John Andrews Report- Wonderful as always ( The Berkshires )
tonight my sister and i found ourselves eating dinner at the bar at JA. we were actually supposed to goto the old mill for dinner ( same town- south egremont,ma ) but realized they dont serve dinner in bar on sat. night and the dining room had a 45 min wait. i was more than happy to go down the road to my fave JA.
for apps we had the mozz/prosciutto salad that i cannot rave ENOUGH about. i know i say it everytime i post on here, but it is absolutey to die for. we shared that and also salt cod ravioli with lobster broth. both EXCELLENT. for dinner my sister had the scallops and i had duck confit w/ blue cheese, apples, walnuts, and endive. both delicious again. dessert: i had one of the best desserts ive ever had in my life tonight. it was chestnut creme caramel. SOOOOOOOOO good. my sister had 3 scoops of home made ice cream. vanilla, chocolate, and espresso.
cannot say it enough- best place in the area. GO THERE!
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So finally went to JA on Sunday night. We arrived early for our 7:00 reservation and were seated in the room near the fireplace (when they called earlier to confirm, they asked if we had any special table request). The bread service came first, when asked if we would like the foccocia w/rosemary and onion or the Tuscan, we simultaneously said “both”. Yum, right from the oven and delicious. After some negotiations w/my friend, we settled on the cod ravioli and the warm mozzarella salad for starters, and the ricotta gnocchi and the lamb special for entrees. We were not disappointed. The ravioli was so unusual, almost tasted like clams at first, but then the subtle flavor of the cod came through. Delicious. And the salad, (a hugh portion which I noticed was the same for most of the other salads I salivated on as they passed me from the kitchen to the other tables) was exquisite, perfectly dressed, and the mozzarella was incredibly fresh.
The entrees did not disappoint. The gnocchi was so light and flavorful, like eating cotton (albeit delicious cotton). The saltiness of the Prosciutto (or was it panchetta, I may be confused) was a great contrast to the ricotta. The lamb, served medium rare, was lovely, although a bit on the cool side. I was wondering if this was due to the doneness. I probably should have insisted on medium, but the server asked “is medium rare ok”, so I just assumed that was the way to eat it. It was served with garlicky spinach and amazing garlic mashed potatoes. It was a hearty entrée after a day of skiing.
For dessert we split the homemade ice cream, espresso that I swear was like drinking a shot of it, and vanilla bean. They were out of the Tuscan cream cake which sounded amazing.
A really wonderful experience, my only regret was not going w/more people so I could have tried more dishes. The service was very unhurried and friendly. Will definitely return.
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After driving by JA on my weekend treks between Copake and Great Barrington for years now, and after reading all the enthusiastic reviews, especially here, I am FINALLY going for dinner this Sunday on my way back from skiing at Jiminy! Am very excited. I've been reading everyone's favorites, anything new to add that are must haves?
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John Andrews Restaurant IS without doubt the finest restaurant in the area imo.
We eat there every time we're in the area.
The risotto,with anything the chef decides to put on the risotto,is just the very best!
The Salt Cod Ravioli is outstanding also.
The most diffiucult part of going to John Andrews Restaurant is deciding what to have for dinner because there are so many wonderful entrees to choose from.
You will wish that you could order more than one dinner!----and then you get that fabulous dessert menu and you wish you could order more than one dessert also!
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