I don't even recall anymore when I got the reputation as the guy who doesn't like Lincoln Park Tavern, up on
Rue de Lincoln. It was called Enduro at one point, and before that Fly Fish. Back in those days I wasn't too impressed with the food but nonetheless I pretty much always enjoyed myself there. I was a bit surprised that I didn't like it more, since owner Jim Mamary had been an owner at Smith Street pioneer Patois, a place Mrs. Q and I frequented and loved during our long courtship. But whatever. Then I started writing a blog, and happened to call up the often cited Landlady of Lincoln, Rong Ge, to get her side of an ongoing series of accusations I'd heard about her. So I listened to her and printed her take on things.
This was the post, going back nearly two years now. I got some hate mail as a result, since supposedly I shouldn't have given her a public forum. I caught some flack for saying Enduro's food was lackluster or something to that effect, and calling them out for bad health grades, then I started hearing that me, the guy who SHOULD be talking up the neighborhood (to
whom exactly I don't know - future renters?) had dogged the one good sit-down restaurant and that I was somehow a traitor to the cause of upscaling Lincoln Road. Nonsense. It was a flip remark or two, and all I was doing was giving Rong a chance to speak. I asked for a rebuttal from Enduro, but no one took me up on it. Once the name changed and the bar opened, I happened to have another fateful dinner in which my burger arrived charred to core. The bun was stale and the service, that one particular night, was terrible. And I'm not hard to please, really I'm not. I mentioned it on the blog, and from then on it was official. The Q hates LPT.
Well, I've been a couple more times in the last year and really enjoyed it. A couple weeks ago, a friend took me out and I tried a bunch of the off-menu specials, and the food was great. I've since learned that Alfredo, the expert chef from the Mexican state of Puebla, famous home and birthplace of mole poblano. He was out during an extended illness around the time I was posting the above stuff, so I guess my timing was off, though a restaurant really can't afford a serious downgrade in the food or it loses its luster. So I had a nice sampling the other night (full disclosure I did not pay for the meal and it was late so I was very hungry) and everything was absolutely above par, from the lamb chops to the arugula salad (thank god it wasn't kale, which if you hadn't noticed is DEFINITELY having its time) and calamari and so I can honestly say that I like LPT, or Enduro for you old timers, pretty darn well and I'm glad it's here to stay, even if we hear rumors from time to time that it's for sale or this that and the other.
Below is a picture of manager Laura and chef Alfredo from just the other day. Thanks y'all for the nice time and a good meal.
3 comments:
I'm not one of the people who sent you hate mail or trolled you, but I am one of the people who suggested that you may want to head back in and see the place now compared to a couple years or so ago. Glad you went in.
I still dislike the landlady, though, but my familiarity with her stretches beyond just that property on Lincoln and in general she rubs me the Rong (heh) way.
Kale is deserving of the moment it is having... and I say this as a person who is generally afraid of many vegetables and does't care for spinach. But kale? It's like a heartier, tastier version of lettuce. May it's moment continue forever.
My partner and I have also been pleasantly surprised by the recent increase in quality at LPT. Although we still mostly travel out of the neighborhood if we're going to spend $12-15 on entrees, LPT does just fine in a pinch. And their nachos are big enough to share as a meal.
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