Feedbag - When in Rome
Flea market vibe defines Roman Lily’s eclectic charm
Everybody has a restaurant they know they can fall back on when feeling short on inspiration and cash flow. For some time now, mine has been the Roman Lily. The place has had its detractors over the years. Sure, the menu can be uneven, and good service is not held in particularly high regard. But it does have one redeeming quality that shines above all else: the country-fried turkey burger. With its grown-up topping of crumbled blue cheese and caramelized onions, this burger could take on the Vortex and win. But more on that later.
The dining room, with its diner-style open kitchen and mismatched tables and chairs, is anything but stuffy. An impressive collection of folk art matches perfectly with the vibe of the place. It feels a bit like you’re having dinner in the midst of a flea market, but that’s a good thing. I prefer the cozy front dining room. Too-bright lighting in the back room casts everything in an unflattering light, and the lawn chair seating — indoors — takes the garage sale theme a little too far.
The eclectic, mix-and-match menu follows the restaurant’s hodgepodge theme. Sandwiches have been consistently good. Besides the turkey burger, chicken salad on a croissant is a delicious mess of a sandwich. My only beef with the burger on a recent visit was that they didn’t bother to toast the bun.
The menu’s more ambitious entrees are hit-or-miss. Grilled pork chops were completely overpowered by a cloying honey-Dijon sauce. Accompanying mashed sweet potatoes, velvety and redolent of cinnamon and nutmeg, brought back happy Thanksgiving memories. But my overall impression of the dish was of overwhelming sweetness. Smoked chicken ravioli in a tomato-basil cream sauce was another disappointment: The light, creamy sauce couldn’t compensate for bland ravioli filling.
The restaurant’s signature dish, Romano-fried chicken, couldn’t have been better. Romano cheese in the crunchy coating gave it a nutty, salty kick. Inside, the boneless chicken breast was moist and juicy. Add rustic, skin-on mashed potatoes on the side, and you’ve got comfort food at its best.
I was looking forward to trying the Roman Lily’s legendary banana bread. I’ve heard it’s heavenly. But service got a little spotty toward the end of the meal, and after waiting 15 minutes for dessert to arrive, we finally canceled the order and asked for the check. The real kicker, though, was when the waitress brought our check around; in her other hand she was balancing an order of banana bread. “Is that for us?” I asked hopefully. The waitress scowled at me. “You canceled your order.” Oh well. I guess I’ll have to save it for next time.