Kennett

Wade's Take:

Settling into a table at Kennett on a Friday night post-work week felt warranted and just right. This Queen Village pub has history in the neighborhood going back to 1924. Now rehabbed and under new ownership, it works perfectly in the neighborhood.

Kennett has a variety of local craft beers. It was a tad difficult to find something light on the hop heavy beer menu - but my choice of the Rogue Somer Orange-Honey Ale seemed to work.

We delved into one of the specials for our first course... anchovy and cucumber bruschetta. The anchovies were mild enough, but paired with the neutral cucumber and some light olive oil, the dish was nicely balanced and none-too fish-rich. 

Another of the appetizers was beans on toast. The dish was large butter beans (a derivative of Lima beans) served on a Paul Bunyan-sized piece of toasted brioche. The fresh brioche was dense yet spongy, and the beans were smeared atop the bread, soft and paste-like. For a crown the dish had a fried egg. Cracking through the brioche and its layers with a fork made for many a delicious bite.

My entree was a white pizza special. The pizza had a thin-crisped crust, farmer's cheese, arugula, pork belly and chive blossoms. It was a nice pie for the most part. The farmer's cheese was a good choice, it melted evenly across the pizza and was more neutral than a mozzarella. This was ideal, because the arugula, large pieces of roasted pork belly and chive blossoms sang loudly. If it were up to me, I would have portioned the pork belly pieces and chive blossoms a bit smaller. These larger-sized items made the pizza just a little cumbersome to eat. All in all, I was happy.

 

Dessert was ideal for what we wanted and expected on a warm Friday night. We ordered the chocolate bark with vanilla bourbon ice cream. Although there was nary a bourbon flavor, the ice cream was rich and good. The chocolate bark broke easily into bites of dark chocolate, almonds and sea salt. It was a nice simple dessert to go with the straightforward meal. 

Kennett had good, paired-down dishes that were perfect for those wanting a nice non-complicated Friday night. 

3 out of 4 happy Fridays.

Dave's Take:
I was only able to make it through a round of beer and the starters course at Kennett (I had a small, upset, little girl to take home and deal with... and I don't mean Wade). But what I saw, I liked.

The tomato pie was my starter. It was done well. There was an herb in the sauce, perhaps cinnamon, that made it unique. Definitely worth trying.
3 out of 4.

Jess' Take:
As Dave mentioned, we had a very cranky little girl with so, so the first part of the meal entailed me taking walks outside trying to entertain her. I guess she just wasn’t ready for the explosive flavors that Kennett had to offer. Once she was whisked away by the best husband in the world, I settled in with Wade and a good beer. Please keep the bad mother comments to yourself.

We had a smorgasbord of starters, including roasted chickpeas, which were served with smoked paprika and citrus. They were really smoky and delicious. And also went quite well with the beans on toast.

I opted for the veggie burger for my main. It was a very hearty burger, made of wheat berries, red beans, walnuts and sunflower seeds. It was also served with a spicy 1,000 island dressing that unfortunately overpowered the nutty tasting burger. I ended up scraping most of it off, and then eventually finishing the burger with a fork and knife and only one side of the bun. It also came with a side of sauted greens, which were pretty darn good.

Wade mentioned our dessert, chocolate bark. It was so-so. I wouldn’t order it again. I was pretty excited about the bourbon ice cream, which turned out to be very good vanilla and not much more. Eh.

Like my comrades, I give Kennett 3 out of 4 smoky chickpeas. Next time I hope to be back with a delightfully pleasant little girl. One can hope, right?