Spencer Williams, Contributor

Located in the courtyard of Devon House, Norma's On the Terrace has been a popular and successful place for many years. However, it takes a lifetime to gain respect and a second to destroy it. Just because a restaurant has built a fabulous reputation does not mean that said establishment can now sit back and not continue to strive for perfection.

Great service

On the right day the serviceis quick and efficient, with courses arriving at your table on cue. However, silver service is clearly not on the agenda of the training programme for staff. Stacking at the table? Thatmakes me want to walk out immediately. However, I am not one for leaving an unpaid bill, and I figured I'd get to relieve my frustration in this article!

Soon after being seated, a generous basket of French bread, spread with garlic, tomato and herb butter is brought to you. The one improvement would be to toast the bread on both sides, but that didn't really stop me from stuffing my face.

The menu has some good choices, but for regulars it would be appreciated if some modifications were made every six months. Kingston is not exactly laden with masses of fine eateries, so to keep the customers satisfied there needs to be changing creativity once in a small while.

Freshly made ravioli

Although it's written on the menu that the freshly made ravioli comes with spinach or cheese filling, the latter was brought to me without verification that that is what I wanted. Not to worry, there was one leaf of spinach in the white wine sauce! One has to be grateful for the little things in life. The pasta itself was delicious ...once you've tasted the home-made variety, it's hard to go back to the boxed one in the supermarket. It's a shame that the contents of the ravioli had the texture of compacted dirt, and the sauce was rather bland. Perhaps the 'tomato salsa' topping would have brightened up the overall flavour somewhat had it not just been chopped tomatoes without any kind of seasoning.

The seafood chowder made up for this disappointment. Creamy pumpkin bisque infused with a strong shell fish stock was absolutely heavenly. A liberal amount of shrimps, mussels and fish floated around, though the chef could have waited until the last minute to add them to the soup so they wouldn't become overcooked.

The ultimate meal

What is described as Norma's oxtail with button mushrooms and butter beans in a rich sauce, is the ultimate in comfort. The meat glided off the bone into delicious gravy, and mixed with giant beans, I'd say that you'd be hard-pressed to find a better oxtail dish. However where exactly were the mushrooms? And a quick side-note ... par-boiled rice is for amateur cooks, not professionals.

The jerked smoked loin of pork marinated in beer, stuffed with sautéed spinach, glazed with June plum encrusted with stem ginger in a light beer jerk sauce was inedible. Completely dry and tough, this dish barely resembled the words on paper. With no June plum, ginger or jerk in sight, the quarter inch slabs of 'cardboard' were drenched in sickly sweet syrup. Positively shameful!

One of the specials was slices of succulent pan-fried duck breast, whose fat was rendered down to a light coat that was equally flavourful. However, the gravy in which it was sitting seemed to be the unsweetened version of the pork's sauce. This reeks of laziness if you ask me. It's a good thing the mini garlic and herb turned potatoes and the steamed broccoli and zucchini didn't need it. Wherever Norma sources her vegetables from could be turned into a metaphorical 'gold mine'.

What's surprising is that an expensive restaurant, which obviously makes a lot of effort in obtaining some of its ingredients, would fall short on the dairy accompaniment of a $250 cup of coffee. Evaporated milk is 'cheap'... period.

Norma's on the Terrace, Devon House, 26 Hope Road, Kingston 10, Tel. 968-5488

Look to spend: $3,000 - $4,500 on three courses, not including drinks.