Inventive specials make this spot a favorite in Flemington.
By: Pat Tanner
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Il Mulino |
FLEMINGTON Considering the number of visitors and shoppers it attracts, it’s a wonder Flemington has so few restaurants, and even fewer noteworthy ones. It was a pleasure, then, to discover Il Mulino, which serves solidly good Italian food in cozy surroundings. Its menu, filled with standard dishes of the Italian restaurant repertoire, could be perceived as boring, but it is highlighted with more imaginative specials, and all are decently executed.
The three-year-old restaurant is the latest oeuvre of brothers Marcello, Bruno and Luciano Ameti, who previously operated Toscana Trattoria in Peapack. Luciano is the chef, and we were particularly taken with his special of African Grouper Marechiare at $19, surpassing by several dollars the next most expensive item. The sweet, white fish came with a generous portion of clams and mussels bathing in a light tomato sauce made chunky with plum tomatoes. A more robust sauce could easily have overwhelmed the fish, but this complemented it nicely. Oddly, the clams and only the clams were unpleasantly salty. Accompanying the fish were savory browned potatoes and a crisp, colorful julienne of fresh summer squash, carrots and peppers.
Our meal, starting with the appetizers and continuing throughout, alternated between perfectly pleasant but unremarkable renditions of some favorites, like a bowl of escarole and bean soup ($4), and unexpectedly delectable dishes, like an appetizer of roasted red peppers with anchovies and capers ($6). This latter could have been slapped together with jarred peppers, acrid, overly salty fish and the kind of capers that contribute nothing but saltiness. Instead, the peppers were fresh roasted and meltingly good, the anchovies and capers of very good quality.
A companion enjoyed his antipasto special ($9), mainly for its soft, fresh mozzarella and smoked salmon and not so much for its mediocre tomatoes. "Mulino" means mill in Italian, and the brothers Ameti named their restaurant in honor of their grandfather, a miller. Three small-ish dining rooms are dimly lit and somewhat lacking in color. Wainscoting stained the darkest of browns is topped with white moiré wallpaper, making for a stark contrast that even the scattered paintings can’t enliven. The back room has a fireplace, however, which warms things up in cold weather and is a favored location.
As the popular restaurant filled up on a Saturday night, the noise level increased and our server’s attention plummeted. Up until then, we had been taken with attentive touches, such as his bringing a second set of wine glasses to the table when we switched from one red wine to another. (Bruno Ameti told me later that he was shorthanded that night due to a death in another server’s family.)
Patrons can bring their own wine and beer to Il Mulino, but the restaurant also carries a selection of eight wines from Unionville Vineyards in nearby Ringoes. We tried the Hunter’s Red Reserve ($22), a decent choice that improved noticeably after being given time to breathe.
Entrées paralleled our experience with appetizers. In addition to the aforementioned grouper, we thoroughly enjoyed a dish of Angel Hair Pasta with a Bolognese Sauce ($10), another generous portion that overflowed with flavorful bits of ground veal. But a special of Ravioli Filled with Wild Mushrooms ($15) was overcooked and gummy, and Veal Saltimbocca ($15) was marred by dry, hard layers of prosciutto and thinly sliced veal. We were sorry we hadn’t chosen one of the three kinds of risotto offered instead seafood, mushroom and Milanese (with saffron).
Among the house-made desserts (each $4.25), were a decent tiramisu and chocolate mousse cake, and very good cannoli.
In good weather, there is room for 60 people to dine al fresco in the restaurant’s pleasant garden area, which contains a small waterfall and pond. A separate outdoor room for parties looked utterly charming lit up from the inside by candlelight.
Il Mulino is a welcome addition to the shops at Turntable Junction and a reliable choice for Italian food in Flemington.