thePULSE185 West Boylston Street, West Boylston
(508) 835-2224
www.pjsbarandgrill.com
By Bernie Whitmore
Ahh, the perils of first impressions strike again. As I entered PJ’s, I had already pegged them in the sports-bar/pub category. These are places you can get a decent burger and draft, but when you delve much further into the menu you might get quality more akin to the pre-fab samples offered by retirees at Sam’s Club. Maybe I was over-reacting to the Keno screens ~ when I see them in dining rooms I often find myself more intrigued by the numbers than by my meal.
However, PJ’s was poised to deal a blow to these prejudices.
A friend joined me for a mid-weeknight visit to PJ’s. The dining room glowed with golden-hued knotty pine and brass rails beneath large stained glass hanging lamps. The sound system was tuned to 70s-era classic rock. The impressive menu ranges from traditional pub appetizers to “Steaks and Chops ~ Cooked to Order!” From there it heads into Italian with Pasta, Veal and Seafood categories and wraps up with more than a dozen burgers and sandwiches.
An order of Nachos El PJ ($7.50) got things started. The menu calls the chips oversized but in reality the humongo portion is large enough to feed half of Durango. The red, white and blue chips were melted together with gobs of cheese, sour cream and chili. The “usual suspects” were incorporated, too ~ jalapeno peppers, sliced black olives and onion chunks. I matched them with a glass of Wachusett Seasonal Ale.
Just as we’d come to the realization that finishing Mount El Nacho was an impossible dream, Jessica, our waitress, returned with the entrees. It was time to end our crunchfest and move on to new challenges.
On a regular basis, I dine with friends who just love Chicken Parmesan and order it everywhere. I tend to shy away because too often chicken breast meat seems spongy soft and bereft of flavor. But PJ’s menu weakened my resolve; it describes their Rhode Island Chicken ($15) as “…the classic from Federal Hill… Chicken Parmesan at its best.” One taste and I realized they’d spoken the truth and, if anything, were a bit modest.
Two large breaded chicken breasts were topped with tomato sauce and slabs of mozzarella cheese. Then they were baked until the cheese melted and the flavors merged. Served over penne pasta, the chicken was moist, firm and delicious. Call it the dish that renewed my faith in chicken parm! The portion was so large I ate less than a third of it; the rest went home ~ enough for two special lunches.
My friend ordered Grilled Rack of Lamb ($15), one of the evening’s specials. Six chops were marinated in rosemary demi-glace sauce and grilled till pink on the inside, just as he specified. Is it possible that a bar and grill could prepare juicy, flavorful lamb exactly to order? PJ’s proved that yes, it is. They were attractively served in a pool of the same demi-glace along with very garlicky mashed potatoes and baby carrots.
I’ve bicycled by PJ’s New England Bar and Grill a thousand times without taking notice. Regrettably, those days are my loss…now I just want to return and explore the menu further.
