Mission Oak Grill Offers Ambiance, Need Improvement on Menu Items

This was our first visit to the Mission Oak Grill in Newburyport, MA and we were very excited by the range of menu items they offered on their website. If you visit Mission Oak Grill during the day, I'm sure lighting resembles the picture on their website, but at night, it's completely different. Keeping in mind, the Mission Oak Grill is housed in a former church. Dark wood and tall lighting makes for an interesting mood. The bar area off to the left upon entering the establishment was abuzz with patrons and at least two bartenders.

Large screen monitors hover over the bar and are viewable from the restaurant, but don't deter from the overall atmosphere of the restaurant. The atmosphere was nice - a little dark, but tolerable for an evening meal. The service was outstanding. Our waitress was very attentive, very friendly and knew her role in a quiet dinner for two - be there when needed, but not too often or obvious. My wife's mohito seemed a little small in size, but the quality and potent nature of the drink made up for what it lacked in stature. The food was slightly more than adequate, but less than we expected from such a restaurant. For an appetizer - we went off the menu and with the Philly cheese steak egg roll special ($8) which left something to be desired.

To be blunt, the contents looked like (and tasted like) baby food wrapped in philo dough. The dish came with two different sauces for flavor and I immediately appealed for the horseradish sauce which had just enough kick to it to spice up the otherwise bland appetizer. For the main course - the chicken and mushroom dish ($22) my wife ordered was rather dry, however the mushroom risotto was, according to her, "perfect". She was, however, disappointed in the limited amount of "sauce" the menu had advertised for this dish, but she enjoyed it nonetheless. The shrimp with grilled chicken and pasta ($19) was the saving grace for me, topped off with a little Parmesan Cheese (by request). The pasta was perfectly cooked, the grilled chicken was moist and tasty, and the jumbo shrimp were more than just eye candy on the plate.

All in all, we'll give the Mission Oak Grill another chance at another time, due to the overall affordable nature (total bill, with two drinks, was $60 not inc. tip), ambiance and ease of access in downtown Newburyport with plenty of free parking, but will definitely try something else on the menu with the hope that it won't let us down the next time.