Two Fridays ago, Mel and I took a trip out to Mount Holly, NJ, to have dinner at High Street Grill, located at number 64 on High Street. The surrounding area was your traditional suburban downtown, with narrow streets crisscrossing between shoulder-to-shoulder local shops and restaurants. Jersey gets kind of a bad rap from the rest of the country, owing to smog holes like Newark, Trenton, and the Turnpike, but I daresay anyone’s opinion of the state would be affected positively by a short walk up and down Mount Holly’s main drag. If anything, the signature hills of my home state will give your heart a nice workout.

Like most of the storefronts on High Street, if you didn’t know the Grill was there, you’d miss it mid-blink. Its stark outer facade, however, belies a cozy, bustling downstairs tavern, with brick walls, live music, multiple beer taps, and, at the back, a stairway leading up to the dining room.

The two floors have different menus. For our first trip, we chose to eat in the upstairs dining room. As Nancy, one of the grill’s owners, led us to our table, we passed the kitchen, which lies off of a landing halfway up the stairs and from which all manner of tasty smells wafted. At the top of the stairs, we were greeted by a grand piano, and a fireplace upon which an unused but ornate guestbook and a copy of Ron Paul’s The Revolution sat. Our table was in the farthest corner, in a small alcove that was just big enough for two people to eat comfortably.

The most important thing to do when you arrive at a new restaurant is to ask for the beer list. In lieu of a list, though, High Street Grill has its wait staff recite the list from memory, which I figure gives them the freedom to change the list frequently without having to print new sheets. Nice idea. Not ideal in practice. Our waiter (who appeared to be having a rough night and so I point this out in a forgiving spirit as he was otherwise very good) had some difficulty with the list, and we had trouble retaining enough of it ourselves to make a decision. After a few runs through the lineup, though, we managed to settle on a River Horse Octoberfest for myself and a Stoudt’s Fat Dog for Mel.

We’d both had Fat Dog a few times before, but this was our first taste of River Horse’s idea of an Octoberfest, which turned out to be a winner. Typical of the American version of the style, it was reddish-brown, malty, and medium-bodied, but also featured pronounced fruity esters and lots of roasty, nutty flavors. Fat Dog, of course, was its usual rich and roasty self.

We started our meal with Beer Battered Artichoke Hearts, fried nuggets of artichoke stuffed with crab and spiced cream cheese. We weren’t exactly wowed, but they were delicious. I imagine a non-fried version would have been a step up. All-in-all, not outstanding, but very good. I mean, hey, we really like artichokes.

The main course, however, blew us away.

Mel chose the Grilled Pork Tenderloin, which was served with mashed sweet potatoes, roasted cauliflower, fennel, and a sun dried cherry demi glaze. The tender and juicy pork was carefully seasoned and spiced with pie spices, and, when combined with the potato, cauliflower, fennel, and cherries, treated the mouth to an explosion of sweet and savory flavors.

For my main course, I picked the Stout Braised Beef Brisket (the waiter told us the stout was Fat Dog), served with herb mashed potatoes, sauteed spinach, and caramelized onion demi glaze. The thin strips of brisket melted in my mouth, and the pairing of bitter spinach with the starchy potatoes and sweet onions helped to bring out the flavor of the stout. I can’t imagine how this dish could possibly be improved. Maybe if it came with fifty dollars. Maybe.

Halfway through the main course, we ordered a second round of drinks. Mel went the stout route again, this time picking Sly Fox’s O’Reilly’s Stout, a dry stout with lots of roasty coffee and chocolate flavors and a big, creamy nitro head. I had Brasserie d’Achouffe’s Mc Chouffe, a unfiltered Belgian Scotch Ale that turned out to be an interesting (and tasty) mix of tangy Belgian alcohol and sweet, nutty chocolate. Definitely a brewery we’ll have to explore more of.

As for dessert, though I know it was delicious, I can’t remember it as clearly as Mel does — her being a baker and all.

We shared a molten chocolate cake that was very rich and dense without entering the land of cavity-inducing sweetness. The cake was plated with raspberry puree and cream, with a fancy-sliced strawberry as a garnish. The perfect dish to share to end the night.

While the lack of a printed beer menu made for an early speedbump, and though we weren’t super impressed with our appetizer, High Street Grill ended up treating us to an excellent meal that we’d be only too glad to experience again.

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