Times have changed considerably, as everyone knows; these days, discretionary income is in short supply, and we're forced to pick and choose carefully before heading out the door. That also means we've become far less adventurous than we once were; we tend to stick with the tried and true rather than shell out the bucks at a new-to-us place for what turns out to be a disappointing culinary experience.
But we still enjoy the thrill of the chase, so when we get a recommendation from a friend wh
o shares our love of eating out, we start salivating. The most recent heads-up took us to Boardman, Ohio, and the wonderful Blue Wolf Tavern.It's such a neat place (and the food's so great) that we've returned more than once. Better still, we were excited to learn that by the time you read this, a second location will be almost ready to open much closer to us! Located just inside Creekside Golf Dome in Girard, Ohio, the new place - named the Wolves Den Bar and Grill, or so the company website says - is expected to open sometime this month. We popped in a couple of weeks ago, and looks as if renovations are coming along nicely. We promise to keep an eye on things, and you can be sure we'll be among the very first customers!
But for now, I'll tell you about the Boardman location, where there's a banquet facility that can accommodate 200 for brunch, lunch and dinner, a WiFi hotspot and lots of beautiful pictures of - you guessed it - wolves. On the website, executive chefs Joe Rzonsa and Brant Newton say the restaurant's name and ambience resulted from a postcard showing a wolf in front of burning woods, giving the animal a blueish hue. We say we love the decor; the place has the look and feel of a hunting lodge dining room, complete with a lovely fireplace.
Our first visit came during the Christmas holidays after we'd stopped at the visitor center in Mill Creek Park to check out the beautifully decorated trees and then at the Boardman Wild Birds Unlimited so Jack could look at the winter Tilley hats. He didn't find anything, but I bought a bar of Burt's Bees Garden Tomato Complexion Soap, which I absolutely love - it's like washing your face with cream.
At any rate, by the time we got to the Blue Wolf we would have happily eaten anything on the menu that they could bring quickly. Reason prevailed, though, and we decided we'd better
try an appetizer to get things moving along (well, after ordering a couple of on-tap beers to take the edge off). It was a tough decision, but I finally settled on spicy marinated peppers ($5.99) while Jack opted for Zucchini Parmesan, also $5.99.The decision on entrees took even longer; we eyeballed the daily specials first, but ended up picking from the regular menu. My choice was cheese-stuffed ravioli with red sauce and a meatball - other options were available at a slightly higher cost, like alfredo sauce. Instead of a salad, I picked a cup of wedding soup for a 69-cent upcharge.
Jack went for the heart-healthy bourbon chicken with a salad and one side ($8.99). In keeping with the heart-healthy thing, he went with a viniagrette dressing and pasta as the second side. On the latter, too, there were several choices, and he picked linguine with chunky marinara sauce.
The appetizers, which were delivered quickly (I suspect the server noticed we were close to desperation hunger-wise) and acco
mpanied by a basket of fresh, warm crusty Italian rolls and butter. My peppers included hot banana, cubanelle, green bell and red roasted varieties marinated in homemade viniagrette and served with provolone wedges. I'm not going to claim they were particularly hot - but keep in mind that I have yet to find a hot pepper that's too much for me to handle. These are quite delicious with a slightly sweet edge, though, and I wouldn't hesitate to order them again. The chunks of cheese made a nice alternative to the usual bread or pita triangles.Jack, who usually isn't much for vegetables beyond green beans and corn, really liked the lightly breaded zucchini that was topped with marinara, provolone and Romano cheeses - and I concur. Wonderful!
Then came my soup, and I'm delighted to report that it came piping hot (one of my big pet peeves with most restaurants is that soup is served tepid). Filled with veggies, chicken pieces, tiny meatballs and other "stuff" - but not so much that I couldn't find the broth - the flavor was fabulous. After one bite, I put this at the top of the best I've ever had - and I vowed to try a bowl next time out.
I got six good-sized ravioli for my entree, and while the red sauce was quite delicious, I wouldn't call it spectacular. Jack's chicken breast was ample, sitting on top of a mountain of rice. He said the flavor was a little on the "blah" side, but I've found that's often the case with so-called "heart-healthy" dishes. In the end, he added some zest with a few leftover hot peppers from that terrific appetizer - if you can believe that - and ended up cleaning off his plate.
Our next official visit also was at lunchtime, and I wanted to try the wings. Ordering the appetizer portion (12 wings for $8.99), I chose my favorite garlic sauce. Once again, Jack stuck with good-for-you options, this time a house salad with greens, olives, tomatoes, cucumber, onions, carrots, shredded cheese, hard-boiled eggs and croutons at $5.99. Surprisingly (since I can't recall the last time it happened), our server asked if he wanted her to "hold" anything, so he gratefully declined those croutons.
Knowing I'd be quite happy to fill up on those wings, I was feeling a bit more adventurous this time and chose the Chicken & Shrimp Jambalaya as my entree. At $9.69, it features bell peppers, garlic, onions and Andouile sausage in sherry wine and marinara sauce over seasoned rice. It comes with a side salad, and I picked Gorgonzola viniagrette.
We knew immediately that our wings were on the way since we could smell the garlic all the way from the kitchen (okay, in the interest of full disclosure, we were sitting fairly close to the kitchen, but I think you get the point). The wings also are gigantic - perhaps the largest I've seen at a restaurant. The breading is crispy and absolutely delicious, but something made it a bit different - made from breadcrumbs, perhaps? The appendages were resting amid lots of buttery chopped garlic, and the meat was juicy and tender. Had the meal ended here, I'd have been a happy camper. We saved four to bring home, but that was only because we wanted to save at least a little room for our entrees.
Jack's salad was quite large, and since he'd made his usual request for double the regular amount of dressing, his came in a bowl instead of the small plastic container that held mine. Both were quite good, though, and except for the hard-boiled egg (which he allowed me to eat), he finished off the whole thing.
When I ordered the Jambalaya, our server said it's one of her favorite dishes here. To Jack, I said, "Yeah, right; that's what they all say." That was before I'd taken a bite, though - once I'd done that, I said she's absolutely correct. A whole chicken breast plus two large shrimp and several chunks of Andouile sausage topped a substantial portion of rice, and all of that was smothered in an absolutely tantalizing sauce that had a bit of a kick. I managed to eat most of it even though the wings had filled me up, and once Jack tasted it, he willingly polished off the rest so we had nothing to bring home (that is, except for the leftover wings, which lasted all of a couple of hours before we devoured them as well)!
If you go:
BLUE WOLF TAVERN
1295 Boardman-Canfield Road
Boardman, Ohio 44512
(330) 726-1736
http://www.thebluewolftavern.com
Dining room open Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; and Sunday noon to 8 p.m. Lounge is open till 11 p.m. on Sunday, till 1 a.m. Monday through Thursday and till 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
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