Café Martin
24 Bridge St., Shelburne Falls, 413-625-2795
Lunch: Tue.-Sun. 11:00 – 3:00; dinner Tue.-Sun. from 5 p.m.; Sunday brunch 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Entrées $11.95 to $21.95
On a wintry evening before a concert at Memorial Hall and days after a blistering fire felled a building in Shelburne Falls, diners lined up in the lobby of Café Martin on Bridge Street. They stepped past the police tape surrounding the restaurant into a lobby that was crowded with hungry diners. The mood was a somber one. Only comfort food would do on such a night and this was the place for it.
People whispered about the fire, the food and their surroundings: “A couple lived in the apartment for 30 years.” “The potato of the day is mashed.” “Is your coat still wet?” Many of the diners clustered together in the lobby waiting for a table were also in town to see a local singer just back from her tour in Japan.
There are only about two dozen tables in the cozy restaurant, which has an open kitchen and an interior design that mixes early ‘80s New England artisan with touches of France. Bistro elements include a couple of entrées—Croque Monsieur (grilled ham, parmesan and Swiss cheese) and Croque Madame (grilled chicken breast and Swiss cheese)—as well as some artwork. On that cold night the very un-French black bean soup was offered to take the chill off. Served in a thick white porcelain mug, it had more of a southwestern American than French quality. The beans were flakes of flavor in a very spicy broth that was healthy with some excitement, like glade skiing.
Other good food for a winter’s night included hummus with vegetables and a Blue Veggie Pizza “built on a whole wheat tortilla with gorgonzola cheese, onions, raw mushrooms, spinach and roasted red peppers.” It was very thin-crusted and made a substantial appetizer. As we ate, people around us continued talking about the fire. Someone mentioned that the cause is said to be arson.
Shelburne Falls is surrounded by sparsely populated towns. From those smaller towns many flocked to Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters for a daily dose of news and community, according to what we heard. Now that seemed to be happening at Café Martin instead. Perhaps it’s because the firefighters had been eating lunch there all week or perhaps it’s because of the food, or both.
Particularly comforting for firefighters and the rest of us were the potatoes whipped with cheese and garlic and cream and the side of squash puree, with both potatoes and squash winning Locavore points for being in season and locally grown. It is worth mentioning that the menu has a plethora of steak-with-gorgonzola dishes on it. No appetite goes unnoticed at Café Martin. In addition to nine types of salad they also offer six omelets, including eggplant, Greek, smoked salmon, and cranapple nut with walnuts and crumbled gorgonzola.
We decided on a main course of lemon caper salmon and grilled yellow fin tuna steak. The salmon was a decent-sized hunk served on a bed of greens—a healthy and manageable meal for someone hungry but not in the mood for soup, salad, entrée and dessert. The tuna steak featured a soy wasabi sauce and was served with squash and a very light and fluffy basmati rice. It was great food in a place that provided cheer and warmth on a night when it was sorely needed.
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