Buddy's Grill a great dining choice

Like the swimmingly fresh seafood, for example. Or the melt-in-your-mouth tender steaks that are butchered on-site. Even Buddy's French onion soup won kudos from Caliente readers in a recent Food Fight.

Dishes that would be easy to take shortcuts with are handled with care here. The zucchini and mushroom appetizer ($7.25 lunch, $7.75 dinner) is made to order, resulting in a fresh, crunchy coating over large white mushroom caps and zucchini slices and served with a side of ranch.

General manager Art Owens and his partners opened the first Buddy's Grill on East Grant and North Swan roads in 1989. He bought out the partners in April 2006.

We ate at the newest Buddy's, which opened in July at South Houghton and East Valencia roads. The capacity is 144 inside and 44 on the outdoor patio when it is open.

We discovered extra-friendly service that delivered a solid, satisfying meal for a reasonable price. For families, groups and people interested in those pluses and the almost unbelievable happy-hour deals, Buddy's is a great dining choice.

The happy hour is at both locations. From 3 to 5 p.m. Mondays-Fridays and 9 p.m.-close daily in the bar, drinkers and diners get half-priced drinks, appetizers and seafood starters such as the oysters.

Buddy's did lots of little things to impress us. Like the chocolate shake ($6.50) we ordered to share during a lunchtime visit. The server thoughtfully split the creamy four-scoop concoction into two tall glasses. It was plenty for two, and ended up being our favorite dessert.

That's not saying that Buddy's is perfect, however. A couple of the sauces needed work. The potato gratin side was too dry. And though the hot fudge eclair ($7) was a dessert big enough for three, it tasted stale.

But there are many, many things that Buddy's does well.

Take the pistachio buttered halibut ($15 for 6 ounces at lunch and dinner; $19 for an 8-ounce dinner cut).

Arriving in parchment paper, the flaky white fish was liberally sprinkled with pistachio chunks. The pistachio butter was created with equal parts butter and margarine, some lemon juice and ground pistachios. The nuts combined well with the buttery fish and gave it more heft.

Many entrees come with two sides. We recommend the baked sweet potato, which is wrapped in foil. We also liked the fresh mixed vegetables, a tendercrisp melange of red peppers, mushrooms and broccoli.

The potato gratin, although a bit too cheesy and dry, was a combination of sharp cheddar, shredded American cheese, salt, pepper, some heavy cream and green chiles.

Be sure to order the oysters ($9 for lunch, $10 for dinner). Six oysters from the Gulf of Louisiana were very large and fresh.

Ask for some horseradish to be added to the house-made cocktail sauce to give it an extra kick.

One of Buddy's signature entrees is the Chicken Sonoma ($12 for lunch, $15 for dinner).

The dish is made up of seared breast meat, baked with lavosh crackers and parmesan cheese on top. It's then covered in mushrooms, artichoke hearts and tomatoes, mixed into a chardonnay sauce.

The actual look of the entree is somewhat unappealing. The sauce is a dreary brown, the same color you might find on your biscuits and gravy dish at any truck-stop restaurant in America.

But taste is another matter. The sauce was not aggressive. It came out thick and creamy, and fit well atop the juicy, plump cuts of white breast meat.

The chicken made up for the sides of bland rice pilaf and excessively sweet coleslaw that we ordered with it.

On another visit, the filet ($17 lunch, $20 for 6-ounce and $22 for 8-ounce cut at dinner) was simply seasoned with salt and pepper, but its tenderness grabbed our attention. The fat 6-ounce cut was topped with mushrooms and came with a side of bernaise.

The bernaise had a base of hollandaise blended with a tarragon reduction and parsley. We would have liked the bernaise to be more saucelike rather than the mayolike consistency it had.

The shrimp and avocado salad ($13 lunch, $14 dinner) looked even better — and larger — than its photo on Buddy's menu.

Avocado slices and chopped red peppers, artichoke hearts, snow peas and black and white sesame seeds were tossed in fresh greens with a lemon wedge on the side.

The six medium Mexican white shrimp were a bit overcooked, but one dunk into the exquisite ginger lime vinaigrette was all it took to forget.

The French onion soup ($6) tasted just like the comforting soup should, with lots of onions and a large sourdough crouton swimming in a chicken and beef base, au jus and a bit of sherry. Swiss and parmesan cheeses topped the bowl.

review

Buddy's Grill

7385 S. Houghton Road, 881-2226.

• Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily in the dining room; up to 2 a.m. in the bar.

• Family call: Kids menu available.

• Wine list: A limited list with 18 labels ranging from $21 to $38 a bottle; $6 to $9.95 a glass.

• Noise level: Can get noisy if it's busy.

• Vegetarian choices: Many.

• Dress: Casual.

• Reservations: For parties of six or more.

• Price range: Dinner entrees range from $8.50 for the classic burger to $22 for the 8-ounce filet mignon.