Steak, smiles and lots more at Potsdam grill

POTSDAM — Rumors of a steakhouse opening in this college town had been circulating since the first of the year.

Finally, Sandstone Grill opened in late September in SeaComm Plaza, outer Market Street, serving dinner on Fridays and Saturdays. It has seating for well over 100, with lots of booths separated by half walls with brass rails on top.

Sandstone Grill is the creation of entrepreneur Tom DeRosa, who also operates the chic First Crush Bistro downtown.

Many expected that Sandstone Grill would serve those big, expensive, overpriced steaks like you find in big-city steakhouses. But that wasn't Tom's intention at all. He had already cultivated a nice high-end clientele at First Crush. Now he was after the family crowd; the Joe Six-Packs looking for a step above Ponderosa.

Although the "grill" in Sandstone Grill may imply "steakhouse," it's really a family restaurant. Says so right on the cover of the neat and clean plasticized multipage menu. And there's very good selection of steaks — Delmonico, New York strip and the trendy "flat iron" — and the ever-popular slow roasted prime rib.

Barbecue ribs and pork chops complete the meat portion of the menu. Fish is found under "Fish Fry," with haddock prepared four different ways: fried, blackened, broiled or Française.

Pasta dishes include pasta primavera, cheese ravioli, eggplant rollatini, shrimp scampi and fettuccine Alfredo, recession-friendly priced just under $10. Equally nice-priced are the two chicken choices, grilled or stuffed.

And if you're just not in the mood for a full dinner, half-pound Angus "Campfire Burgers" are prepared six ways ($8 to $10). You can also try the "Slider Special," five miniature burgers served on cute little buns dressed with fresh lettuce and tomato, for $8.50.

Or partake of the extensive "Sandstone Salad Bar" with more than 45 items — unlimited trips for $7.99.

Stephanie was our congenial server. As with Tom's bistro, smiles go a long way. It's a simple concept that's so often overlooked. She got us started with a warm, crusty boule placed serve-yourself-style on a long cutting board.

Appetizers were generally a step above freezer-to-fryer, although chicken tenders, deep-fried mozzarella and potato skins would provide a certain comfort level for the designated diner demographic.

Coconut shrimp ($8.90) tended to fall into the same category. Six squashed-down shrimp with their tails standing at attention were quite typical, with the exception of the accompanying mandarin sauce that resembled jarred orange marmalade.

"Ultimate" quesadilla ($6.95) was freshly made, with nice proportions of Jack cheese, chopped onion and tomato, and hot peppers. (A lot of places put way too much cheese in a quesadilla). And those with wimpy palates beware — the hot peppers are HOT. With the option to add chicken ($2) or prime rib ($3), you could easily make it a meal.

I usually shy away from calamari because it's more breading than squid. Stephanie told us theirs ($6.25) was hand-breaded, and sure enough, it was more fish than bread, tender and tasty, served over a bed of iceberg lettuce. A nice marinara sauce jazzed up with shredded Parm was provided for dipping.

There are just two soup choices, and rather than three-cheese French onion, we tried the soup of the day ($4), "kickin' crab." The flavor was good but the texture wasn't. It had a certain Jell-O-like jiggle to it. Close your eyes and it's perfect.

While none of us chose the salad bar for dinner, we did take a minute to look at it and were impressed by its selection: three kinds of greens (iceberg, romaine and spring mix), a multitude of chopped veggies and diced deli meat toppings, lots of dressing choices, homemade salads, fresh fruit, fresh bread and the list goes on and on. You can make it an add-on to any dinner entrée for $4.90.

Stuffed chicken breast ($9.90) was a large one, with a tasty, fruity stuffing (black cherry and cranberry, we thought), in perfect ratio to the chicken. We were told the stuffing will change occasionally, subject to the chef's whim. Rice pilaf was a nice side.

Prime rib, the 12-ounce cut ($16.99), arrived a little more than the medium-rare "to the rare side" that we ordered, with an unattractive slab of fat making up about a third of the portion.

The edible part of the meat was tender and tasty. We requested some horseradish, and they were nice enough to find some for us in the back of the fridge. A side of sautéed mushrooms and onions was cooked perfectly.

Haddock Française ($13.95), a large portion of fish dredged in an egg/flour batter, was swimming in a purported sherry and citrus sauce, although we had to really struggle to taste either.

Classic Delmonico steak ($17.90 for the larger 12-ounce portion) was our favorite entrée. It was beautifully grilled with a good degree of firmness to each juicy and tasty bite. Mashed sweet potatoes with more than a hint of maple syrup was a nice treat. A small plastic ramekin of red wine butter had an unappealing translucent look to it.

Each entrée came with a bowl of colorful, crinkle-cut previously frozen vegetables, further degraded with the annoying taste of jarred garlic.

Most of the desserts are made locally off-premises and were priced at just under $6 each.

Jack Daniel's pecan pie was very good, with way more than a "hint" of Jack, and a crust more crumbly than flaky. "Big" chocolate cake was just that, big yet light and airy, moist with a silky-smooth chocolate filling.

While the in-house-made peach cobbler lacked a certain crunch (it was more like sliced peaches with breakfast oatmeal), the "ultimate" brownie sundae made up for it: a flat brownie topped with a mountain of vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, whipped topping and the customary maraschino cherry.

Dinner for four came to $120 before tip. Three glasses of house wine added $12 to the tab. Several very nice "house reserve" wines were available by the bottle, priced $18 to $40.

Molly Tennis, the bubbly manager, is the female version of gregarious Tom DeRosa, greeting people by name, going table to table to make sure customers are satisfied, all while keeping a watchful eye over the entire operation.

It appears that Tom DeRosa has accomplished his expressed goal of providing a family-friendly, reasonably priced alternative to chain restaurant dining.

You can contact Walter E. Siebel via e-mail: wsiebel@wdt.net.

Sandstone Grill

145 Market St. (SeaComm Plaza)

Potsdam

265-7263

www.thesandstonegrill.com

Steaks, prime rib, burgers, pasta and a 45-item salad bar. A staff deserving of the "Most Congenial" award

HOURS:

Dinner: 4:30 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday

Breakfast and Lunch: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday

8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday

RATING: 3 FORKS