Judys Castle

When my out-of-state friends wanted to eat someplace different and not in a chain restaurant, it was a challenge. After mulling over a few places in my mind, I asked if they liked pie. When their faces lit up, I knew we were headed for Judys Castle. But lets not get the dessert before the meal. I did that once in Charleston, S.C., and got a waiter in trouble, but thats a whole other column. Judys Castle is a small, unassuming place that caters to a crowd whose average age would qualify them for Social Security benefits. This also means they like to eat early. We rolled into their parking lot about 7 p.m. Friday night. This may have been my second mistake  the first being my bragging about how large the portions are. At Judys Castle you walk in what appears to be the back door, find a table and sit down. I like that. If there is a line, people just hang around chatting until there is an opening. This night there were five of us, and it appeared the only tables available were booths for four. So we picked one where I could move a chair from another table and sit at the end of the booth. When our server saw the predicament, she immediately suggested we might prefer the larger booth in the corner. It hadnt been cleaned up yet, she explained, but before we were settled in it was. It was a very thoughtful gesture, which I appreciated. We all ordered the Friday night special either catfish or tenderloin. Cant go wrong with the house special, we figured. Usually means it is well-prepared and they have lots of it. It was well prepared, but some of the portions were small very small. The cook may have been stretching that last 45 minutes until closing. The tenderloins were about four inches in diameter, the mashed potatoes were a very small scoop and there werent more than a few tablespoons of gravy. The catfish portions were just of average serving size. In my past visits, the portions filled the plate. These werent even close. Everything was tasty, but left us all wishing for more. I asked the server if I needed to reserve a piece of pie when we gave her our drink preferences. She gave me a smile and said she thought they had plenty. They did, and in a wide variety. And it all was excellent. The meringue was 2 inches high and as light as you could ever hope for. I had chocolate and it was yummy. Others had chocolate-peanut butter and pecan and enjoyed it thoroughly. So, the end justified the meals. The reviewer is employed at the Daily News. He/she pays for his/her meals and his/her gym fees to maintain his/her figure. New restaurants are given an eight-week grace period before being reviewed. To comment, contact managing editor Mike Alexieff at 783-3235.