The Fairview Restaurante

Low quality food for medium quality price. I had the Mahi Mahi which was over cooked and way to salty. It came with a twice baked potato and canned corn. The worst thing was the margarita. It would be better served as a brine for turkey! The house salad was fresh and mostly green! The service was good, the wait was appropriate and the location was adequate. But I'd not recommend the food.

I came here for lunch today with some business folks who picked me up at the train and said "let's go somewhere local. You'll love this place, but unless you know Springfield, you'd never know it's here."

That's almost true.

The Fairview was a popular north-end joint and tavern forever. I used to come here as a kid with my aunt and uncle and cousins, who lived in Springfield when we we all growing up. Last Spring it reopened after a fire and two-year dormancy as an Italian steakhouse THE FAIRVIEW RESTAURANTE. (a group of local patrons bought it).

I had seafood lasagna, which was delicious and the portion was more than generous. My mushroom bisque soup was rich and almost a meal in itself.

The menu has steaks, seafood, chicken, pork, pizza, horseshoes, burgers, soups, salads and pasta dishes, such as veal parmigiana, baked mostaccioli and spaghetti with garlic shrimp. Among the appetizers: spinocci (deep-fried spinach and artichoke tortellini with pepper jelly), anchovy bread and asparagus in tempura.

I hear on Monday nights there is a shrimp boil with peel-and-eat shrimp for 29 cents each.

This is not a lobbyist lair - strictly locals. A fabulous piece of mid-Americana.