Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Restaurant openings First Bite: Luna
Posted by Chris Chamberlain on Wed, Jul 13, 2011 at 5:54 AM
Now the concept of a "gourmet meat-and-three" always frightens me a little bit. That's the reason we ran Boston Market out of town for trying to charge $9 for what was a $3.99 plate at Hap Townes. But Luna is making a good run of it. The dining room is painted in bold shades and decorated with an eclectic mix of art and music motifs. There are also a few hints of the owners' Yankee roots, which became more apparent when I saw the menu. The menu changes weekly, but always features local and fresh meats and vegetables.
The Northern segment of the menu revealed itself in the form of manicotti, "pronounced MANAGOT." Served with Mama's Pomodoro sauce and covered in creamy cheese, it may not be Southern, but it sure was good. The chefs worked feverishly to get the dishes out of the small kitchen, even though we were the only diners in the restaurant. I'll chalk it up to opening jitters and hope that they've hit their groove by now, because their food was worth the wait.
I'm not sure how helpful this (p)review will be to Bites readers since the menu is supposed to be constantly changing, but it's worth checking out Luna.
The table configuration was a little funky with five two-tops and a patio, so larger groups better be prepared for furniture moving. Prices are a little steep at $8 to $10 for a plate, but that's what you pay for gourmet and that view of Captain D's, I guess.
Luna is open from noon to 3 p.m. for lunch, but the day we tried it there wasn't really any food ready yet at noon, so maybe it's better for a later lunch. At least you know it's all made fresh.
Luna
2309A Franklin Pike, 229-7000
Comments (11)
Showing 1-11 of 11
