Inside: Lockkeeper's

It’s not too often that a restaurant decides to sell, is transforms into a completely different restaurant (Dante), then sold again resorting back to the original concept, complete with original owners. But that’s exactly what happened in Valley View. After closing its doors after roughly 17 years and selling in 2007, Lockkeeper’s original owners, Frank and Malisse Sinito, purchased the restaurant back and reopened in January of this year. The owners brought back long-time menu favorites, several new items and noticeably lower prices, in an effort to compete with its one-time pretentious and high-priced reputation.

Food: Lockkeeper’s Italian-centric menu consists of many Italian staples like lasagna big enough to share and its signature and incredibly popular calamari with kalamata olives, sun-dried tomatoes and mushrooms plus slight twists on favorites like prosciutto-wrapped long-bone pork chopped stuffed with fontina and sage.

An order of the tuna tarturo teeters between staple and twist sitting atop a crunchy potato chive pancake with caper remoulada. Although beautifully constructed, too much grease interfered with an otherwise perfectly good appetizer.

Continuing with a focus on presentation, the scallops with limoncello froth and shoestring veggies was also sitting pretty on the simple white plate. The scallops were seasoned and seared perfectly; However, the accompanying shoestring vegetables were overcooked, slightly bland and wilted in appearance

The highly recommended long-bone pork chop had good flavor and was anything but dry, but unfortunately, was also way too greasy, which made the dish difficult to finish. The pork is served with risotto cakes which were wonderful.

The menu doesn’t change much, but there are a number of daily specials, including a soup du jour.

Desserts include Italian favorites like cannoli, light and delicate tiramisu and mascarpone cheesecake plus daily homemade gelato.

Libations: There is no shortage of wine here. The wine list is way beyond a list and borders more on the short story side with 11 pages and growing, of both bottles and glass pours. Not surprisingly, there is a heavy emphasis on the wonderful regions of Italy as well as California, France, Austria, Germany, Spain and the Western Hemisphere.

In an effort to introduce other wine not normally found on the menu, like organic wine from sustainable farms, look for monthly wine features and specials.

In addition to wine, the usual suspects of liquor and beer are available as well as a variety of specialty cocktails.

Happy hour is available in the lounge area from 4-7 p.m. Monday through Friday featuring $4 wine and sangria, plus $5 pizzas and $3 stuffed peppers.

Décor: The rather large, two-story space has an arts and crafts approach loaded with lots of rich wood. The space has a traditional foundation, which makes it ideal for business gatherings, yet somewhat cozy, particularly in the lounge area, which is nice for weekend date nights.

Service: Servers, valet (which is free), and host are all friendly, accommodating and prompt. 

Insider tip: Coinciding with the monthly wine special, the chef, together with the wine distributor, hold monthly wine tastings for $25. Each tasting varies, but expect to taste anywhere from six to 10 different wines plus appropriate food pairings.

Bottom line: With its convenient location layered between business-heavy Rockside Road and a mega movie theater complex, Lockkeeper’s continues to be a good choice for business happenings, and with its new lower price point, a better alternative to neighboring chains for a weekend dinner and movie.

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