The New Mill Restaurant, Plantsville, Ct Review

With downtown Southington becoming nothing more than a string of "almost cut it restaurants" we took a chance at dining at The New Mill. Not having been a fan of the Old Mill I was intrigued to see if the name change made my dining experience worth a Sunday night adventure.

At first walk in you are greeted by a bar that engulfs the entire center portion of the dining room. With big screen TV's on both sides there is no escape from being a part of Sunday night football. To the left is a small dining are, once used as the bar, and should have remained as such. To the right is a small, poorly lit dining area and our designated seating.

Our waitress brought us a menu and offered up our drink choices. I requested a Bloody Mary. After being asked what I wanted for vodka I requested well. I was told the well was Absolute. With all due respect to Chris & Michelle,I was not impressed. Using Absolute in a mixed drink is beyond ludicrous and one can sit and wonder if you really are getting a premium brand. At a $5.50 charge for the drink I'd have to assume not. Chris & Michelle lose on the drinks.

The menu, as it was. With six pasta dishes and a mere choice of six entrees I was soon losing my interest in ordering and was considered the options of simply drinking. I glared at the array of fancy names with high end prices amounting to nothing more than...pasta ranging from $14- $21 for Seafood Fra Diavilo. The entrees ranged from Chicken Cutlet Caprese at $17 to a 24 oz Angus Rib Eye at $37.

We placed our orders. A New York Strip, a special Bass plate and for myself the Martini Salad with shrimp added. The dinner salads left a lot to be desired. A mix of greens with a few sliced and quartered cucumbers. Dressing choices were sparse with no Blue Cheese dressing available. A restaurant with no Blue Cheese dressing is like dining a MacDonald's with no fries. You just don't do that. The salad portion was large, for a rabbit. Less is best, Chris & Michelle, and there's no win on the fabulous mix of greens doused in olive oil.

The New York strip was done well. Tasty and tender, although a bit under cooked for medium well. So the poor lighting. The Bass portion was small. The shrimp stuffing was acceptable. You could do away with the scant duo of asparagus that was placed below as a tease. The potato portion was small yet flavorful once you got past the Saint Patty's day green hue. The Martini salad was a large enough portion to be filling. It would have been better served with a more delicate cheese choice to add a bit of tang to the taste buds. Lacking a supple amount of avocado, tomato and English cucumbers there was an over abundance of hidden Applewood Smoked bacon slipped under the center portion of the salad. Almost overbearing in flavor, the other ingredients were lost in the Applewood flavor. If you love bacon this is salad for you. Otherwise it's another mix of greens chopped a bit more finely than your dinner salad.

For dessert we chose Banana Crème de Brule and an ice cream with covered chocolate. We were a bit discouraged at being limited to Banana Crème de Brule. Why ruin a simple and eloquent dessert. We found the desserts to be satisfatory in presentation and taste.

The best I can give the New Mill is 2 stars. If you are interested in a glorified high priced sports bar dining experience this is place for you. Chris & Michelle fell off the boat with this one. Hopefully their consideration of adding a Sunday brunch will help to compensate their business for high priced dining in a low quality atmosphere.