It's like that pair of comfortable old shoes that you just can't throw away. Or that old wallet that fits perfectly into your back pocket after all these years.
It's Art's Jug, a neighborhood Italian restaurant tucked away on the east side of Watertown. Like those shoes or that wallet, it's been around for a long time — 75 years to be exact. And it sure is comfortable.
A family of five was dining in the bar area. A half-dozen businessmen were having a working dinner in the center of the dining room. A gaggle of gals in the corner fueled by Chianti were enjoying ladies' night out.
It was a weekday night and the place was nearly full — full of people who knew each other, full of regulars who have come here for years because they know the food and know the waitresses and bartenders by their first names.
Consistency is the name of the game — steaks and seafood, chicken and veal, homemade pizza and Italian specialty dishes, all prepared from original recipes passed down through generations of the Sboro family.
We began with bruschetta ($7.99), toasted Italian bread (Alteri's, we suspected) topped with fresh chopped herbed tomatoes and grated Parmesan. The portion was easily enough for the four of us to enjoy.
We also shared an antipasto for two ($10.69), which offered a great variety of tastes and textures. It was a big bowl full of colorful fresh greens, mostly romaine, bright red cherry peppers, black olives and chopped roasted red pepper, generous slices of salami and provolone decorating the sides and top of the oversized salad, drizzled with just the right amount of house dressing.
A bit trendy and also a tasty treat was the stuffed portobello mushroom ($7.99), the oversized mushroom cap crowned with a perfect blend of spinach, sausage and cream cheese.
For entrées, we got two tried-and-true and two that sounded kind of new.
Eggplant Parmesan ($10.99) was a "must do" for one member of the WDT Reviewing Team who comes here regularly. "It tasted as wonderful today as it did the first time I enjoyed it decades ago," he said. "When I dine on my old favorites at Art's, it feels like I'm back on my mother's lap."
The eggplant was cooked to a perfect consistency before being blanketed with a deep, rich layer of cheese, then topped off with their distinctive homemade red sauce.
Manicotti is another staple in the specialty arsenal of any Italian restaurant. Art's Jug's manicotti ($10.99), its homemade large tubular pasta, was filled with the traditional ricotta cheese and herbs, light but still cheesy, topped with the red sauce.
At the suggestion of our waitress, we ordered a meatball and sausage to go with it ($2.50), both very enjoyable.
Chicken Michael Vincent ($15.99), a creation named after one of the kids, was a breast of chicken draped over a homemade stuffing of broccoli, red onion, bacon, feta and cream cheese.
The stuffing was a little overly mulched, leaving it a textureless pile of mush. We really couldn't detect bacon flavor at all. But the crunch from the coarse bread crumbs that topped the rounded chicken mound (think cordon bleu) saved the day. A light white sauce (think Alfredo) complemented the dish nicely.
Shrimp Parmesan ($14.99) was a nice creation. Six or seven decent-sized shrimp were lightly breaded and quickly deep-fried, then placed atop a bed of spaghetti with red sauce. Just enough melted provolone finished the dish, keeping the delicate taste of the shrimp from being smothered.
We didn't get a chance to try the beef, but it's well represented on the menu: New York strip, sirloin (two cuts), Delmonico, pepper steak and prime rib.
Portions are plentiful, and we had little room for dessert. But two choices ($4.29 each) tempted us — caramel apple pie and tiramisu.
The pie was good, but the pièce de résistance (or whatever the comparable Italian term would be) was the tiramisu. Light and airy, this delicate Italian cake is made with sugar, eggs, coffee and cocoa. Mascarpone cheese and ladyfingers are part of it, too, the ladyfingers usually soaked in rum, accounting for the "rum-a-licious" description coming from across the table.
Service was friendly and professional, although our waitress seemed a little stressed and distracted. Perhaps they weren't used to a late dinner rush on a weekday night.
It was nice to see mature, experienced ladies waiting tables who no doubt have been part of Art's crew for years. Nothing annoys me more than young waiters who don't take their jobs seriously.
Dinner for four came to $99 with tax, excluding tip and a few cocktails.
Finally, Art's Jug offers a unique takeout option: "Home Meal Replacement" — frozen items you can take home, thaw and heat up. They include "Italian staples" (sauces, meatballs, sausage), frozen entrées (manicotti and lasagna, chicken and eggplant Parm, broiled haddock and more) — even their famous pizza (very reasonably priced), complete with instructions for thawing and cooking.
TIDBITS
There are still seats available for "Gourmet Guys," the popular fundraising event presented by Potsdam's Community Performance Series, taking place Feb. 9. Entrées like osso buco, Moroccan chicken, Creole shrimp and glazed pork tenderloin are part of the five course pre-Valentine's dinner that sells out each year. For more information, go to www.potsdam.edu/cps/gourmetguys.
You can contact Walter E. Siebel via e-mail: wsiebel@wdt.net.
Art's Jug
820 Huntington St.
Watertown
788-9513 (reservations)
782-9764 (takeout)
One of Watertown's family-owned Italian restaurants, tucked away on the east side of town since 1933. Good food and mature service in a warm, welcoming atmosphere.
Open at 4 p.m. seven days a week
APPETIZER PICKS: Stuffed portobello, antipasto
ENTRÉE PICKS: Eggplant Parm, shrimp Parm
DESSERT PICK: Tiramisu
RATING: 3 and one-half forks
