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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 16, 1997)
PARENTS’WEEKEND 1997 SweetWaters offers gourmet food By Nikki Okimoto Entertainment Reporter Eugene is not a jacket-and tie-required kind of town. If you’ve ever been to a show at the Hult Center, you probably know that Eugeneans like to be casual even when they are going someplace nice. SweetWaters at the Valley River Inn is just the type of nice but-casual restaurant that fits right in Eugene. It is located inside what is arguably the fan ciest hotel in town and sits right on the Willamette River. The food is definitely gourmet, with prices to match. But SweetWaters is far from being pretentious. There’s no rude maitre d’ to deal with. There’s no strict dress code. The decor is nice but not too fancy. There are several com fortable booths and tables inside, as well as tables on the outdoor deck. The most beautiful element of the restaurant is its view of the Willamette River, especially from the deck. Lights from the hotel shine on the water at night, making the scenery appear even more beautiful. SweetWaters’ menu is a com bination of Northwest cuisine and Mediterranean-style dishes. All of the dishes are a-la-carte. Half of the menu is a selection of small plates and appetizers. Many of these, like the excellent caesar salad with cured salmon and fresh parmesan for $7.50, are quite large and are a satisfy ing meal on their own. The other half of the menu consists of seafood, poultry and beef selections in larger por tions. The menu is fairly small, however, which may be a problem for picky eaters. The two most expensive dishes on the menu are the Buf falo New York steak marinated in Jack Daniels for $22 and the veal medallions accented with lobster for $20. If you like seafood, one of the best entrees to try is the fresh herb fettuccine, served tossed with a variety of seafood, such as shrimp and mussels, for $18.50. For lighter appetites, the cae sar salad with the soup of the day or the seafood chowder is a good combination. Most of the smaller dishes range in price from about $4 to $8. The larger entrees run from about $15 to $22. The food is expensive but well worth it. SweetWaters is not the type of restaurant where you get one tiny piece of meat and two asparagus stalks oh-so REVIEW SweetWaters ★★★ (delicious food, great service, beautiful view) ■ WHERE: 1000 Val ley River Way ■ COST:$10-$30 artistically arranged on the plate. At SweetWaters, the portions are fairly large, especially the larger dinner entrees. A good deal of the dishes on the menu are seafood, which tends to be fairly expensive. You do get what you pay for at SweetWa ters. The food is pre pared well and is delicious. The staff at Sweet Waters is up to par with the delicious food. The servers are attentive and friend ly. They seem to gen uinely want to ensure that you have a good dining experience at their restaurant. SweetWatnrs also has a lounge area with a menu of small, quick appetizers and a full bar. There is live music each night and a small dance floor near the lounge area. If your parents are visiting for the weekend and want to take you out someplace to eat, Sweet Waters is a good place to go for a delicious and leisurely meal in a nice but casual setting. And what better way to end your parents’ visit than with a nice champagne Sunday brunch at SweetWaters before you have to go back to eating Top Ramen and Taco Time again? THE BIRKEN5T0CK STQ8I Friday - Sunday, May 16-18 v 4 - FftEE/ Qirkenstock Tune-ups/ Cseal cork, brush suede.. J Saturday, 11-4 with a Eootwise repair expert. dift with Qirkenstock shoe or sandal purchase/ Save 20% on BirkiKids - Call for details/ Live music - Sunday, 12-2: Peter Thomas, Classical guitar 3-5: Glen Falkenberg, Harp music ‘SION UP TO WIN* Qirkenstocb sandals, T-sbirts, bats, tote bags, care products... — Volt £JLoj\M.s. of England He'll be here to show oar large selection of Clarks shoes sandals for men and women, answer all your questions, and give you a FREE gift with your Clarks purchase/ rTiday, IVlay lo, meet Jim franco, from Oarks of England. Remember, we've moved... ..to a bigger location, on Broadway between Pearl and Oak 181 E. Broadway □ 342-6107 Mon-Sat: 10-6, Sun: 11-5 ODE Classifieds... Worth Looking Into! WASTELAND ..mm mmm QUALITY RESALE CLOTHING Corner of 18th and Oak (Across Safeway, next to Hi-Tech Cleaners.) Clearing Out? Sell your books & magazines for Cash Buyers at two locations No appointment needed 768 East 13th I* y i 525 Willamette 343-4717 Smith Family B o o k s t o r c YOU CAN NOW READ THE EMERALD FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. \ ; -'liliF o.d.e. on the world wide web: http://darkwing.uoregon.edtt/-ode IT’S JUST LIKE REALLY BEING HERE, BUT WITHOUT ALL THE RAIN.
