Dining out
Karl
Wells
Dustabella's
St. Jude Hotel
TCH, Clarenville
Ph. 466-1717
Once upon a time...well, let's say a few hundred or so
years ago, there lived a young Irish colleen by the name of Dustabella Durdle.
Dustabella's claim to fame was being one of the first females to settle in
Trinity. This distinction has given the name of Dustabella Durdle a certain
measure of notoriety, at least as far as the oral and written history of the
area is concerned. A few years ago the name was borrowed by the dining room of
the St. Jude Hotel at Clarenville. It was a waitress there who clued me in, as
it were, to the significance of the Dustabella's Dining Room name.
The dining room at St. Jude has seen a number of
changes in its history. It has been operated, at various times, as a standard
hotel dining facility, a Jungle Jim’s and a
The room is tastefully decorated with a magnificent
stone fireplace, expensively framed pictures, a handsome stained wood and brass
bar, ornate dining chairs and tables covered in white cloth.
When I read the description of Dustabella's
Newfoundland berry salad, I wasn't sure it was going to work for me. Feta,
romaine, a few other vegetables and partridgeberries - marinated in port -
combined with a blueberry dressing? I'm only fond of partridgeberries when
they've been cooked with lots of sugar, as in a pie or jam. Marinating them in
port wine made little difference to their aggressive tartness. It was, alas, a
waste of Portugal's finest export if you ask me. Overall I found Dustabella's
salad satisfying. In addition to the cheese and lettuce it contained button
mushrooms, red onion and a pile of long shreds of raw carrot. Unfortunately the
great colour of the carrot was considerably contained by spoonfuls of inky,
creamy blueberry dressing.
With fruit or perhaps with the salad minus the too
perky partridgeberries and feta, the dressing would have been fine. However, I felt
a dressing made primarily of a good quality cold pressed olive oil would have
performed better, particularly with the feta.
Dustabella’s Newfoundland pea soup was obviously
thick; not so thick as to stand a spoon in but thick nonetheless. It’s surface
looked like a landing location for a NASA rover. There were craters, no doubt
formed by steam gurgling and bubbling to the surface as it was carefully ladled
into the bowl. At the centre of this cratered, pepper-speckled area was a shiny
outcrop. This outcrop was a dumpling, plump, soft, floury, a perfect companion
for the sweet smelling legume soup.
The soup was made well. It had plenty of flavour. For
a starter the portion size was ample. I was a little disappointed that no rolls
or bread arrived at our table. With soups and stews bread should be a
requirement. My beef stew missed it as well.
For me there is one basic rule of thumb for deciding
whether a dish is a soup or a stew. Simply put, a soup cannot be eaten with a
fork and a stew can. Most of Dustabella’s very tasty beef stew could be
consumed using a fork. It contained several pieces of rich Canadian beef, along
with the usual root vegetables: turnip and carrot. There was an overabundance
of gravy that was far too thin. If some bread had been provided no doubt I
would have mopped up much of it with a slice or two. Mind you, there was a
rather large dumpling taking centre stage in my bowl but the absorbent
qualities of a dumpling - even a large one - are limited.
I harboured resentment for the dumpling anyway. It
wasn’t supposed to be there. Dustabella’s menu had clearly described a beef
stew with “pastry.” As admiring as I am of a good dumpling, in certain roles, I
do not think it is any substitute for a piece of golden brown buttery pastry. I
further resented the dumpling because it had been sprinkled with at least a
teaspoonful of dried Newfoundland savoury. I love savoury when actually cooked
in something but to sprinkle it or any dried herb onto a cooked dish as
decoration can only serve to downgrade that dish. The only way herbs should be
consumed uncooked is when they are fresh from the garden.
The Newfoundland salt fish cakes at Dustabella’s were
excellent. Three arrived on a plate with lemon wedge, some tartar sauce and a
garden salad. The cakes contained a good amount of fish and yet were light,
crunchy and perfectly browned. They made wonderful ambassadors for traditional
Newfoundland cuisine. No doubt, on occasion, a hungry tourist or two has
ordered them from Dustabella’s. I’d wager they went over very well.
Dustabella’s dessert menu was restricted. The lemon
meringue pie was decent but not extraordinary. If the pie had been taken from
the oven that day, perhaps it would have made a greater impression. I suspect,
however, it was a day or two old. The crust was a little too soggy and the
meringue a little too flat. The plate had been rather crudely decorated with a
few squiggles of raspberry coulis. If it had been a chocolate pie, the
raspberry coulis might have made sense. Serving it with lemon pie did not.
The trend toward hotel dining being taken over by
various restaurant chains seems to be popular these days. Frankly, when St.
Jude’s followed the trend I presumed they would stick with it until they’d
found a franchise that worked for them. Well, I thought wrong and I’m happy to
say so. I believe the Dustabella’s model will, in the long run, serve them
well, especially when it comes to private functions like weddings and general
catering. Plus, think of what it’s done for the name of Trinity’s own
Dustabella Durdle. Dustabella’s name has gone from languishing in relative
obscurity to being emblazoned on hotel signs and menus and being written about
in a certain food critic’s column. Well done Dustabella. Well done.
Our lunch for two at Dustabella’s - including two
glasses of Bear Crossing merlot and gratuity - cost $54.56.
Dustabella’s was wheelchair accessible and the noise
level was low.
Best Points:
Attractive dining room, good food and friendly
service.
Areas for Improvement:
Stick with menu descriptions and work on presentation.
Ratings Category:
Dustabella’s gets 7.5 out of 10 points.
7 points = satisfactory, 7.5 points = good, 8 points =
very good, 9 points = excellent, 10 points = perfection