Lamb Again

It just so happens I had rack of lamb again
by Charlie Leck [15 May 2007]

Dined with my daughter, Cynthia, at the Hamilton Inn tonight. The inn is in Hamilton, New York, the home of Colgate University, but out in the country a bit. The specialities du jour included mussels maraneire for a starter and a rack of lamb for an entrée. I was unable to resist.

This little blog is an appendage to what I posted here yesterday, in which I wrote about my love for dining on lamb, rated some spots for good lamb in the area where we live, and concluded with a review of the wonderful rack of lamb from the Bernards Inn in New Jersey.

Now I’m told the Hamilton Inn is one of the fine restaurants in the area. They get only a B or B+ from me. The sommelier spilled the wine on opening it and didn’t try to wipe it up from the base of my glass at all; nor did he offer any sort of grunt or apology. Our waitress was genuine and tried, but she was really quite unprofessional. The lamb was good, but not great. Someone failed seasoning 101 when they went to chef school. All of the incredible delectableness of the rack in New Jersey was missing in this rack in New York. The inn provides a lovely setting, however, and it was very comfortable and everything was unhurried and quiet – a perfect place for a productive conversation with one’s grown-up daughter. The setting gets an A for sure.

Just keep scrolling down to read the earlier blog about dining on lamb and, at the end of that blog, you’ll find my restaurant review of my smashing and accidental success in New Jersey.