This newcomer to the restaurant scene in Doylestown, Pa., offers well-prepared food in an attractive setting.
By: Richard Burns
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Waterwheel Restaurant |
Within the past six months, there has been a major addition to the restaurant scene in Doylestown, Pa. A fine old building on Old Easton Road, which dates to the early 18th century and previously housed the Sign of the Sorrel Horse and the Pear and the Partridge, is now the Waterwheel.
Opened in October by Ken Hicklin and Mickey Bradley, this delightful setting is developing step by step. While the name implies that guestrooms are available, that’s not the case, at least for now. The restaurant has several rooms available for special events and will offer outside dining when the weather allows.
Originally called Dyers Mill, the site was developed by John Dyer, an English Quaker. At that time, the town was called Dyerstown. The mill has served as a post office, general store, an inn (around the time of Prohibition) and then a tavern. While changes have been made to the building, it retains its historic appeal.
The entrance from the parking lot brings you into a windowed hallway leading to a large bar area and then on to the main dining room. Both rooms have open-beamed ceilings and dark wood wainscoting topped by a dark red painted area. The rooms have period prints, artifacts and antique furnishings. The tables all have white undercloths covered with dark blue tablecloths. Candles adorn each table, and some have flowers. There is a large open fireplace at one end of the room.
The menu is somewhat conservative. While there were a number of choices (about eight appetizers and about 15 entrées), few jumped out at us as especially innovative perhaps it was just us that particular evening. One nice feature of the menu was a printed page of specials, including the soups of the day and the salad of the day, all with prices. As the meal progressed, though, we didn’t find the offerings lacking in any way. It didn’t make much difference what we ordered; everything left us pleased.
For appetizers, we were tempted by the tuna carpaccio that had been peppered, seared and served cold with a pineapple and balsamic vinegar glaze ($8.95), and the grilled tenderloin of beef tips over a chipotle barbecue sauce ($6.50). In the end, roasted asparagus spears with goat cheese ($7.50) and baked clams casino ($8) proved irresistible.
The asparagus was delightful. An abundance of warm, perfectly roasted spears were served over mixed baby greens, pimentos and toasted pine-nut vinaigrette. The blend worked effectively. The clams casino were impressive, largely because they had been prepared in the proper, classic manner, rather than the common approach of chopping the clams and mixing them with breadcrumbs so neither taste nor texture comes through. These were six good-sized clams on the half-shell, topped with chopped onion, green and red peppers and bacon over the whole clam, then broiled. If you haven’t had this dish prepared properly, it’s worth the trip just to try them.
More positive dining experiences lay ahead, however. Crab cakes appeared in several places on the menu, as an appetizer, and as parts of other dishes as well as on their own. I decided to try the pan-fried jumbo lump crab cakes ($18.50), while my wife, Rose, choose her favorite, rack of lamb, from the specials menu ($25). We passed up such delicacies as vegetarian lasagna ($12), pan-seared duck breast over a raspberry demi-glace ($18.50) and an intriguing lobster ravioli with squid-ink pasta in a spinach and tomato champagne cream sauce ($19). The crab cakes consisted of two good-sized rounds of crabmeat with little or no filling, nicely seasoned and crisply pan-fried. The crab cakes were served on a Dijon mustard cream sauce limited only in quantity. The crab cakes were some of the best I’ve had.
Rose’s New Zealand lamb consisted of four double-rib chops that were a bit rarer than the medium-rare ordered. The lamb appeared to have been cooked as separate chops, rather than as a single rack. In any case, the meat was tender and succulent. Both dishes were served with sautéed snow peas and baby carrots, a serving of orzo pasta, and a delicious deep-fried mashed-potato cake.
A dessert tray offered a choice of about a half-dozen special-looking options. These included a raspberry lemon cake, an orange spice cake, crème brulée and two types of ice cream truffles, one with white chocolate and raspberry sorbet, the other with cappuccino ice cream. Both were dipped in chocolate. We settled on bread pudding with strawberries and the chocolate decadence cake. All desserts cost $5. The bread pudding was served warm with a dollop of whipped cream and was excellent with the accompanying strawberries. The chocolate cake was as advertised decadent. ‘Nough said.
Service was particularly efficient. One of the scheduled waitresses was sick, and the woman on duty handled a rather busy room with efficiency and grace. She was pleasant, informed and seemed to be there when you needed her. The food was served very promptly.
Overall, the Waterwheel was a satisfying experience that provided well-prepared food in a most enjoyable and attractive setting. It’s well worth the drive to Doylestown. I know we will be going back.
For directions to Waterwheel Restaurant and Country Inn, click here.

