Roby Lee's Restaurant and Banquet Center

It's always wonderful when you hope for bronze and end up with gold. Such is the case at Roby Lee's Restaurant and Banquet Center in Newton Falls, Ohio -- a place perhaps best known for its all-fours Zip Code and historic covered bridge almost smack dab in the middle of town.

To be honest, we've heard of Roby Lee's for several years; but in part because it's a bit of a drive from our home to Newton Falls, we've never bothered to check it out. All that changed when a couple of friends purchased a $25 gift certificate for the place at Restaurant.com. Since the requirement is to spend $35, they figured they might have trouble hitting that total and offered to share the wealth with us. One Friday evening, we hopped in the car and headed out.

The address and phone are printed on the Restaurant.com certificate (and a map can be viewed at that site as well). Even though we don't go there often, though, we're relatively familiar with the town and had no trouble at all finding the place. And what a find it was!

I'm not really sure exactly what we expected, but it was something along the lines of a rectangular, one-story building with parking for a dozen cars or so. When we pulled into the large parking lot, though, the consensus from the four of us was "Wow -- this sure isn't your father's family diner!" From the bright red awning over the entryway to the expansive interior that includes both a restaurant and a banquet facility that can provide seating for up to 450, we were both surprised and impressed.

Just in case, we'd made reservations; and although we wouldn't have needed them at the relatively early 5:30 p.m. hour, had we wanted to eat later, without reservations we'd have been standing in line. By the time we'd made it through the salad bar line (more on that later), the restaurant was starting to fill up. By the time our main course arrived, there wasn't an empty seat in the house.

Since we had $25 of our bill covered by the certificate, we decided to splurge on a couple of appetizers. My top choice was spiced hot Hungarian peppers in oil, so I was disappointed to learn they were out of them on this evening. Oh well, I reasoned -- guess I'll just have to come back. Instead, we ordered the Bruschetta (six pieces of Italian toast topped with diced tomatoes, chopped garlic, fresh basil, extra virgin olive oil and melted mozzarella cheese glazed with a Balsamic reduction) at $5.99 That's quite a mouthful to say, but trust me, it was easy to eat. One bite and we knew we should have ordered a second batch.

Our other appetizer was the Western Twizzlers, or five "Southwestern" egg rolls with a blend of spices, chicken and a side of salsa ($5.99). They were quite tasty, but nothing tasted better than the Bruschetta.

Nothing, that is, except the white pizza on the salad bar. As a standalone meal, the salad bar is $6.29, but it comes at no cost with most of the entrees here. One of our friends made two trips to get more of the pizza; the rest of us made do with salad with delicious dressing and soup -- two varieties are offered -- trying not to go so hog wild that we had no room for the rest of the meal.

It took quite a while to decide on entrees, simply because everything sounded wonderful. There are plenty of sandwiches, but the entree selections were even more tempting. In the end, we each ordered something different so we could sample. Doing that, we realized that we would have been quite satisfied with anything on our table.

One example: Chicken Roberto, chicken breast sauteed in extra virgin olive oil, garlic, roasted red peppers and greens in scampi butter sauce tossed in fettuchini ($12.99). Wow! Or, how about fresh grouper filet, fried or grilled with several options including my choice, Cajun ($11.99)? If those don't get your taste buds tingling, how about chicken sauteed in Marsala wine sauce with sliced mushrooms and garlic at $11.99 ($12.99 if you want veal instead of chicken)?

The beef lover in our crowd was delighted with Roby's House Sirloin, an 8-ounce chunk seasoned, char-broiled and topped with two crispy onion rings ($12.99). Each meal came with a couple of sides and fresh-baked bread. And even after making complete pigs of ourselves, we left with enough to enjoy back at home the next day.

Although we weren't trying to watch our pennies this time out, I should note that you won't have to break into your kid's piggy bank to eat here. In the "Family" meals section, for instance, most entrees are in the $8 to $9 range, and the amount you get is quite substantial. Will we go back? You bet -- and next time we do, I'll tell you how hot those Hungarian peppers really are!

If you go:

Roby Lee's Restaurant and Banquet Center
425 Ridge Road
Newton Falls, Ohio 44444
Robert J. Lee, owner
(330) 872-0984
www.robylees.com

Open Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (no liquor sales)