Elderberry Pond Restaruant

Elderberry Pond Restaurant
3728 Center St
Auburn,NY 13021

Food 5
Service 5
Ambiance  7
Overall 17
Good For romantic lunch

I admit I am a true sucker for this local and organic food movement. If a restaurant advertises as such I have fantasies of seeing my pork slaughtered before me and them masterfully cooked on an open flame, while some rugged women tears fresh salad and root vegetables from the ground to pair with the finely grilled meat.  What can I say- Michael Pollen inspired the quest for hog hunting in me. In any case, Elderberry Pond Restuarant is on a small  working farm and advertises much of the food and wine on the menu as coming directly from them. So although I have yet to taste the marvel that is Blue Hill Stone Farms, I imagined this might be in the same vein.
It is out of the main drag, nestled among other farms and residences in deep country Auburn. Driving there at 7:30 pm at night, few street lights shining our way, even with the GPS we got lost twice. Finally, we  arrive upon a charming country farmhouse- the interior an interesting mix of understated modern accesories and original wood detailing. The dining room is small and cozy. I wished I had come for lunch because the windows hints lovely exterior views which in sunlight might be all the more heart warming.
After being seated and perusing the menu, I was troubled to find very little"local or organic" on the menu. The wine list had maybe 2 or 3 wines from the region and the food menu had about the same in ingrediants from the farm. The farm apparently harvest produce as well as chickens and pork. The wine list was small and well priced with an interesting sampling of wines from around the world.
For appetizer I opted for the farm heirloom tomatoe ,mozzarella and basil salad while my husband had a potatoe leek soup. My salad was crisp and refreshing while his soup was underseasoned and lacking in the expected creaminess common to this soup type. For main, I ordered the duck breast while he went for their farm organic chicken. I had ordered my breast rare, and it arrived medium. My breast, while well seasoned was served with an unappetizing potatoe mash. I was quite hungry by the time my breast arrived, owing to an unusually long wait between main and appetizers , and I was in no mood to return it. However, I did let the waitress know that the duck had been overcooked. Imagine my surprise when she stated she had not heard me ask for my duck breast as rare. Our waitress,aside from this gaffe, was inexplicably absent for most of our meal. We were puzzled by this as the restaurant is very small and did not have a full clientele that night.  Back to the food, my husbands chicken was bland , its meat was tender enough but the skin was soggy. Desperate for some food maginificance, we trodded to dessert. We opted for a blueberry lemon curd tart which was refreshing in its simplicity and taste.
Overall, the food was adequate but for the pricing, our bill including 3 glasses of wine left near to 120 dollars,  left much to be desired in regards service and quality. Their lunch menu seemed more reasonable in price and given the lovely ambiance of the grounds might entice me to try them one more time. The restaurant is a destination- as it is away from the main Finger Lake area and any main town. However, they do have farm tours and if you are truly into the organic local movement might be worth a quick trip.  Certainly of our three restaurants, this was one of the best. However, overall the food sampled in these parts was pricey and subpar for the quality. If I return to these region, I will try my hand at the more numerous and well reviewed restaurants of the Ithaca area.
The Quest continues.....