AFTER a long run, Luna in Mount Kisco has closed, and in its place is the affable Woody’s on Main, which opened last January. Woody’s — the name brings to mind endearing icons: the woodpecker, the folk singer, the station wagon — is easygoing, but it also has a certain seriousness of purpose. The loose, silken crab cake; the delicious jumbled Cobb salad; the thick, pink pork chop roasted in a wood oven — these and other dishes made by John Vaughan, executive chef, and his brigade put it a cut above many restaurants parading New American fare.
On a busy Saturday night, however, the restaurant’s warehouse dimensions and bustling open kitchen can spell cacophony. I am not yet a member of AARP, but I had to ask the waiter to stand right next to me before repeating the evening’s specials. We had hoped that the kids-with-crayons hour might segue into something more like an adult night out (yes, there is a children’s menu), but the noise never really died down.
Diners who wish to have a conversation without raising their voices might want to book a table on a weeknight. I visited Woody’s twice in early September, on a Sunday during the Labor Day lull and on a Saturday after the back-to-school frenzy; service was personable and attentive when things were quiet, more clipped and evasive the second time around.
Woody’s look is spartan, in shades of khaki and deep red. Five-pointed stars of the sort seen on New England barns adorn the walls; massive iron chandeliers loom overhead. White table linens and waiters in crisp white shirts dress things up a bit.
Despite the cool décor, warmth came from other quarters. A yeasty baguette baked on site was swaddled in a cloth-lined basket; spread with pale butter, it made a nice first impression. The hot embers of the wood-fired oven put a smoky roasted finish on the Sunday night special “lobster bake” — a one-pound lobster with a supporting cast of shrimp, clams, mussels, corn and potatoes that came with a $40 price tag. Roasted chicken, the dish for which Luna was known, was honored with a moist, crisp-skinned rendition, skirted with corn, French beans, fingerling potatoes and a light garlic jus.
Standout starters included calamari tossed with sweet and spicy pickled peppers, jumbo-shrimp cocktail fired with horseradish, and mussels fragrant with lemon. At Woody’s, all the pedigrees are in place: Rhode Island squid, Prince Edward Island mussels, Montauk tuna, and American-bred Kobe beef. The seasonal menu stipulates that organic meats and produce are used “whenever possible,” something for diners to puzzle over. Prices, perhaps driven by prime ingredients, are relatively steep.
Salads caught my attention, too. The Caesar was bright and creamy; baby spinach was mixed with a trove of red pear, shallots, candied pecans and local fresh goat cheese; and that lovely chopped Cobb, enriched with hard-cooked egg, was a meal in itself.
Other starters didn’t pull their weight. The “artisanal” cheeses — blue, goat and triple cream — were not identified on the menu, and our waiter couldn’t come up with the names when asked. At the height of tomato season, there was no excuse for the pallid tomato rounds tucked between slices of mozzarella — an appetizer not worth the trip. A thick lobster, crab and corn chowder was too rich for an appetizer, although a guest with a big appetite found it to his liking.
As a farewell to summer, I ordered the wonderful lobster roll, a mayonnaisey affair with tender chunks of lobster and crunchy shoestring fries. Other saltwater pleasures included the entree-size crab cake, served with a stylish green-apple salad and rémoulade, and fashionable rare seared tuna with sesame crust and seaweed salad. The prize for best seasonal entree with a light touch went to orecchiette with yellow and red heirloom tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella and basil.
With the wood oven in play, I’d hoped for great pizzas. The fresh clam and ricotta pizza was overwhelmed by garlic. One made with prosciutto di Parma, Parmigiano-Reggiano, grilled onions, arugula and white balsamic vinegar was better.
The wine list was less ambitious than the menu. The first three wines we asked for weren’t in stock; our waiter blamed erratic holiday deliveries, but a week later yet another choice was unavailable. The clean-tasting 2005 Newton chardonnay and the reliable 2003 Monsanto Chianti ($52) sufficed.
Woody’s pastry chef, Elizabeth Lilley, gets it right with popular desserts, although the leathery browned marshmallow on the Key lime tart was a mistake. Her warm molten chocolate cake, split in half for special effect, was memorable, as were the toasted almond, peach and blueberry crisp and the summery mango soup with three sorbets. A single, gluttonous hot-fudge ice cream sundae served in a huge stemmed glass was totally fun, and big enough to meet the needs of three teenage boys.
Woody’s on Main
251 East Main Street
Mount Kisco
(914) 242-5151
VERY GOOD
THE SPACE The lofty dining room, which seats 105, makes for great drama and poor acoustics. Sidewalk dining in fair weather. Wheelchair access via ramp, through front door.
THE CROWD Families come early, adults linger later. Dress is neat casual.
THE BAR The ornate wooden bar opens to a suave, sequestered lounge area. A special bar menu is in the works. The corkage fee is $20.
THE BILL At dinner, appetizers and salads, $9 to $14; pizzas, $16 to $19; entrees, $15 to $39; desserts, $6 to $12. Major credit cards accepted.
WHAT WE LIKE Calamari with pickled peppers, mussels with lemon confit, shrimp cocktail; Caesar salad, baby spinach salad, Cobb salad; roasted chicken, jumbo crab cake with green-apple salad, pork chop with barbecue glaze, lobster roll with shoestring potatoes, orecchiette with tomatoes and mozzarella, sesame-crusted tuna; warm chocolate cake, peach and blueberry crisp, mango soup with sorbets.
IF YOU GO Dinner: Monday to Thursday, 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.; Friday and Sunday, 5 to 9:30 p.m.; Saturday, 5 to 10:30 p.m. Lunch: Tuesday to Friday, noon to 3 p.m. Reservations recommended on weekends. Ample parking in adjacent lot.
Reviewed Sept. 23, 2007
