A Shining Dining Star

The food at 941 Martini Grille is worth raving about

Lisa Sokolowski

If you want to impress a date, we found the place for you: 941 Martini Grille in Dureya.

We'll admit, the place looked small when we walked in. A handful of high tables lined a wall opposite a stocked bar. Yes, "martini" was in the name (and more than a dozen on the menu), but we figured there would be a dinner menu also. But where was it served?

In a full dining room on the other side of the bar.

We walked in, not knowing quite what to expect. See, we had driven to the restaurant for lunch the day before, only to find it doesn't open until 5 p.m. We drove back on Saturday, smack in the middle of dinnertime.

We were asked if we had a reservation.

We didn't (you should probably try to make one before your trek into Duryea), but the staff still found a table for two women in jeans, a clothing item that stood out among the dress pants that filled the other tables.

Not that we're suggesting dressing down, just stating that even if you're not carrying a Prada bag and wearing Gucci pants, the staff at 941 Martini Grille won't look down on you.

In fact, owner David Joyce's wife, Lisa, came to our table to see what we had ordered. She offered suggestions (even though she had dinner at Burger King with her son that night) and came by later to see if we enjoyed our dinners.

Almost everyone suggested the 941 calamari (which is sauteed, not fried, so you taste the squid, not the breading) but, with two land lovers dining, we ordered the Philly cheese steak stuffed portabella app instead. It's a treat, even for those who don't particularly care for mushrooms. A heaping amount of ground beef and pork, shallots, garlic, and Cooper sharp cheese were piled on top of the soft mushroom on a bed of marinara sauce.

Next came beautiful salads with a vinegar-heavy house white balsamic vinaigrette dressing, and then it was onto the entrees.

The menu boasts pork chops, filet mignon tournedos, rack of lamb, sauteed breast of duck, and crab cakes, among others, but we opted for two chicken dishes. The chicken Elizabeth, a tender cut of white meat in a scampi sauce, with a veggie and starch on the side (last Saturday, it was string beans and pasta) was delicious.

We also tried the penne a la vodka with grilled chicken. The pasta was in a light sauce bath, and the moist meat was flavored to perfection.

It's important to note the texture of everything. There was nothing you had to chew. To use a cliche is a sign of poor writing, but there's no other way to put it: This food melted in your mouth.

And so did dessert.

We weren't able to settle on one, so we tried the molten chocolate cake (sans whipped cream for us) and the red velvet star cupcake. The presentation of the latter dubbed it the winner. A bright red star - filled with cream cheese icing - was on the left side of a rectangular plate, and red and pink sauces shot out of the side to create a shooting star effect.

And it's interesting that the restaurant gave us the star ... because we'd give a gold star to it if we could.