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Guilford bistro banks
on prix fixe formula for success
Nata's on the Green,
63 Whitfield Street, Guilford
(203-453-3288). Open (lunch) 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., (dinner) 5-10 p.m. daily except Sun; 1-9 p.m. Sun.
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Business New Haven
8/24/1998
By: Angelina Anderman
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Well, here's something different: Nata's on the Green in Guilford is the brainchild of the exuberant Rick McLain, who started his burgeoning empire with Nata's on East Main Street in Branford. Named after his young daughter, Natasha, McLain's restaurants have been packing 'em in.
His niche is that old but popular French phenomenon, the prix fixe menu.
Nata's on the Green is hidden in an alley, halfway down the west side of the Guilford Green. It occupies a very small space once inhabited by Whitfield Alley, another bistro. With table space for 30 diners only, plus a tiny kitchen and a minute bar area for waiting customers, the atmosphere is indeed intimate.
McLain informed us that he recently became depressed with the existing décor, so he has sponge-painted all the walls a vibrant ocher yellow and added a blue sky effect to the ceiling. The change certainly enlivened the place, in more ways than one. A working fireplace occupies a corner and small red mounted prints adorn the bright walls. White tablecloths and napkins add a conservative note, but they may be colored before long.
On the day of our lunch McLain was alone, cooking and waiting on customers, which he ably managed with aplomb and amusing repartée. The prix fixe menu at lunch is $8 and includes soup, salad, entrée and coffee or tea. Entrées change according to the whim of the chef - daily, or perhaps even hourly. We didn't qualify for soup (perhaps there was none, or perhaps we didn't know enough to ask - there is no menu or specials board).
Items are recited by McLain at breakneck pace with multiple possibilities, so one has to listen up and concentrate. Questions are patiently tolerated, but the responses are even more confusing than the initial recitation, providing a real sense of achievement after zeroing in on a decision.
A small house salad and a basket of rye bread arrived immediately, as did water. The salad had good greens like arugula, radicchio with tomato and cucumber in a balsamic vinaigrette. We sopped up the extra vinaigrette with the bread.
We are not sure what all the entrée choices were, but Nata's offers fish, shellfish, chicken in various guises plus duck, beef, pork, lamb and veal on any given day. As the entrées are prepared to order, it is just a matter of latching onto what's on today.
We settled on a thick piece of soft swordfish in a roasted garlic and shallot sauce. It was fresh and married well with the interestingly flavored sauce. We also had a mixture of shrimp and scallops (a bit chewy) in a blue crab sauce and chicken breast in a tomato and basil sauce. All dishes came on large platters served over a hearty portion of linguine.
There's no question that Nata's is good value for money. Desserts like chocolate cake can be had for an additional $3. We didn't rate any coffee service, either, but after the larger-than-usual lunch, it would have been too much, and McLain already had his sights on dinner which, with his lack of help (she had just stabbed a fingertip) might well have presented a real challenge.
Nata's on the Green has a BYOB policy, which allows customers to enjoy a good bottle of wine of their choice at retail prices. However, McLain keeps a few bottles of house wine available which he offers to any deserving but wineless customer who does not know about the policy and arrives in need.
Dinner at Nata's is along the same lines, but includes appetizer, soup, salad, entrée and dessert for $15 per person in Guilford ($12 per person in Branford) plus tax and gratuity. There are three seatings (5, 7 and 9 p.m.) in both locations. Reservations are recommended.
McLain is convinced that his no-frills, fixed-price concept will flourish. He is currently working on a 350-seat restaurant in Fort Myers, Fla., which was due to open last month. However, we think he will need some more professional help both in the kitchen and on the restaurant floor if he wants to retain his cheerful momentum. Otherwise he might be in danger of burning up in orbit, leaving the poor Natasha a fatherless teenage restaurant mogul.
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