- By Katrina Binkewicz
- Around Town
Print 
I have a confession to make. I have been told by more than a few Lansing people over the years that King Ferry Hotel has good food, especially their Friday fish fry. Until this year (January to be exact), I had never taken a moment to step foot in there and follow their friendly advice. What my husband and I found was a fine collection of culinary talent combined with the grace and warmth of old-fashioned ‘hospitality’. Distilled to its essence you find quality: fresh delightful tastes, good value, and excellent service. I regret the years of lost opportunity.
The King Ferry Hotel is situated at the crossroads of Routes 34B & 90. It was originally built in the late 1820’s, suffered serious fire damage, and was rebuilt to its present configuration around 1840. Anne and Pat Miller found this charming old building for sale some 13 years ago and concluded it was the perfect place to establish a restaurant. As part of their commitment to the community, they have used only local craftsmen and laborers. The Miller’s, originally from the Aurora area, now live in Lansing with their three lovely children: Patricia-13, Margot -8, and Lansing-6. Every member of their family works in the business in some manner, whether it is creating entrees, flipping burgers, mixing dough, waiting tables, or managing the finances.
Entering the tavern you see the bar to the left stretching the length of the room. It is a cheerful room sporting a tall, old-fashioned, glass door beer cooler and several modern TVs. On a lower level there are tables arranged near a cozy gas fireplace. What impressed me most about the tavern area was the multi-generational feel and friendliness. Old timers mix with young professionals, and children throw darts with their parents, or play in a large boat sandbox on the lower level. This is a community hub. Stay long enough and you may witness an agreeable argument over who will buy the next round.
Dinners are served on Fridays from 5:30 - 9? “Only Friday!” you say, “How inconvenient.”
But think about it this way. Every week everything is made fresh for Friday dinner. When you first eat at the King Ferry Hotel the freshness of the food is quite noticeable, reminiscent of the way it used to be when there were no refrigerators and chefs went to the market everyday for the best cuts of meat and the freshest produce.
Your food is prepared by a dedicated team of women who have been working together for many years. As well as being co-owner, Anne Miller terms herself as the official taster. If Anne does not think the dish is topnotch, it won’t make it out of the kitchen. Anne attributes the success of their team to “similar beliefs, pride, and personal invested-ness” in the product. They all pull their weight to bring about a quality offering.
Anne, Nellie, Angela and Christin
Nellie Franklin is the ‘Pastry chef’, and her responsibilities include: baking a variety of sweets and biscuits, and beating creamy ‘light as air’ frosting for the cakes. Nellie is also the main creator of the offerings on the un-limited salad bar. While generous with her cooking, she is secretive about some of her special ingredients. I did try to separate her from her carrot cake recipe, to no avail. It is light as a fluffy cloud in July and the taste is heavenly.
Angela Feocco is the ‘Queen of Sauce’ and Christin Chandler, the artistic talent. These young women started as dishwashers for Anne in high school. Angela became so interested in cooking that she went off to the Culinary Institute of Pittsburg, generously returning home to share her new talents. Angela is very serious about her sauces. With the right ingredients and the ‘special’ pan she is able to make a formidable Chicken Marsala or Chicken breast with Garlic-soy sauce. Christin’s artistic eye makes sure that the parts contribute to a beautiful whole on every plate as it leaves the kitchen. She also works hard with Nellie to assure a variety of color, textures, and tastes at the salad bar.
The salad bar is included with all entrees, and while not extensive, it has enough interesting items to impair your appetite for dinner if you are not careful. It includes: a spinach and ‘Iceberg’ lettuce mix, various toppings, at least half a dozen freshly prepared salads that change from week to week: Waldorf, seafood, pasta, , potato, coleslaw, artichoke, tomato/onion, etc.. The best part is that they are not swimming in mayonnaise as is a usual danger.
Adjoining the salad bar is a side table on which you may find: hot fresh soup, a sweet bread, pickled vegetables and Christin’s deviled eggs ( if you are lucky). The creamed broccoli soup I tasted was the best I have ever had and the turkey vegetable would have garnered respect on my grandmother’s stove. Go easy on the salad bar is my advice, because the entrée servings are quite generous (I could have worn my steak as a hatJ ).
The entrees change periodically, but don’t worry, if you have a favorite they usually appear again as dinner specials. If they have the time, the team may also honor a special request. The entrée prices range from a Surf and Turf at $25 to a Classic hamburger with fries at $7. Average entrée price is around $12. The meat entrees are specially cut for the hotel at OWASCO Meat Co. If you are a carnivore, there is a choice of a T-bone steak in rubbed spices and flame grilled (mine was m.-rare perfect), a pork chop roasted in a seasoned tomato juice, or a variety of tasty chicken dishes.
Fish lovers have a large variety of offerings: from the classic Fried fish dinner (which tasted much fresher than the last fish dinner that I had at the Pine’s), Sea scallops & lemon pasta, Broiled Filet of fish or a broiled mixed platter. The Garlic shrimp in a spicy Creole sauce was cooked just right. The shrimp tasted fresh and were not rubbery in the least. The Vegetarian is not forgotten. Roasted vegetables & bow tie pasta were served in a delightful, light creamy sauce and was plentiful enough to feed me for lunch the next day. No one will go hungry!
Don’t forget to order a wine to go with your meal. The King Ferry Hotel’s wine list is quite good with an emphasis on the better local wines. The prices are reasonable at $14 - $20 a bottle. Dr. Frank’s Salmon Run Pinot Noir went well with both the steak and the Creole shrimp or an Italian Pinot Grigio would be lovely with the creamy roasted veggies on Pasta.
If you are like me and cannot remember to get up to the King Ferry Hotel for a while, don’t forget to keep Anne and her crew on your catering list. They are happy to cater parties from 10 to 400. You will not be disappointed with their product or their service. Bon appetite!
----
v2i8