LAURA'S is just what Oyster Bay needs and its residents know it. They have taken this newly opened American restaurant to their hearts and made it an instant hit. Even midweek evenings find nearly every table filled; on Saturdays there are crowds waiting in the bar.
Part of the draw is James Paskins, the restaurant's chef and owner, who acquired a following during his years at the Coach Grill, also in Oyster Bay. His wife and other family members efficiently handle the front of the house. Another crowd pleaser is the reasonable prices. Entrees start at $11 and top out at $18.
Laura's, named for Mr. Paskins's late mother, looks much as it did last year, when 68 West Main was at this location. It is spacious and comfortable. The dining room is defined by white columns, carved molding, smoky mirrors and crystal chandeliers. In a town filled with casual cafes, Laura's smart good looks make it stand out.
One new feature is the entrance through the bar. This, no doubt, eliminates drafts in the dining room but the crowded, smoky bar does not make a positive first impression. The dining room, however, is a place of charm and serenity.
Other salad sensations are a just-right Caesar and a plate of grilled vegetables served atop baby greens with a balsamic vinaigrette as a dipping sauce. The seafood salad carries a price tag ($12) that is higher than some entrees, but this abundant assembly could be a main course. It stars jumbo shrimp, sea scallops, calamari, scungilli, chopped peppers, red onions, celery and black olives in a lemon-basil vinaigrette.
Other openers I would order again are tender clams oreganata with a refreshingly spare use of bread crumbs, New Zealand mussels in a sherry pink sauce enlivened by spicy, smoky andouille sausage, a huge crab cake made lighter by the inclusion of shredded vegetables and two big portobellos served on a bed of grilled tomatoes and baby spinach. One creation that does not work, though, is the smoked-salmon-crusted-oysters. The delicate bivalves never had a chance. The assertive bready topping was too much for them. Every day a different homemade ravioli ($13) is featured. On my visit, they were filled with sun-dried tomatoes and black olives and tossed with big chunks of succulent chicken, chopped tomatoes, broccoli and an abundance of garlic. A winner! Another tasty pasta pick was fettuccine hidden under a mountain of sliced shell steak, three types of mushrooms and a chunky tomato sauce.
Fish were all cooked with precision. The herb-crusted tuna was rare as ordered and a special of striped bass in a tomato-basil sauce was moist and flaky as was sauteed tilapia in a mushroom-lemon-wine sauce.
Good meat selections include chicken medallions in a brown sauce spiked with bourbon and touched with cream, a juicy grilled rib eye, a tasty shell steak marinated in teriyaki sauce and a memorable rack of lamb special, served pink as ordered, atop a bed of barely wilted baby spinach. That spinach aside, the same vegetables show up with every entree. But, it should be said, the creamy mashed potatoes are terrific.
Desserts are not homemade but high-quality bakery fare. The ganache-like chocolate mousse cake and the creamy New York-style cheesecake are the most noteworthy.
Prices here are gentle, with 15 of 21 table wines in the $14 to $20 range. A glass of flinty Fetzer Sundial chardonnay costs $5 and a bottle of 1995 Tessera zinfandel, displaying a velvety texture and accessible fruit flavors, is $20.
68 West Main Street, Oyster Bay, 624-7100.
Recommended dishes Clams oreganata, crab cake, portobello mushrooms, mussels, all salads, bourbon chicken, rib eye, marinated shell steak, rack of lamb, ravioli, shell steak fettuccine, tuna, tilapia, striped bass, chocolate mousse cake, cheesecake.
Price range Lunch, entrees $5 to $11. At dinner, appetizers $4 to $12; entrees $11 to $18.
Hours Lunch, 11 A.M. to 3 P.M. Tuesday through Saturday; Sunday brunch 11:30 A.M. to 3 P.M.; Dinner 5 to 10 P.M. Tuesday and Wednesday, till 11 P.M. Thursday through Saturday, 4 to 10 P.M. Sunday.