Jekyll and Hyde’s is the only gastropub I can think of in the Erie area. Located at 8 East 10th Street, this small location serves some great beer and even better food. Open for lunch Monday through Friday and dinner Tuesday thru Saturday, it is normally crowded no matter when you are there. The service is not exceptionally fast at lunch, but with just one server, Levi, running the entire front of house, it is pretty good. Amanda and I got in around noon and Levi got us some menus and drinks. The menu changes with the season so they are in preparation for the new spring foods.
We have eaten there a few times before so we already had some clue as to what we wanted. My favorite appetizer is not offered during lunch, but I will still mention talk about it below. I am not sure if I was just really hungry or what, but everything sounds great. We wanted some appetizers that we haven’t tried before. The two that really stood out were the scallops and the chicken lettuce wraps so we went with those. I also ordered the fried bologna sandwich and Amanda went with the herb brined turkey club. We both wanted to order soup with our meals, but apparently they were crushed this weekend and were fully depleted of their soups. I have had a few of there soups before such as the beef stew, chicken tortilla, potato and French onion. The potato is full of large potato chunks, bacon and cheese in an awesome creamy broth and the French onion has a variety of onions, a bowl-sized crouton floating in the broth and a thick layer of a cheese sealing in all of the flavors.
The appetizers came out with our meal, but we were okay with that. They looked so good that I almost started digging in without taking a picture. The scallops were delicious. Three scallops were placed on a fresh slice of polenta, which was on some wilted greens and a balsamic mixture. The scallops were also topped with some home made compound butter. The scallops were just slightly overcooked, but the flavors were awesome. The mix of textures between the buttered scallops, the polenta and the greens was perfect. I thought for the price, it would have been a little larger of a dish. It was $10 for three scallops. Based on taste, I would order it again, but probably not on price.
The chicken lettuce wraps were out of this world good. Large bib lettuce leaves were laid out with a piece of radicchio on top. They were filled with an Asian style chicken salad that was a mixture of shredded chicken, crushed cashews, garlic, ginger, lemongrass and a few other herbs. I had to use the first one as a test to see just how to hold them. Eating them got a bit messy, but delicious none the less. The Thai dipping sauce was a great addition and I could easily eat just this as a full meal and leave very satisfied.
My favorite appetizer that is only available with dinner is their devils on horseback. Not to be confused with angels on horseback, there are no oysters in this dish. These consist of goat cheese and pickled pear stuffed dates that are wrapped in Smith’s heavenly bacon. They are sautéed with some smoked chili powder and placed on a bed of wilted arugula. Six come in an order, but I am pretty sure I could easily eat a dozen or more. They really are that phenomenal.
All of the ingredients used are incredibly fresh and you can really taste the difference. Fresh and local products make you appreciate the food just a little bit more. Thank you to Levi for the good service and to the chefs who prepared such an outstanding lunch. I hope to come back and review some sandwiches soon.
Until next time,
Andrew — Beard vs. Food
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