Good to go

Cape Elizabeth’s favorite Table doesn’t disappoint

By Kathy Gunst

HONESTLY: the newly reopened Good Table lives up to its name.

“There you go, honey,” the waitress says as she hands me a menu. Nothing unusual about that, right? Waitresses have been calling customers “honey” for as long as they have been pouring coffee and serving donuts. But this waitress has a tattoo on her upper arm, and is long and lean and looks a bit like rocker Sheryl Crow. Within a minute of taking a seat at The Good Table in Cape Elizabeth, I can tell there is a lot that’s standard about this place, and a whole lot that’s not. This is the all-new Good Table. When an electrical fire burned the place to the ground (all except for the screened porch out back) Cape Elizabeth suffered a real loss. A neighborhood favorite was gone. Rebuilt and reopened in late March, The Good Table still has that clean scent of new construction; the place reeks of newness. The main dining room is fresh, clean, and sunny, but a bit generic for my taste. The ladies room, chock-a-block full of old books, antique hats, flowers, and baskets, has way more personality than the dining room. One suspects the dining room’s character will develop with time.

It’s early afternoon, a bit late for lunch, and I’m there with the family. Every time the waitress calls me “honey” or “darling” my youngest daughter gets a bad case of the giggles. But we all stop laughing when the chowder arrives. It’s a bit thin, but has a good briny, creamy broth, filled with tender potatoes and chunks of haddock. Simple, and straightforward — a portent of things to come. The soup of the day (“always from scratch”) is Spring Vegetable, a generic blur of tomatoes with bits of green. Not the least bit impressive, or spring-like.

The Hot Turkey Dinner is what you dream of getting in diners around the country, but rarely do. A generous mound of fresh roasted turkey slices (both white and dark meat) accompanied by flavorful stuffing, gravy that tastes like it’s never had contact with a can, and absolutely superb roasted potatoes — golden brown and crunchy on the exterior and tender and flaky inside. The cranberry sauce does come from a can, but as my husband says, “nothing wrong with canned cranberries.”

There are show tunes and smoky old jazz favorites coming out of the sound system. The waitress checks to see how our meal is. “Are we doing fine here, my darlings?” Major round of giggles from the girls.

My husband orders the fried clams. The contrast between the crisp and crunchy outside and the tender-soft interior is superb. The cole slaw is homemade — long, thin strips of cabbage drenched in a tangy, creamy dressing. My husband finds the limp french fries “a huge disappointment.” Daughter #1 orders the Spanakopita and pronounces it “fabulous.” Flaky layers of phyllo dough encase tender spinach and tangy feta cheese. It is served with a generous Greek salad, with black olives, more feta, and assorted vegetables. Daughter #2 goes for the Lobster Roll and it’s everything a good Maine lobster roll should be — fresh chunks of tender, fresh lobster meat mixed with nothing but mayonnaise.

Even though it is only lunchtime, the desserts displayed on a counter-top look too good to pass up. “Here we go sweeties,” our waitress practically sings as she hands over plates of carrot cake and Key Lime pie. We are not disappointed. The pie has a thicker-than-usual graham cracker crust, a tangy, custardy-lime filling, and a good piping of whipped cream on top. There’s something almost cheesecake-like about it. Forks fly. The carrot cake is extra moist, flecked with grated carrots and spices, and topped with a thick cream cheese icing.

While we waited for our food to arrive we checked out the screened porch in back and dreamt of warmer days. Overlooking the woods, it has a great, funky feeling with hanging lanterns, colorful paper lights, and a mural and assorted art work by local kids. We can imagine how good it must feel to spend a summer afternoon on that porch, eating lobster rolls and fried clams and washing it all down with a pitcher of The Good Table’s superb ice tea, brewed with fresh mint.

The Good Table’s motto is “Honest Food, Honest Prices.” Our meal (four cups of soup, four luncheon entrees, two desserts, and two ice teas) came to over $70 with tip. A little pricey for a casual lunch. The food was solid and consistent, without the usual fuss found in so many chic eateries these days. And while we’re being honest, though we enjoyed the meal thoroughly, none of us were ecstatic. But, hey, they didn’t say they were the best table.

Jill Strauss can be reached at straussj@adelphia.net.