Lindy's Diner - 22

Date: 10/30

Restaurant: Lindy's Diner       
Address: 19 Gilbo Ave.   
City: Keene   

Web site: www.lindysdiner.com    

Breakfast Hours: All day       


Potatoes *
Kind: Home Fries
Same old story. Undercooked and no crisp.
      
   
Toast ****
Kind: Multigrain and Cinnamon Raisin   
Homemade? Yes
       

Bacon ****
Sven had ordered bacon, but it didn't arrive with his meal (see SVEN'S TAKE). After I pointed out to our server that his meal was not what he ordered, she offered to bring some bacon. Sven said no thanks, what he had was fine. A few minutes later she brought a plate over saying she felt guilty for placing the wrong order and wanted us to have it. I have to say, it was pretty good bacon and I, personally, am glad she brought it.
    


Muffin **
Kind: Blueberry   
Homemade? Yes
Artificial tasting and dry. It looked to have been baked in a corn bread pan, which gave it an odd shape, which I didn't have a problem with, but Sven did. I think that by this point Sven had a problem with everything, which I can't really blame him for. (see SVEN'S TAKE)
  
   
SERVER RECOMMENDATION
She was so unpleasant (see SVEN'S TAKE) that I think we were both scared to ask if she had any recommendations.

What is that under those eggs? Bacon? Do you see any bacon?

      
   
SVEN'S BREAKFAST ** Ordered 2 Eggs Over Easy, Bacon, Multigrain Toast and Baked Beans.
Got 2 eggs OE on top of hash, small amount of home fries, raisin toast, baked beans and no bacon. He rated the food as follows: Potatoes * Beans ** Eggs *** It wasn't a good morning at Lindy's.

OLGA'S BREAKFAST *** Broccoli and Cheddar Omelet with onions, home fries and multigrain toast.
Not much to say. Frozen broccoli, and not much of it. Lots of onions and plenty of cheese. It was average. Potatoes...blech, but that's par for the course.

SERVICE
(See Sven's Take)        
    
   

DECOR ****
(See Sven's Take)   
    
   
CLEANLINESS  ***   
    
   
NOTES
Menu said best coffee in town. Can't agree with that since Prime Roast is right around the corner, but for diner coffee it was actually pretty good.

SVEN'S TAKE
Worst. Service. Ever. Several folks had asked us over the past half-year whether or not we had eaten at Lindy's Diner in Keene. Truth is, we both had eaten there prior to the start of our NH Breakfast Blog; but neither of us really had much good to say about it. But it IS a diner -- complete with a straight-from-the-fifties art deco roof and retro table-mount jukeboxes in every booth -- so off we went to give it another try.

We went in feeling happy, after perusing the well-kept curbside garden and taking note of the cool metal sculptures made by Alstead's Bob Taylor. For those of you who don't know his work, Sven and Olga highly recommend a drive through the hills of Alstead, where you can see a great number of his life-size whimsical animals tucked into various dooryards and roadsides. Seeing one of his easily identifiable cranes standing in the garden at Lindy's, with the tendrils of a vine climbing up it's slender rusted body, was a great way to start the morning.

Unfortunately, that is where it ended. When we entered the diner, we were not greeted by anyone, and had to eventually show ourselves to a table. After a long wait, the waitress came over and literally yelled at me as I tried to lift the sugar container to make her table-washing easier. She came back a minute later and threw two menus on the table -- impressive aim, I might add, since she was standing about 4 feet away when she tossed them. When she came back to take our order, she yelled at me again for asking if the whole wheat toast was homemade. No kidding. Yelled at me. Apparently it is a known fact that the raisin and multigrain toast ARE homemade, and the wheat and white toast aren't.

Incidentally, I get it that waitresses in diners can sometimes be a little rude. That's part of the schtick, and some waitresses can get away with it because it is all in fun. That wasn't the case here, though. This waitress just sucked.

After that, it wasn't really that surprising that she brought out the wrong food -- wrong toast, no bacon, big pile of hash that we had never ordered. In fairness, she tried to make up for it by sweetening up a little, but by that point the event was past saving. The food was adequate, but definitely not worth the hassle.

