Review: The 219 makes a happy return

 Summer brings blossoms to Norfolk's restaurant row, where the revamped 219 An American Bistro on Granby Street livens up a classic corner.

It's a handsome space. A bar sits on a raised area running along the inside wall. Booths and tables run along the expansive, street-fronting windows. The visual focus is the city, and the dining area is a place to watch and be seen. Menu offerings range from meatloaf ($12.99), self-proclaimed as the best ever, to Crab Meat a la Pavilion ($23.99), prepared as an homage to the former Nick's Seafood Pavilion in Yorktown.

We started with calamari and rock shrimp ($8.99), and an order of pork dumplings ($8) offered as a special that evening - an excellent way to begin. Red pepper heat lightly touched the thinly wrapped pouches filled with pork mousse, steamed and served with hot ginger, soy and pepper dipping sauce. We devoured the lightly battered calamari, fried and served in a paper cone with grilled green onion remoulade. The grilled onion provided a tasty change to the sauce.

We enjoyed our entree of Asian noodles with tofu ($13.99). Triangles of tofu marinated in a chile sauce came lightly fried and served over green Japanese noodles. Shii-take mushrooms, sprouts and carrots with a slightly sweet mirin ginger dressing rounded out the dish.

The crab cake ($26.99) was one of the biggest I have seen in a restaurant, assembled with only a touch of filler. While the menu called it "blended with the perfect spices," I found not even a hint of salt. The accompanying drizzle of mustard coulis was excellent, but there was too little to help add flavor to the whole cake. The julienned vegetables were nicely done, as were the sliced fingerling potatoes.

We also ordered the sesame- and panko-encrusted oysters ($11.99) and a bowl of the blue crab and yellow corn chowder ($5.99). The oysters disappointed me. I expected the light, crispy crunch of panko breadcrumbs, but the breading on this version was thick and chewy. The accompanying pasty sweet red chili aioli did not help matters. The chowder tasted good, with generous lumps of crab, a slightly smoky flavor and a subtle pepper heat that built over time but the soup arrived a bit overthickened.

The pan-seared scallops and risotto ($17.99) was a hit. Searing the plump scallops gave them a caramelized sweetness. The risotto ranked among the best I've had - cooked through with abundant Parmesan flavor, but still holding the individual shape of the rice. Roasted tomato and asparagus made a nice addition.

For dessert, the cho colate tureen with vanilla gelato and bing cherries ($7.99) blew us away - a slice of rich and thick dark chocolate accompanied by crème anglais and bing cherries, then finished with a drizzle of raspberry sauce and whipped crème.

219 An American Bistro is a pleasant re-addition to the Granby Street milieu. It would be a good place to spend the midday or evening meal and take in the street scene.

Jerry Cronin, flavor@pilotonline.com