Morgan House 10-11-09

Morgan House
33 Main Street
Lee, MA
www.morganhouseinn.com
Entrees: $10-20

The Morgan House is a Berkshire institution. My parents ate there on their honeymoon over 50 years ago. It has seen more and less prosperous times. The last time I ate there, several years ago, I had vowed never to return. It was the kind of place that was dark and you suspected no one wanted to turn the lights on as it would reveal just how dirty the carpet was. The food was middling at best with iceberg lettuce salads and boiled mixed vegetables as a side.

A few years make a difference. My new neighbors told me it had changed hands and been given a makeover. While the menu online did not look like it would be a revelatory experience (crab cakes, nachos, burgers, chicken BLT, Chicken pot pie), I was curious to see what the new owners had done.

I made my parents go there before they left on the Sunday of Columbus Day weekend and I would pronounce the meal "fine." The dining room was brightened up, the furniture looked new, and flow seems to have been improved. The service was prompt and friendly. My dad said his chicken pot pie was good, although the "pie crust" was a piece of puff pastry floating ont he top, and the consistency was more like stew or thick soup. I had a nice side salad with balsamic dressing and a disappointing slice of quiche. Quiche crust is hard - it gets soggy to quickly - and this was no exception. I had a delicious mini-quiche at tea at a hotel in Boston last winter that was so buttery and flaky it melted in your mouth; this was not the case with this uninspired crust. However, the hand-cut fries on the side were good even if the portion was miniature. My mom had the chicken BLT which she reported she enjoyed, although it was a deconstructed BLT with the lettuce on the side, and it was on a bun. I like a BLT to embrace it's BLT-ness - this was more like a grilled chicken sandwich.

Overall, I would rate it "fine." Inexpensive, quick, pleasant atmosphere, close to my house, and I would likely order a burger or something along those lines next time - although I won't be hurrying back with so many better options around.