End analysis? Zero stars. Not planning to go back.

Country Kitchen - 21

Date: 10/23

Restaurant: Country Kitchen   
Address: 339 Sunapee St.
City: Newport
Phone: 863-7881
        
   
Potatoes ***
Kind: Deep fried home fries. No matter how good they are, we can't give deep fried breakfast potatoes anything higher than a 3. It just isn't right. Breakfast potatoes shouldn't be dunked in oil, they should be grilled, right next to your eggs and bacon, until they are cooked through and the edges are crisp. These were not that, they were fried, but for fried, they were pretty good. Seemed to be fresh cut with some skin still on and I got a taste of dirt with one of mine.

Muffin *****
Kind: Low-fat Apple, Carrot & Raisin   
Homemade? Yes
Delicious. We had it grilled. This was a very flavorful (cinnamon and allspice we think) muffin that was super moist and held together well. They didn't do a good job of cutting it in half evenly, thankfully Sven is a nice guy and made sure I had an extra bite off the big half. 
    
   

SERVER RECOMMENDATION
Our server didn't really seem too thrilled about anything. She did say that the pancakes and omelets were really good, but I think only because she didn't know what else to say.        
   

Country Special. Mmmm...french fries for breakfast!

SVEN'S CHOICE **** Country Special
English muffin topped with sausage patties, poached eggs and sausage gravy. Served with home fries. It was pretty much a heart attack on a plate. Sven said it was good, but not as good as the sausage gravy at Blackwater Junction.

Mini Omelet. Not so mini.

OLGA'S CHOICE **** Mini Veggie Omelet w/home fries and biscuit
At Country Kitchen you have a choice of omelet size, regular or mini. The mini is made with 3 eggs and the regular is 5! Three was enough for me, especially because it was stuffed with mushrooms, onions, peppers, broccoli and cheddar cheese. I substituted a homemade biscuit for toast and kind of wish I hadn't. The biscuit was quite large, but also pretty dry. Dryer than your average biscuit that is. I can see how it would have been fine covered in sausage gravy, but even with lots of butter and jam, it was hard to swallow. The omelet was perfectly cooked and quite good.

SERVICE ***
Our server didn't seem very happy. Kind of grumpy actually. She did her job, but didn't add anything to our experience.

DECOR **
At first glance we gave the decor a 3, but after looking around a bit we dropped it down to a 2. The coolest thing about the place was the double curve counter. Other than that the place looked pretty dated with no character.   
    
   
CLEANLINESS **
The place definitely could have been cleaner!   
    
   
NOTES
When we arrived at 7:30 am, there were 23 cars in the parking lot. That says something! Well, it says that either the place is really good, or it's the only place for miles around. I think both reasons are feasible. This place is not afraid of substitutions on the their menu. There is even a list of possible substitution. Homemade toast is available for extra. Big breakfast menu.

SVEN'S TAKE
The Country Kitchen doesn't exactly feel like a well kept secret . . . more like a solidly-above average eatery with an invariably big crowd. Truth is, every time I've eaten there, it felt like I was escorted to the last available table, and if it had been any more crowded I would have had to wait. That's usually the result of good eats; and the Country Kitchen mostly lives up to that reputation. The one standout item was the low fat muffin -- easily one of the best baked goods we've had on the endeavor. I found myself very suspicious that it wasn't really low fat, because nothing low fat could be that good. Most of the other items were just adequate . . . solid, tasty, and pretty much forgotten by mid day.    
    
    
    
    
    
   
   

Murray's - 20

Date: 10/9

Restaurant: Murray's   
Address: 14 Westminster Street   
City: Walpole   
Phone: 603-756-3426

Breakfast Hours: All day       

Sven had a gig on the Green Mountain Flyer this past Saturday so we headed out early and somewhat local. If you are looking for a good, inexpensive, local place, where the cook makes it just the way you want, then Murray's is the place! We were definitely pleased and are a little bit sad that we won't be able to eat breakfast there again for quite a while, but no ones says we can't go there for lunch!
   
