The Gray Goose
Winter hours: 4-9 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 4-10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays
Cuisine: American with international accents
Entree price range: $17-$31
Address: 2377 Route 30, Ligonier Township
Details: 724-441-4947 or facebook.com/thegraygooseligonier
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Updated 18 hours ago
The Gray Goose has all the rustic-but-elegant country charm you expect of a Ligonier-area eatery, with an extra layer provided by the apt name.
First, the updated, two-story Colonial-style building is painted a soothing gray. Entry is via a brick walk under a long whitewashed pergola strung with icicle lights.
Windows in the back-facing bar provide a view of a pond populated by, yes, geese — along with ducks, a pair of swans and even an occasional blue heron or eagle.
Naturally, some of the signature drinks are made with Grey Goose vodka.
The interior recalls a country estate, with a wainscoted sitting room, complete with comfy leather armchairs and a working fireplace, where drinks and appetizers can be enjoyed. Dark woodwork and flooring lend an intimate atmosphere to several small dining areas.
The Gray Goose has been open just over a year, under the ownership of first-time restaurateur Michelle Kent of Ligonier Township.
Kent says she acquired the former Colonial Inn property about three years ago as owner of a business that helped first-time, lower-income home buyers.
“I acquired the building for someone else, and then they stopped paying on it for two years,” she says, noting that it had fallen into disrepair, including 4 feet of water in the basement. “I had a choice to make: put the building back together or walk away. The more I did, the more I hated to turn it over to someone else.”
She also hated to think that the building's long run as a restaurant was over, so she dove in, hoping that her business acumen and love of food and socializing would pay off.
The first six months were dicey, Kent says, due to high staff turnover. Then she found chef Lynn Barefoot working at the Windber Hotel.
“I kept asking people if they knew a good chef, and they said, ‘You need to call this guy,' ” she says. “He's been phenomenal.”
Barefoot has 30 years of experience cooking in hotels and fine-dining restaurants in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Maryland and says he specializes in “regional American, Italiano and Latino” cuisines. Kent says they collaborate on menu choices, but Barefoot has the final say.
“I wanted the menu to be a step up from bar food, fancy but not too fancy, in a comfortable atmosphere,” she says.
On a recent visit, we decided that Kent has accomplished her menu and ambience goals.
Though you'll find soft pretzels and egg rolls on other appetizer menus, bacon-wrapped duck ($10) and ceviche ($13) might be harder to come by. The seared duck-bacon bites, topped with a smokehouse sauce, were as hearty and deeply flavored as the ceviche was cool and refreshing — though no less flavorful with its balanced lime and chili marinade.
A charcuterie platter ($15) offered capicola and sopressata paired nicely with blue, manchego and Irish cheddar cheeses. For extra zing, there was spicy brown mustard for dipping. Featured meats and cheeses vary.
For an entree, we tried the chef's signature Barefoot Jerk Chicken ($20), chargrilled with a marinade rather more sweet than spicy and paired with risotto, black bean salsa and broccoli rabe.
Risotto accompanies a number of entrees including Chicken Marsala ($18) and the popular crab cakes ($25). Steak lovers can choose from a 12-ounce New York strip ($29) or 16-ounce porterhouse ($28). Duck breast also makes the dinner list, bourbon-seared with a blueberry compote ($23). Pasta, lamb and other seafoods round out the menu.
Kent insisted that we finish with the Goose Cake ($9), a massive, three-layer wedge hearty enough to satisfy two or three sweets-eaters. A Baileys' Irish Creme frosting is slathered between layers of dark chocolate cake made with Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Stout, which then receives a thick coat of Irish whiskey-infused chocolate ganache.
The cake is fragrant with spirits, but the flavors meld well with the sturdy-but-not-too-sweet cake and are not overpowering — though you might need a designated driver if you down the whole thick slice.
Kent and other kitchen staffers make the cake, following a local baker's recipe.
Another house special dessert is the Neopaliton ($7), a Napoleon-style confection of puff pastry layered with sweet vanilla cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce.
Kent has planned a special Valentine's Day menu with choices including Sambuca Beef ($22), Scallops St. Jacques ($26) and white chicken vegetable lasagna ($20).
Pair a special with one of February's Fabulous Martinis, created by bartender Amber Dinell. A romantic meal might become even more so after the lemon-strawberry-vodka Forbidden Love ($11); the Romeo and Juliet ($12), tequila with raspberries and fresh peaches; or the vodka-based Heart of Chocolate ($10), guaranteed to taste like a chocolate-covered cherry.
“We try to keep things light and fun,” Dinell says about her rotating drink specials.
Fun also figures into regular specialty drinks alluding to local history and landmarks, such as the Diamond (gin and limoncello), the Linn Runner (rum and pomegranate liqueur) and, of course, the Adult Arnold Palmer (sweet tea vodka and limoncello).
The Gray Goose offers live music on Friday and Saturday evenings, an upstairs private party room and outdoor dining in warm weather.
“I like to do parties,” Kent says. “I'd like to do more of them.”
Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 724-836-5750 or smcmarlin@tribweb.com.
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