Peter Herdic House Restaurant — Restaurant in Williamsport

My wife and I dined at the Peter Herdic House Restaurant on special occasions for 25 years when we first arrived in Pennsylvania. The last two occasions we tried to dine there we were disappointed, first by the service and the because the restaurant were out of potatoes(!) So, we avoided this restaurant for the next quarter centuty.

This time was very different. We were celebrating my birthday and the dining was well beyond our expectations. My wife and I started by shaing a shad Herdic, a cold Williamsport specialty: shad smoked locally with capers, red onion, housemade pumpernickel, horseradish dill mayonnaise. Superbe medly of flavors!

We then shared a house salad, a mixture of etiolated asparagus, tangerine sections, carrots and radishes in a house dressing, covered with Parmesano cheese flakes.

For our main courses, my wife chose the lamb shank, an 18 ounce shank from a local farm, braised with moroccan spices, roasted local plums, carrot and onion served over cous-cous and finished with a cilantro gremolata. She took half home with her and made lamb stew from it. I chose pan-seared the sea scallops on housemade ravioli filled with lump crabmeat and savory vegetables, and finished with local carrot coulis, roasted beet and lemon-thyme brown butter. Both were cooked to perfection. Compliments to the chef.

For dessert, we chose the ganache torte, dark chocolate cream in a pecan crust, served in a pool of caramel sauce. Chocolate + caramel + pecans, all housemade and prepared superbly. What could be better?

The service was exceptionally excellent. Our waitress was prompt and all the warm plates were served piping hot. The glass of open Chardonnay was delicous (I foget the label).

We were so delighted that I chose to finish it all off with a snifter of Courvoisie and a double decaf espresso, but they were out of decaf espresso and caffein makes it difficult to sleep. It was the only disappointment of the evening, and it was...

Bland, expensive, passable food served in an historic building. Your parents/grandparents will be impressed by the table settings and nothing will be too spicy for them. If you are under 60 you will be left wondering if salt and pepper were the only two items left in the kitchen.

My experience- As I waited for my filet, wondering why selecting a house sauce to drench a premium cut of beef was recommended, I looked around and suddenly realized that I (middle-aged gen Xer) was the youngest person in the dining room..... by a lot. Once the food arrived I got my answer. Everything absolutely requires an add-on sauce to be at all interesting. The dishes on their own are "seasoned for an upscale retirement home". Everything was technically correct yet exceedingly average.

One appetizer was inedible, and I believe this was a failed recipe, not a cooking error. Otherwise everything was "technically fine". The service was good, the cooking technically correct for what was being made. I can't fault any of the staff. I think this is simply a place aimed at people who want to pay a premium for very specific, safe, and non-threatening food in an upscale themed setting.

Tldr; If you were born after 1971 and you aren't taking your elderly relatives out, this isn't where you should go. You will yearn for flavors other than black pepper and delivery methods other than cream sauce. The building is "fancy", the food is "retirement home dining...

My Fiancé and I enjoyed a celebratory meal to commemorate our engagement. We started with Oysters Rockefeller, and Peruvian Shrimp. Both were spectacular, the Peruvian Shrimp was served with an amazing creamy and spicy sauce that was worth double dipping shrimp for a second bite.

We followed with a table side Caesar Salad that was prepared by one of the owners, it was a fun and engaging conversation about the restaurant, the food, the history and more; and the salad was itself delicious and filling.

We both ordered the Seared Scallops with Crab Ravioli for our main. There was a velvety green (which we didn’t identify immediately but was delicious none the less), and peas that soaked up the great flavors from our scallops and ravioli. There isn’t a single restaurant in Williamsport than can put out a scallop that was as perfectly cooked as the scallops they served. This dish was easily worth each penny, and worth the rave review alone.

We finished our meal with dessert; Creme Brûlée for myself and Chocolate Mousse Cake for her. The Creme Brûlée was made perfectly however nothing special. Meanwhile the Chocolate Mousse Cake was the fudgiest chocolate cake ever. It was a great dessert worth a special trip.

If there was one critique, and it is minor at best, the cocktails were strong (and I enjoy...