Dan's Papers - October 5, 2007 - The Restaurant at Four Doors Down

In the past three years, since they took over this restaurant, Bob & Barbara Chiapetta have continued to make this a comfortable, friendly place where both local residents and visitors to the North Fork can make this a regular stop for good food and drink at very reasonable prices.

There has been a restaurant and bar on site since the thirties and the history is printed in their menus and makes very interesting reading. Bob and Barbara previously owned the Mattituck bowling lanes before it became a CVS and they then moved 'four doors down' to their present locale.

Tom Siebert is the Executive Chef and he came to Four Doors Down with a long established reputation as one of the top chefs on Long Island specializing in authentic German cuisine. His menu today offers a great selection of German dishes but also Italian and American food make up an integral part of the choices. Children are also really well looked after and those under six can eat for free off the kid's menu with the purchase of an adult meal. This is just one of the ways that Bob and Barbara set out to make diners really feel welcome. Another of their innovations is the 'Complimentary Birthday Club'. Just by filling in your details, you will receive, before your birthday each year, a voucher to be redeemed for a complimentary entrée of your choice, as long as the vouched is redeemed during the week of your birthday.

The original Oktoberfest was first celebrated in Munich in 1810 but despite the name is held mainly in late September nowadays because the weather is better for visitors! If you have ever been there you will never forget the crowds, the food and of course the beer, Tom's menu offers many opportunities to recreate your own celebration and we started with traditional potato pancakes that were crisp (maybe just a little too crisp) and the apple sauce and sour cream made this a very pleasant starter. Baked clams were full of flavor without their intrinsic tastes being swamped. The soup of the day was cream of cauliflower and it was very hearty, full of subtle tastes, creamy without being at all heavy and overall an excellent soup.

Stella decided on the Wiener Schnitzel - OK its really Austrian but it is a great dish especially when you have an excellent piece of veal well cooked and served with red cabbage and some good homemade German potato salad - no mayonnaise - and with just the right touch of astringency that goes well with German food. I tackled the Bauern platter, a plate filling combination of Bratwurst, Bauernwurst, smoked pork chop plus the potato salad and sauerkraut that soon had me realizing that this dish was tackling me! It was great with excellent plump, juicy sausages and a moist pork chop but the quantity was well beyond my capabilities after sampling starters and soup. That did not stop me from tasting some of the Four Door signature garlic fries because I love fries! The fries were some of the very best, the garlic level is extremely high so be careful if you are the only one eating them - you may have a lonely night!

With our meal we drank beer because it seemed appropriate and they have a good beer selection. Tom told us that during October if you purchase a dinner entrée you can buy draft German Spaten beer at $2 a glass - that's a great offer. Their wine list is mainly Long Island focused and must represent some of the best value for any restaurant. Where else can you get a bottle of very drinkable Long Island wine for only $14?

Desserts are outsourced and we really enjoyed the very different pecan pie that had an excellent crust and a filling full of pecans but without any of the heaviness that sometimes occurs with this great dessert.

Appetizers range from $5 to $10; Main courses are $17 to $24 and desserts are $5.

The Restaurant at Four Doors Down may look modest from the outside but it is very different once you step through the doors. The staff is well trained and very helpful, the food is very good and even though we focused on the German part of the menu because of Oktoberfest, there were many Italian and other dishes such as ribs, steak or shellfish that really could have tempted us to go a different eating route. Great emphasis is put on the use of very fresh local produce and seafood and with their extremely reasonable prices it is a great place to visit for spur of the moment eating or for parties of all types. At this time of the year if you are making the winery or pumpkin tour, Four Doors Down is in an excellent central location when you need refreshment.