It's all good at Good Fellos

SACKETS HARBOR — Sackets Harbor is a great town for great eating, especially in the summertime.

But it's the wintertime. And when the WDT Reviewing Team turned the corner onto Main Street, there was hardly a place to park.

Good Fellos Brick Oven Pizza & Wine Bar was our destination. It's been under new ownership since April. We'd been there before, but just for wine (a great selection) and drinks at the bar. Tonight (a Thursday) we were there to check out the food.

The ambiance is hip and trendy, with a big brick-faced wood-fired pizza oven visible from any seat in the house, high tin ceilings with exposed ductwork, and a long, comfortable bar where patrons sip drinks and chat with the friendly bartender. Tablecloths and real cloth napkins on every table told us this was going to be more than just a pizza place.

We went right to a table for four, and it was lucky we did when we did — soon after we were seated there was hardly a table available.

One side of the menu is entirely devoted to wood-fired pizzas — well over a dozen tempting selections like pizza rustica (tomato sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, caramelized onions, sausage, spinach, mushrooms), the Supreme (red sauce, prosciutto, bacon, pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, olives, green peppers, onions, mozzarella, Asiago cheese), and, yes, we do have to get at least one of those "Godfather"-themed names in there, the Capone (garlic base, mozzarella, Gorgonzola cheese, roasted red peppers, chicken, portobello mushrooms, balsamic glaze).

We got a pizza to share as an appetizer. It appeared small, but there was no lack of tasty toppings on our pizza Bolognese (tomato sauce, mozzarella, prosciutto, sausage, crumbled bacon and pepperoni). Its thin crust and distinctive wood-fired taste was enjoyable. The quality toppings made it a meat lovers' delight.

The other side of the menu offers a dozen appealing "antipasti" (appetizers and salads) and an equal amount of enticing "primi," or entrées.

It was difficult to choose just one appetizer and one salad — we wanted them all!

Calamari with cherry peppers, four-cheese garlic bread and caprese bruschetta sounded great, but we went with something different: Tuscan white bean tuffo ($12).

What a treat for the taste buds — whipped roasted cannelloni beans, calibri chilies and fresh lemon juice topped with an olive caponata. Pesto-crusted crostini accompanied. Spoon the bean concoction on top of the toasted bread and, Madonna mia! (as one of my Italian friends at the table exclaimed), you've got some mighty fine flavors happening here.

Salad choices include pear and arugula, steak and portobello, and traditional Caesar. Prior to our visit, someone tipped us off to the Good Fellos Classic for Two antipasto ($13).

Yeah, two if you want to share it for an entrée, but more than enough for the four of us. A platter piled high with lots of spring mix, artichoke hearts, black olives, peppers and Asiago, dressed with balsamic vinaigrette, with pesto oil on the side. Large slices of paper-thin prosciutto were draped over this large salad, adding visual appeal.

There were so many fabulous flavors to this point, we knew our "primi" dishes were going to be great. But they were more than great. They were outstanding.

Steak Florentine ($25) was amazing, a large rimmed bowl filled with charcoal-grilled New York strip — lots of it — thick-sliced and served with roasted potatoes, asparagus on top, red pepper pesto and a brownish, tomato-based sauce named Della Vashetta.

Penne Gorgonzola e pollo ($17) was no ordinary pasta dish. In fact, it was extraordinary. Sautéed chicken, fire-roasted red peppers, prosciutto and basil were tossed with penne in a tasty, creamy Gorgonzola sauce. The production was topped with walnuts and crushed red pepper flakes for additional texture and flavor.

Ravioli? Maybe it got a bad rap at school lunches over the years, but you'll want to try Good Fellos herbed ricotta-filled ravioli served with garlic-toasted spinach and topped with fresh-shaved pecorino sardo — a hard, salty Italian cheese made from sheep's milk.

It's available two different ways, with spicy Bolognese sauce ($16) or seafood Alfredo sauce ($18). We got it with the Bolognese sauce that formed a perfect marriage with the ingredients.

Grouper Persillade ($20) was absolutely stunning. A beautiful presentation of baked grouper was served over a "salad" of haricot vert (French for green beans), celery, fingerling potatoes and prosciutto touched with lemon vinaigrette. A crust of roasted garlic, parsley and whole-grain mustard added taste and texture. This is a dish we'd go back for in an instant.

Desserts, all homemade, are priced at $6 apiece.

One of my friends got "Death by Chocolate," because, as he put it, "If I have to go, there's no better way." It was a nice-sized piece of moist chocolate cake with chocolate sauce in the center, dressed up with whipped cream on the side.

Peanut butter pie was a melt-in-your-mouth creamy delight. The peanut butter taste was there, but ever so subtle. Nicely done. Cheesecake was equally creamy and yummy, some of the best we've had anywhere.

Both of these desserts were made by our waitress, Brandy, a charming and talented young lady. She did a great job serving four fun-loving and often demanding guys enjoying a night on the town.

Dinner came to $144 before gratuity.

We expected Good Fellos to be good, but it was way more than good. It was outstanding from start to finish — the ambiance, the staff and the food. Oh, the food.

Congratulations and thanks to the new owners from Albany, and of course, the chef, for a truly memorable evening.

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

Good Fellos Brick Oven Pizza and Wine Bar

202 W. Main St.

Sackets Harbor, NY

646-2345

www.1812ale.com/goodfellos.html

Outstanding from start to finish — the ambiance, the staff and the food. This is upscale Italian at its finest in a casual, relaxed setting.

HOURS: 4 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday

4 to 9:30 p.m. Friday

3 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday

Noon to 8 p.m. Sunday

APPETIZER PICK: Tuscan white bean tuffo

SALAD PICK: classic antipasto for two

PIZZA PICK: pizza Bolognese

ENTRÉE PICKS: grouper persillade, steak Florentine

DESSERT PICKS: peanut butter pie, cheesecake

Rating: 5 forks