leek cream sauce. The cranberry vinaigrette on our house salads ($3.95 each), and the sweet lemon bread in the breadbasket (along with Italian), were also pre-entree hits at the table.

One friend ordered pan-seared scallops with lobster risotto ($19.95), another the eggplant caponata over pasta ($13.95). Bill returned to the smoked motif with finnan haddie ($14.95); and, after much indecision over horseradish-crusted scrod, sauteed flounder and cedar-grilled salmon ($18.95), I settled on the latter. It was exactly right -- flaky and moist, surrounded by a sweet-and-salty balsamic glaze, and accompanied by a pesto risotto and steamed spinach.

Bill's finnan haddie tickled his taste buds. The smoked haddock had been poached in milk and then served en casserole, surrounded by mashed potatoes. The scallops were nicely done; the eggplant vinegar-tart with a light tomato sauce on the pasta. Discussion ranged about the risotto, and I came around to agreeing that it was slightly over-cooked, though I appreciated the crunch still evident in my portion.

Would you think we could possibly consider dessert, given the groaning table we'd just survived and the patience of three small boys? We did. Two of the boys split a giant portion of the raspberriest sorbet I've ever tasted; another stuck with vanilla ice cream. Our friend tried the "seasonal fruit crisp" ($4.25) which included sliced Granny Smiths, served warm with both whipped cream and ice cream, that evening. After tearing myself away from the Indian pudding and the brandied gingerbread (both always winners at Shelter Harbor), I picked the lemon chiffon cake filled with lemon curd and topped with lemon mousse ($4.95) Its supreme lemon-ness was set off by a Chambord blackberry sauce and the mousse was scrumptious.

As if this gustatory excess weren't enough, I came back to Shelter Harbor the next morning to join these New York friends for breakfast. They first discovered this B&B as lovebirds at Brown, and they keep coming back for the full (and delicious) breakfasts for inn guests. Along with homemade granola, cranberry oatmeal, and eggs any style with choice of meats, the a.m. menu ($4.25-$6.95 to non-guests) offers eggs Benedict; a quiche of the day; banana walnut French toast; apple cinnamon pancakes; and homemade corned beef hash. Both the poached and the easy-over eggs were expertly done, as were the crispy home fries. The New Yorkers exclaimed over the hash, the Hollandaise and the red pepper ketchup. We all enjoyed the bright and airy solarium where breakfast is served.

Despite the demands of small children and indecisive adults, the Shelter Harbor staff was unflappable. We couldn't have felt more welcome (that country inn hospitality), or more pleased with our food (new twists on treasured recipes). Now we just have to come back in the summer and check out that professional croquet court.