   
Potatoes ****
Kind: Home fries.
Sven requested the potatoes to be well done. And guess what folks, that's how we got them! YAY! Guess there is a first time for everything! Sven said he had a few that weren't fully cooked through and I actually thought they could have used a little more grease. I can't believe I am saying that, and it could have been due to the extra cooking or even the kind of potato, maybe, but I found them to be a little bit dry. Other than that, they were good. Nice crispy edges. We were both finally happy with our breakfast potatoes!

Ahhh...crispy edges!

   
Toast ****
Kind: Rye   
Homemade? No
       

SERVER RECOMMENDATION
The server didn't have much in the way of recommendations. She did recommend the Monte Cristo, but it seemed she was only doing that because it was on the Specials Board.        
   

SVEN'S BREAKFAST **** Big Omelet
Sven is giving this a STRONG 4. Cooked just right and loaded with sausage, red onions, fresh mushrooms (which were cooked perfectly), tomatoes, green peppers and cheddar cheese. Came with toast and had to order the side of potatoes.

OLGA'S BREAKFAST **** Egg McMurray
The standard breakfast sandwich: fried egg with bacon and cheese on an english muffin. It was as good of a breakfast sandwich as I have had anywhere. It was warm, the cheese was good and melty, and the bacon was cooked perfectly. Both of our breakfasts were served with a small slice of watermelon, which was a really nice touch and a great way to end the meal. 

SERVICE ***** 
The service was excellent. Our server was on top of things and took care of our every need. The cook (who we later found out, is also the owner) was very personable and spent a few minutes talking baseball with Sven before we left.        
    
   

DECOR ***
Small, cozy and charming with counter seating, as well as, a number of tables. An assortment of paintings and photographs covered the walls and we both really liked the floor to ceiling window that made up the front wall of the restaurant.
    
       
      
NOTES
A nice small town kind of place that seemed to have some regular clientele of local older folks (at least at 6:45 on a Saturday morning). Although there weren't a lot of breakfast specials on the board, there were some lunch specials listed and they all looked really good.

SVEN'S TAKE
Walpole, NH -- as opposed to North Walpole, NH or Walpole, MA -- is by and large a white collar town. The Walpole Grocery sells gluten-free organic flour; the Walpole Tavern sells $10 burgers and craft-brewed beer; and the local chocolatier has branch stores in Manhattan and Cambridge. Now don't get me wrong. Sven and Olga love that stuff, too; but it is hardly the spot I would go to find a salt-of-the-earth diner.

That's why it is especially surprising, and nice, to duck into Murray's Diner, right next to the aforementioned Tavern. This past weekend the diner was already showing signs of local life at 6:30 AM when we ducked in and grabbed a seat at the counter. The fixed stools at the counter were half full; and the half-dozen or so tables were filling up quick. Nevertheless, we were greeted quickly by the owner with a couple of cups of coffee, before he headed off into the mostly-visible kitchen to get back to his principal duties. Murray's has a comfortable, lived-in feel, with no signs of pretension. The walls show the clear signs that this place is part of the fabric of the community -- lots of fliers announcing local events, photos, and such. Turns out (as we later learned) that it HAS been part of the fabric of the local scene for about 30 years, with the same owner/cook manning the grill for the whole ride.

In 30 years, Tom Murray has learned a bit about cooking breakfast. That much was clear. My omelet was outstanding, with a lot of flavor inside. And the potatoes were great. Not the best I ever had, but certainly the best I have had in a long while on this quest for the perfect NH breakfast. When I struck up a conversation (completely coincidental) with Tom at a party later that night, he was the first to say that he wasn't cooking with his best potatoes. "I like to cook with Canadians, but right now I can't get them, so I'm using Eastern shore potatoes," he said, before launching into a monologue about the merits of different spuds. Sweet! Here's a guy who knows potatoes. I can't wait to get back there when he's got his best taters on the grill.

Sven and Olga in the News:

The only thing we love more than breakfast is seeing our name in lights. Well, not really. We love breakfast more. Nevertheless, it was pretty cool to open up the Keene Sentinel daily newspaper on October 5 and see an article about Sven and Olga's exploits. Thanks to crackerjack reporter Sherry Hughes for breaking the story and sending well over 100 hits to our site on day one! Better yet, the picture she ran of us is one of my favorites.