A Review of the Greene, NY's Sherwood Inn

Housed in a building that was once a historic hotel, the Sherwood Inn offers diners an affordable dining experience in the heart of the quaint town of Greene, NY. The Sherwood Inn was built in 1914 and renovated in 1996 after a fire caused major destruction to the building. The hotel has 16 rooms decorated in Victorian décor, complete with brass beds. Rooms have color TV, AC and private baths. There are two large suits at affordable prices (about $110) with private porch balconies. Unfortunately, the hotel no longer allows its patrons to access the outside balcony due to safety reasons. At one time, in addition to the weekend getaway specials, including a suite, dinner for two and a bottle of wine for about $120/night these features were major selling points for a romantic weekend get away for my fiance and I. The restaurant offers fine dining, a pub and Murder Mystery Dinner Theater throughout the year.

On this particular visit, we were greeted by the smiling hotel clerk, and were asked if we would like to sit in the dining room or pub. Upon stating the pub, we
were told to sit anywhere we liked. We walked ourselves into the dimly lit, but not too dark room and seated ourselves at a table with four wing back chairs. The
sounds of a TV was blaring in the corner. Other tables and chairs were mismatched, lending to a very casual atmosphere. The friendly waitress soon appeared
and graciously allowed us to take our time perusing the fairly extensive menu.

The menu at The Sherwood Inn features a number of house specialties including Chicken Sherwood, and a thinly sliced roast pork, as well as specials of the
day. In addition, there was a generous Sunday dinner special for $9.95 being offered which included soup or salad, either the Roast Pork or Chicken Sherwood
entree, your choice of side (pasta, fries, mashed potato, baked potato, rice or greens), coffee/tea/lemonade and a select desert. If you are looking for a good
place to eat on Tuesday night, another great special is the "Twenty for Tuesday", where you can get a choice of two dinner entrees complete with soup or salad
and a side for $20.

It was difficult to select from the various menu options. The Sherwood Inn offers some of your ordinary choices such as hamburgers, steaks and chicken.
However, the chef selects excellent ingredients and puts a twist on traditional items such as chicken marsala, (the Chicken Sherwood), which is a chicken
breast battered in egg and sautéed and finished off with a Madeira wine, rather than the traditional marsala wine. The number of pasta dishes such as Pasta
Carbonara, Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo and seafood dishes such as the unique Portabella mushroom cap stuffed with seafood, and veal, steak and
pork chops could also be found on the menu. In addition to the regular or "light" entrees (smaller servings to the regular dinner serving), a variety of sandwiches such as a turkey club or grilled chicken could be ordered served on rolls, pita or in wraps. Daily soups and a French Onion Soup are on the menu as well as a regular garden or Ceasar salad and a variety of delicious sounding appetizers.

For this culinary experience, we both selected the French Dip with French Fries. I also ordered the French Onion Soup. The Soup came out piping hot, its Swiss
Cheese crust bubbling and browned to a golden perfection. The thoughtful waitress asked me if it was too hot for my liking and offered ice cubes to cool it down which I appreciatively declined. Beyond the delicious baked cheese crust, my spoon gave way to a steamy hot flavorful beef broth filled with golden sautéed onions. Although on the slightly salty side, the soup was a heavenly reprieve from the chilly room and cold winter day and had a slight hint of sweetness from a sweeter wine than the traditional dry red, perhaps a marsala? I highly recommend you try this soup. It was among the best French Onion soups I have ever had!

After an appropriate amount of time, the waitress brought our French Dips and about 3 minutes later, the owner himself appeared with our golden brown
French fries, (slightly behind schedule due to training a new cook) which were lightly battered and crispy on the outside and mealy, perhaps slightly underdone
on the inside. The thinly sliced prime rib layered on a soft roll was paired with a small bowl filled with au jus. While the meat itself on the roll was delicious
albeit slightly salty, the au jus unfortunately was barely palatable due to the ¼ inch thick of oil layering the top, concealing the rich brown au jus. Upon using a
straw to suction some of the oil off the top, we discovered the au jus was very tasty and I longed to be able to dip my roast beef sandwich into it without it looking
like it just left an oil slick. Later suggesting to the waitress that a gravy separator would be helpful for the au jus, my dining partner was informed that if the regular cook had done it, she was sure he would have used a gravy separator but it did not seem the new cook or "prep boy" had yet learned how to properly serve gravy.

On previous dining experiences, we have sampled the delicious hamburger, crispy and fresh Ceasar salad with deliciously crunchy croutons, steaks (perfectly
cooked and delicious) and various chicken dishes. One of the best dishes I have ever had at the Sherwood Inn was the Boursin Chicken-a chicken breast stuffed with a tangy cheese, and spinach, wrapped in phyllo dough and baked. However, sadly the restaurant no longer offers this menu option and stated they were unable to make this without advance notice

While attentive at first, the waitress seemed to have disappeared once our orders were in and my glass sat empty for at least 30 minutes, even though both the
owner came to drop off our meal and another waitress came to later pick up my empty dish. She did however come back to give us our check.

We have dined at the Sherwood Inn on numerous occasions and have always enjoyed our dining experience there. On this trip however the service seemed a
bit off and the conditions of the pub seemed to be in need of some TLC. Although we could have selected to eat in the more formal and elegant dining room
(which has not appeared to change in appearance), we usually prefer a more relaxed and casual atmosphere such as what can be found in the pub. And we
did get casual.

If you are looking for good quality food in a quaint town, the Sherwood Inn is a good place to try. In the summer you can sit outside on the porch at small tables
and enjoy the goings on of the cute town. If you don't mind a really casual atmosphere, the pub, although a bit run down in the last couple of years (and chilly in
the winter) is a good place to eat and kick back. On busy nights such as Fridays or Saturdays, it can get lively with a number of patrons. On this trip it was just
my fiancé and I occupying the room. Otherwise, for a more formal or romantic dining experience or for a truly special dinner, sit in the dining room. It is beautifully
arranged, with a well set elegant table, water goblets, napkins folded in shell shapes and a more attentive staff.

Although we have enjoyed previous dining experiences at the Sherwood Inn over the years more than this one, the food quality is much better than most places
and the prices are very affordable (with two drinks, the soup, and two French Dips, the bill came to $29.00 plus tip). You will also find some excellent unique
dishes and twists on the old as well as fresh ingredients and more care to presentation and quality.