Andrew's by the Pond is now in its third year at its charming location overlooking the village pond and with its large variety of water fowl. The scene makes you forget that you are only a few minutes away from the busy traffic on Sound Avenue or the bustle of Tanger Mall. Apart from having built a reputation as a good place for dinner, Andrew's also is a great place for a relaxing lunch as we discovered recently.

John Fritz is the Executive Chef and brings many years of culinary experience to his menus that always offer a range of long established favorites for his clientele, plus daily specials. The scope has now been broadened so that it is now much more than a steak and seafood house, although they still boast of offering some of the best meats you will taste.

We started with some sesame crusted seared ahi tuna that really did melt in the mouth and the accompanying soy honey reduction with ginger and wasabi filled our mouths with the deep tastes. We followed this excellent start with a dish we did not have a chance to try on our last visit. It is always refreshing to come across a starter that is out of the ordinary, especially when it works well and the escargot stuffed mushrooms certainly came in that category. Plump sizzling and succulent they really blended to create an exceptional and highly recommended dish.

All of the lunch entrées include soup or salad so we opted to share one of each. The onion soup was light and fragrant and heavy with well cooked sliced onions and the house salad of mixed greens with cucumber, radish and red onions with a creamy balsamic reduction was crisp and palate cleansing.

From the main courses we chose a blackened shrimp wrap that was full of very well cooked shrimp that had a nice degree of fire to them and the sliced filet sandwich served on garlic bread with sautéed onions and melted mozzarella is another dish that really makes a great lunch. The steak was very tender and full of flavor and the other tastes blended in very well. Andrew's has always been known for the quality of its fries. These come from incredibly large potatoes, are crisp and crunchy on the outside with soft insides and could make a meal on their own. Apart from the dishes we selected, the lunch menu includes several chicken sandwiches and wraps, also tuna and salmon and a selection of burgers.

With our lunch we drank the increasingly popular Blue Moon wheat beer that went very well with the food we had chosen. Blue Moon is a Belgian style wheat beer with just a hint of coriander and orange peel and is a perfect refreshing lunchtime bevOhmOhmOhmzerage. They also offer a selection of wines from Long Island and elsewhere.

We noticed from the dinner menu that Andrew's now serves some very interesting sounding chicken dishes such as the chicken a la Andrew cooked with crabmeat, cheeses, roasted peppers in a white vermouth sauce and the grilled chicken with pineapple salsa served over mesclun greens. Fish and pasta lovers are also well looked after and for the devoted steak hounds, Andrew's claims to have some of the very best dry aged beef available and the 'Flintstone,' a giant bone in rib eye at $38 is the star of the show.

Lunch prices are from $7 to $14 for appetizers with salads from $7 to $9. Sandwiches and wraps are from $8 to $12. At dinner, entrées range from $18 to $38.

Andrew's is worth the detour from the main roads because they have a very relaxed pleasant atmosphere, including a very attractive bar area. It is also a very good spot for a party or special occasion.

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