Captain Daniel Packer Inne - Mystic, CT

Restaurant: Captain Daniel Packer Inne (menu - map)
Location: Mystic, CT
My rating: A-
Pros: Ambience, service, food
Cons: An hour+ drive (a con only in relation to this blogger)
Distance from 02048: 69 miles, 1:12 minutes

OK, so it seems ironic that a blog that is supposed to be about local(ish) Mansfield restaurants not only takes me 5 months to actually post my first review, but is about a place over an hour away. But ya gotta start somewhere, so here we go...

Once every few months or so, whether for a special occasion or just for the heck of it, my family likes to meet in a spot equidistant from all of us for a meal out. As they live in central CT, the southeastern CT coast is our usual halfway choice. We have frequented a restaurant called The Fisherman in Noank, CT for years. It's actually very good, I'll review it at some point, but we were looking for something different to shake things up, since there are 5 birthdays in question, several holidays, etc. After a bit of googling, we decided to give this place a try and have never looked back.

You can see the menu and read about their history on their website. It's been in business since the 1750s (!), here's a snippet of the background:

"The Captain Daniel Packer Inne was erected at its present site on the Mystic River over 250 years ago. Former square-rigger Captain Daniel Packer purchased the land bordering Water Street in 1754 and completed construction of the building in 1756. From that time to the late 1970's the property remained in the hands of the Packer family and their descendants, The Keelers.

In the late 1700’s the Inne was a welcome landmark for weary travelers between New York and Boston who stop for the night to rest and would partake of the hearty bill of fare. While they dined Captain Packer would entertain his guest with thrilling tales of his adventures on the high seas. Early the next morning he would transport them - horses, stagecoaches and all -
across the Mystic River on his rope ferry. On the opposite shore he bade his guests a fond farewell and safe journey, then welcomed aboard another group of travelers."

Exterior: A well-maintained old colonial on a back road off of Main Street. Easily walkable from Main St., but also easily missed. View of some of the docks on the stroll to the restaurant.

Ambience: The restaurant has alot of the original look & feel from way back in1756. The fireplaces are original, and I believe the stone walls are too. However, it is old in a sturdy and classic way and by no means dated -- you feel like you are in an Merry Olde England pub. The upstairs dining rooms are lovely and romantic, there are two floors. However, my family and I always choose to eat in the pub downstairs which has such a homey, warm feel. Lots of oak, beer and happy patrons.

Service: The service is great. Friendly and informative and sometimes quite funny; a professional yet welcoming atmosphere.

Food: We have never been disappointed with the food in 5+ trips -- it is interesting, well-prepared and presented.

We started off sharing a couple of bowls of soup, as we had an hour to kill until the kitchen opened for dinner at 5pm. One bowl of the soup du jour, which was Scallop Neuberg and one bowl of New England Clam Chowder. Both were light and tasty, with plenty of fish and potatoes.

As our meal began, the server brought over freshly baked bread, which was interesting in that it came not only with a side of butter, but a full head of roasted garlic. Very tasty.

For appetizers, we ordered the calamari and a tenderloin bruschetta (on the Winter 2008 menu). Both were excellent -- I absolutely loved the calamari. The rings were perfectly crispy and the garlic cream sauce, as well as the hot peppers around it were delicious. I'm drooling as I type just thinking about it. The tenderloin bruschetta was a very nice cut of meat, covered in cheese, on crostini. Also very good -- I might try something different next time, though my husband and father-in-law liked this one very much.

For entrees, some of us ordered the same things, we had three different dishes in total: a Red Snapper special, the Blackjack Sirloin and their specialty, on the menu since the restaurant opened in the 1700s, is the lemon-pepper chicken which has a perfect, crispy breading and a subtle, lemon-butter sauce. I had the chicken and while I might have preferred a little heavier on the sauce ('m a saucy gal!) but my father-in-law loved it and I couldn't complain at all. The main dishes came with fresh, red mashed potatoes, with the skins mixed in. Quite yummy. My husband liked his sirloin very much, though the cut was a little bit grisly this time, which hadn't been the case in the past. The Red Snapper special was lightly breaded, and reported to be quite good. All portions are large, you won't leave hungry, and some of us even left with food to go.

Finally, we all shared one dessert called Xango, an excellent banana cheesecake wrapped in a flour tortilla and drizzled with cinnamon and caramel. Yum! We all loved it and it was rich enough that we were satiated with sharing it.

Value: Very good. It's not a cheapie meal by any means, but we gorged ourselves on high quality food, many cocktails and pints of beer, and excellent service. With a generous > 20% tip, the bill averaged $40pp. Quite reasonable for a special night out.

Surrounding activities: The trip to the restaurant is great combined with a day of strolling through picturesque Mystic, though we recommend going in the off-seaon (Oct-April), to avoid the tourist crush. The restaurant seems to be even busier in the off-season, though, as it is very popular with the locals. The tourists might miss it as it's off the main drag in Mystic (though just slightly).

Added bonus: we were able to hit the new Trader Joe's in Warwick on the drive home and it was worth the hop off the highway. As anyone who loves TJs knows, we in the southeast MA region are in a sad radius with zero nearby. This is despite my emailing TJ's every few months begging for them to open a store in the area ;). At least they're opening a Whole Foods in Walpole, but nothing compares with TJs. Happy to report that the Warwick location is bigger and brighter than the Needham location (our other closest location). Sadly, though, they also do not carry Two Buck Chuck wine. But everything else about it is awesome, as usual.

The entrance to the lower-level pub.

Pub bar, with staircase to upper dining rooms.

Pub tables.

One of the original restaurant fireplaces.

Warm bread with butter and a head of roasted garlic.

Calamari…Tender calamari rings coated with seasoned flour, fried to perfection then tossed with hot pepper rings, scallions and a white wine, lemon and roasted garlic cream.

Beef Tenderloin Bruschetta...Thinly sliced choice cut filet mignon grilled over our open fire and topped with vine ripe tomato, portobello mushroom, caramelized onions and fresh mozzarella. Served on grilled homemade focaccia bread with balsamic reduction and a roasted garlic demi glaze.

Lemon Peppered Chicken…A PACKER INNE TRADITION. Egg battered, pressed in coarse breadcrumbs with zest of lemon and cracked pepper. Pan sautéed then finished in the oven. Sliced and served with lemon beurre blanc.

Blackjack Sirloin…Strip cut of aged Angus sirloin dusted in seasoned ground peppercorns, pan seared and finished on a hardwood grill. Served with a wild mushroom and Jack Daniels demi-glace.

Red Snapper. A special of the night, so it's not on the. But quite tasty!