Hotel Star 5: The Green Well Gastro Pub

My favorite! Steamed Mussels . roasted garlic . onions . citrus . real good beer .
chili flakes . toast points

The Green Well restaurant in the Cherry Hill district of Grand Rapids has been busy since its doors opened a few years ago. Whether it's happy hour on a Monday or dinner time on Saturday, this place is always a good bet if you want a livelier place to eat. I first visited the restaurant a few weeks after it opened in 2007. The chef recognized my party and he requested that we allow him to "just do his thing." One good dish after another came out of his tiny kitchen and
from that moment on, I decided that The Green Well was going to be my "go-to" restaurant. The service is always friendly, the food is always delicious and its neighborhood ambiance is as comforting as a warm blanket on a cold Michigan winter's night.

I invited the JW's new executive chef, Justin Dalenberg, and his lovely Brazilian wife, Roberta, to The Green Well to help celebrate their arrival to West Michigan from Aspen. Our server suggested the Breads & Spreads ($6.99) as a starter to our dinner. We were all starving and this plate was a good starting off point for the rest of the meal.

I have a soft spot for soup, and despite the fact that asparagus wans't in season, I went ahead and ordered the Creamy Asparagus soup to warm me up during one of the coldest days of the year. Unfortunately, the soup was too salty and I had to have chef Justin reassure me that it wasn't just my taste buds that were being too sensitive. A former boss of mine always told me to taste the restaurant soup (and the sauces) every single day to make sure that it was made perfectly. The restaurant chef obviously didn't taste the soup that night. Things like this happen even to the best restaurants so I didn't make a deal out of it.

A bowl of the Steamed Mussels followed, and unlike my previous dish, this one was delicious. So good in fact that I determined that it's one of the best mussel dishes I have ever had. I always use wine for my broth. Using "real good beer" certainly gave the dish some body and smokier flavor.

The rest of the menu items also garnered approval from our table. Both the Warm Spinach ($6.99) and Michigan Harvest Salads ($6.99) were full meals by itself. I like simple salads with two to three ingredients, but these salads are perfect hits if you prefer a variety of ingredients that are well balanced on the plate and on the palate.

Chef Justin, as a tribute to his wife, ordered the Brazilian Black Bean Stew ($11.99). He said it was delicious though it was more the American interpretation than the stews you would find in the streets of Rio.

As expected, Roberta was absolutely speechless about the Mac and Cheese ($16.99). How could anyone not enjoy this dish of corkscrew pasta, four cheeses, chicken, ham, peas, tomatoes, caramelized onions, mushrooms and bread crumbs? My daughter, Margaux, swears by this dish.

My wife ordered the Fish Tacos. The corn meal crusted fish was moist and airy. After adding the guacamole, tangy slaw, pico de gallo, mojo, fire roasted salsa and lime sour cream, you're guaranteed to be satisfied. However, I would have preferred a spicier salsa accompaniment; but I can understand why the restaurant would serve it on the milder side.

The biggest surprise of the evening was the pricing on the 2006 Silver Oak, Alexander Valley, cabernet sauvignon. At $69.00, this bottle is priced at $1 less than retail and not the expected three figures it would normally fetch at restaurants. So I didn't hesitate and I ordered a bottle for our table. The wine did not disappoint. It was big, bold and as our former chef would say, "bad ass."

Despite my soup, our experience was as pleasant as my previous visits. And if our new executive chef approves, then who am I to disagree.