The Right Trax

The rail thing: Lamb chops get star treatment at Trax CafŽ. Photo By: Michael T. Regan

The pun may be obvious, but this restaurant by the railroad is indeed doing things right.

by Maxine Keyser

Nearly every restaurant that is built at a train station tries to evoke the era of the Orient Express. Not so with Trax Café, a charming spot at the historic Ambler train station.

Just as you enter Ambler, there is a vine-covered cottage right off the highway. You enter a large, airy room with white walls and dark wood wainscoting, punctuated only by botanical prints. Large windows have a view of the trains, but better yet is the flowery patio for al fresco dining, set in a garden that separates the restaurant from the tracks. The illusion is of a home that just happens to be hard by the tracks; the focus is the garden.

Owner and chef Steve Waxman has fashioned a casual BYOB with a fairly small and well thought-out menu that gives him room for experimentation and for the use of his newly built smokehouse. There he prepares succulent baby back ribs, apple-wood smoked chicken or nearly anything your heart desires, to eat in or take out. On Friday and Saturday nights, however, out come the white napery, little orchids and terrific stemware for your best wines (obviously influenced by Waxman's family's wine business).

With classical music in the background, we pour some white wine, in just the right glass, and start on a very large amuse-bouche of roasted eggplant, squash and portobellos, peppers stuffed with goat cheese, prosciutto, cheese, olives and a tapenade of black olives to spread on the hot, crisp bread. Everything is fresh and arranged beautifully, and would make a tasty meal in itself. However, there are appetizers to address, like a nice, old-fashioned Caesar salad made with the crisp leaves of romaine that are around the heart of the lettuce, and an extra touch of shaved provolone and croutons flavored with pesto. And there are anchovies in it as well! Another salad of sauteed spinach is a pile of emeralds set in a pool of rosy raspberry vinaigrette, a sharp contrast softened by the crispy pieces of bacon strewn throughout. There are other interesting salads: one with peppers and fresh mozzarella, one with pecan-crusted goat cheese, one with local tomatoes and one with bacon-wrapped barbecued shrimp that are large, firm and smoky. On the side, a spicy Asian slaw adds another layer of flavor to an already successful dish.

The menu changes daily, for Waxman is another of the new breed that is passionate about local, fresh products. The standard dishes are the smoked ribs and chicken, a tender grilled pork chop, a filet with Italian truffle sauce, two penne dishes and grilled Maine salmon with a balsamic reduction. We try the latter and find it, naturally, moist and tinged with the slight sweetness of the vinegar. Whipped potatoes are an apt accompaniment. Amid the daily specials, there is pepper-crusted rack of lamb or the sweet and sour duck. The duck wins, and we receive a half of a duck, truly crisp of skin and with luscious meat soaking up the sauce that is more sour than sweet, with an herbal, citrusy flavor.

The portions here are all quite large, and decorated with orchids or some such attraction, and all of the sauces show restraint. Another daily special of a jumbo lump crab cake disappears in a minute. As a dish that appears on every menu in town, this happens to be one of the better versions -- dense and meaty and graced by a creamy remoulade sauce, heavy with lemon juice and capers. We had brought a Pomerol for our entrees, and it is even OK with the crab meat.

For dessert, everyone wants the ice cream sundae brownie, a killer brownie with a shot of coffee and chopped nuts and ice cream melting all over it; a lovely poached pear in a berry coulis pales beside it. My favorite, the fig tart with an almond crust, is sweet perfection; figs against the crunchy, nutty crust is almost more than I can bear, and I eat every bite, a most unusual thing for me.

We have enjoyed our time at Trax Café more than I can tell you. The appeal, aside from the honest, basic food, is the eager exuberance of the youthful staff. Everyone is friendly and attentive, and to add to these charms, there is live music every Thursday night, a lively catering business, and the promise of a four- or five-course dinner devised to complement selections from your wine collection, should you call ahead of time. Even though I hate puns, I must admit that Trax Café is on the right track.