Venus & The Cellar Bar in Easthampton

“So when are you going to write about Venus?” From the week it opened this past summer, it seemed someone was asking the question. Casey Douglass, known for the Apollo Grill in Easthampton’s Eastworks, had just finished returning that place to the more neighborhood style of restaurant he’d originally intended. Now he had come in as partner-chef at a new high-end restaurant in the center of town.

“Gotta wait for three months” was my reply. “It isn’t fair to come in a couple of weeks after they open. They need some time to shake down the kitchen and the food.” Ironically, the night we ate there was the first night of Venus’ autumn menu, so things were pretty new anyway.

Initial reports were somewhat confusing because of the two names associated with the location: Venus, and a companion spot, the Cellar Bar. Some friends spoke well of the restaurant; others insisted that they loved the food at the Cellar Bar and never ate at Venus. The story is that Lisa Fusco, a Springfield restaurateur, owned the building and wanted to see two businesses there: a restaurant, and a separate bar downstairs. She recruited Douglass and also brought in a third partner, Michael Vito. As they planned, it became obvious that the two places needed to be linked. So VENUS (95 Main St., Easthampton, 203-1910) is the upscale restaurant at street level, a beautiful brick-walled place with a limited menu. The CELLAR BAR is in the basement, with nice lighting, a bar menu and access to the full menu from Venus.

So how is the food? Pretty damn good, actually. Douglass brought in two chefs, Daniel Pfeifer-Kotz and Josean Jimenez, both alumni of the former Del Raye restaurant in Northampton, and turned them loose to work up the menu. The three function as a team. Pfeifer-Kotz and Jimenez’s job is to come up with ideas, and Douglass, as executive chef, has to make sure they work for the restaurant.

And they do work.

Soon after people are seated, the server brings a tiny amuse-bouche as a welcome from the kitchen; on one night I visited, it was a mouthful of oyster, shrimp and shiitake mushrooms sitting on a Chinese soup spoon and topped with a soy sauce foam.

We started by ordering three appetizers and a salad. The pate was served with an excellent onion confit, and Dijon rather than grainy mustard. The ricotta gnocchi were light and airy with a sage cream sauce. Most restaurants do mussel appetizers steamed in white wine and garlic. Good but boring. At Venus, the mussels came in a bouillabaisse stock, topped with some delightful braised fennel. Our salad, lightly grilled romaine, radicchio and roast tomato topped with blue cheese, had a nice smoky taste.

My friends Bill and Bobbie are world-class eaters, having sampled three continents of food between them. Usually, we cook each other dinner, but they agreed to accompany my wife and me to Venus. It was a good choice, we decided over the intermezzo, a champagne flute filled with a thyme and mango seltzer. The entrees were impressive. The trout was dusted with hazelnut crumbs and served with a brown butter. The filet mignon came with a red wine reduction goosed with black pepper and a touch of chocolate. The Cornish game hen was juicy and paired with a savory bread pudding that doubled as stuffing. The only disappointment was the cassoulet. It was studded with good duck sausage, grilled pork loin and braised pork belly, but the beans were a touch too hard and I wanted the crisp bread crumbs that usually enrich a traditional cassoulet. The various sides included with our dishes included green beans, and purees of root vegetables and squash.

Bobbie found a Peachy Canyon Zinfandel for $25 that we all loved. The wine list is good and doesn’t go beyond $40 (except for a bottle of Stag’s Leap for $85). There are also local beers.

For dessert, the pot de crème was flavored with maple and accompanied with diced fruit and a biscotti. The tart featured nectarines and apples with a crumb crust. Venus was out of the panna cotta that night, but I’ve had it since and it is good, a fruit liqueur raising the custard above the usual plain vanilla.

For chocolate lovers, there is the trio: a white chocolate cream, chocolate truffles and a dark chocolate “soup” in an espresso cup. That night the dark chocolate came cinnamon-y and dusted with red pepper, and I saved it for my last taste, ending the meal on a deep rich note.

Venus’ hours are 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday, and 5 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; the Cellar Bar is open from 1 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily, although food is served only when Venus is open. Appetizers and salads are $7 to $9, and entrees are $18 to $26, with most around $21. Desserts are $7 and $8. Cellar Bar appetizers are $5 and $6.

Venus likes to stagger its reservations to ensure smoother service, so call early in the week if a specific time is important to you.

Originally published Daily Hampshire Gazette, October 16, 2009.