Under longtime chef Vince Alberici, The Marker offers fine food in a baronial setting.

Lunch, Tue.-Fri., 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.; Dinner, Tue.-Sat., 5:30-10 p.m.; Sunday brunch, 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.

Wheelchair accessible. No smoking. Reservations suggested. All major credit cards.

There are chefs who are genuine celebrities, in the style of Emeril, who, by now, are all hype and very little substance. There are chefs, like Masaharu Morimoto or Georges Perrier, who are not only famous, but who work at it as well. There are chefs who make a career out of jumping from one restaurant to another, whether out of restlessness or a “grass is always greener” attitude. Then there are chefs who toil on, year after year, in the same place, with loyal followers and respect from fellow chefs. Such a man is Vince Alberici, executive chef at The Marker in the Adam’s Mark Hotel.

Many people dismiss this hotel, with visions of Shriners conventions and the like, but in the dining room, the quotidian world slips away and your visions are more of a baronial hunting lodge than anything else. Elegant woodwork forms the coffered ceiling and panels the walls and fireplace. The same tapestries that drape the windows cover the armchairs, and orchids and low lights grace the tables. At the piano nightly is a gentleman named Michael Ford, who plays grown-up soft music, with a bit of classical thrown in.

Only a few tables are occupied, which is all the better for us to engage in polite conversation and enjoy Alberici's cooking.

It's a very elaborate menu, and you wonder how he can feature so many different dishes when it does not look like he is setting the world on fire. But after more than 10 years in the same kitchen, he knows by now just what he needs. The lobster bisque is always substantial and full of the essence of the lobster. There is more lobster, almost a half of one, in the risotto, which also glistens with pieces of asparagus, cherished morel mushrooms and a green slick of chive oil. The rice is perfectly tooth resistant, and the lobster most tender. There's a salad of grilled portobello mushrooms, with fennel and baby arugula, tossed in a citrus vinaigrette and daubed with Burgundy and red onion marmalade. The greens are from Branch Creek Farms, the marmalade is Alberici's own, as are the warm multigrain breads and rolls that are passed with either butter or a bean puree.

Hotel wine lists are notoriously pricey, but here it's hard to find an unreasonable wine. We can have a Valpolicella for $20, or a St. Emilion for $183, although $205 for a 1997 Opus One is a bit steep. We are content to drink a grassy Kenwood Sauvignon Blanc with our appetizers and switch to a Casa Lapostolle Cabernet Sauvignon with our entrees.

Each dish description includes a list of buzzword ingredients -- you know, chorizo, soba noodles, ginger essence, prosciutto wrapping -- and the provenance of most of the meats and poultry, such as Maple Leaf Farms duck and Eberly Farms hens. Day boat scallops, another buzzword, are sautéed beautifully and perch on stir-fried baby bok choy (so chic!), a sushi roll of soba noodles and black beans, and float in a warm Pernod-scented tomato broth. Drizzle the whole thing with sweet potato fries and you've got a small masterpiece. Even the meaty lump crab cakes get a scoop of sweet black Thai rice and a dash of red pepper sauce. Each dish comes with so many garnishes and essences that it's hard to decide, but you can also have a plain rib eye steak with whipped potatoes.

We run a middle course with rack of lamb roasted with honey and Dijon mustard, and receive two double racks of rosy meat and delicious creamy grits taken far from down home with the addition of wasabi. The omnipresent prosciutto wraps a tenderloin of veal that is one of the most superlative pieces of veal ever -- tender, pink and full of flavor. The porcini mushroom sauce lends a musty, woodsy taste, but nothing can redeem the Gorgonzola gnocchi -- they are the consistency of erasers.

Grazing the menu, I find some side dishes more interesting than the main dish: corn and chorizo hash, sweet potato risotto, even a Maytag blue cheese biscuit. To me that shows that someone in the kitchen is thinking and experimenting, not just sending out everything on an assembly line.

For dessert, we can only handle a Key lime and white chocolate tart that is as I expected -- too much chocolate and not enough lime flavor, but the gingerbread crust is a nice touch. The signature warm chocolate (only Valrhona chocolate, you will note) lava cake is correctly named, for it erupts with coconut ice cream, and lava of banana compote runs down the sides. It is indecently good.

We've had a wonderful meal, good conversation and even pleasant music. What more can one ask for on a Saturday evening, usually the worst night of the week for eating out? The staff is considerate and courteous, although there are occasional language difficulties that pass with good humor. Vince Alberici is a very self-effacing guy who quietly runs a tight ship even while there are a dozen affairs being held in the various private dining rooms. The wonderful Sunday brunch packs them in, as does a lunch that features lighter fare like duck pastrami salad with baby pea tops, or the same terrific crab cakes we had for dinner. There's something to be said for a guy staying in one place.