I finally decided to go up to Mercersburg to check out the James Buchanan Res and Pub for lunch. I will be back for dinner soon.
My wife got the crab cake sandwich and I got the Pub Burger and Fries and Gumbo for appt. I must say that it was one of the best burgers that I have ever had. It was 1/2 pound burger cooked to your choice. The taste was Smokey and grill flavored. The fries were fresh cut and were delicious. My wife stated that Crab cake was the best she has ever had. I also have to say that the dark coffee that they serve is rather tasty as well. The owners were around and were very nice folks. They gave us a tour of the building. They have an outside area that looks great but was raining today so it was empty. They were also having their one year ann. party. The décor is very nice and looks as I suppose it might have hundred years ago. Highly recommend. www.jamesbuchananhotel.com

We had dinner there last night and indeed it was pretty great. Their menu is predominantly shellfish, which I don't eat at all...but they had a filet on the menu (for weirdos like me, probably!) so I ordered that, and it was superb. I recommend paying the $2 extra for the side order of portabella mushrooms simmered in madeira wine; they were an excellent accompaniment to the filet. The side salad was good (nothing spectacular, aside from this turkish yogurt dressing that I think all of us picked to go on top of it, which was delicious), and I also had a cup of their soup of the day, an asparagus soup which was garnished with a dollop of horseradish sour cream (which took to the soup from fantastic to otherworldly). Wow! That was some soup. Three of us got the surf-and-turf, and they all said the crab cake was outstanding, very little filler. And my husband got this crawfish appetizer, three puff pastry biegnettes filled with crawfish and seasoning, and came with a lemon butter sauce.

I'll definitely go back; the people were friendly and the atmosphere was casual. Neat old building too. Next time we're getting some dessert too, though! And if the weather's decent we'll sit outside on their patio.

FYI, good after-dinner stop for drinks is an Irish bar about 3 doors down, Flannery's. We'd never been to Mercersburg before but our friends had and they suggested we go in there after dinner. Cute bar.

Boy, that critique sure got my mouth watering, Clever!

I've never been there. What did you and hubby pay for your dinner experience there? Is it formal inside?

http://www.your4statedeals.com/intro.php

If anyone is interested in going here is a 50% deal. $50 gift certificate for $25

Well, it's pretty casual inside, more like a pub atmosphere in this really old building; there were people in jeans, and Wildblue's hubby had on shorts and sandals...no need to dress up...I saw people in khakis too. Hubby paid the check which I think was about $100. for the both of us plus the tip, but we each had a few drinks and appetizers, and I had the filet and he had the surf-and-turf so we got some of the pricier items. I definitely couldn't afford to go there on a regular basis, but will consider it for special occasions such as birthdays or anniversaries, or when we have friends in from out-of-town.

The puff pastry crawfish appetizer that my husband got was so large that he only ate 1/3 of it (though it was wonderful) and only ate about half of his dinner. They boxed up the rest of the appetizer and his dinner, so he had the most awesome leftover lunch in the history of leftover lunches yesterday.

Also, I'd never been to the town of Mercersburg either, and found it to be quite lovely. It was a nice bonus to going to that restaurant, being able to "discover" this quaint little historic town for the first time. I'd like to walk around up there on some weekday and stop in at the James Buchanan for lunch, then Flannery's for a drink afterward again.

Does indeed sound good. I may have to keep this place a secret until I need a "get out of the dog house" evening.

Good call!