Today’s high prices haven’t scared off ghost George at Captain’s Anchorage, who still manages to make his presence known at the landmark Big Bear restaurant, but they have had an impact nonetheless.

    Restaurant manager Sue Battiste doesn’t need to see the spirit of George, the resident apparition, to send chills down her spine. She just has to look at the food bill. One recent week, she says, the price of artichoke hearts nearly doubled—in one day. And Captain’s Anchorage goes through a lot of artichoke hearts, for its famous Anchor, scallops, and other dishes.

    So Captain’s Anchorage, a historic venue built in 1946 that opened a year later as the Sportsman’s Tavern by famous actor Andy Devine, introduces its new “Under $20 Menu” and the response has been “spirited” to say the least. Available all night, every night of the week (yes, weekends too!), the entrees are served with a cozy, romantic ambiance created by hand-hewn wood beams, massive five-hinge doors, ceiling-high native stone fireplaces and original stained glass.

    Sink your teeth into porter house pork chops charbroiled and served with apple sauce for $17.95. That’s the same price for mahi mahi charbroiled, sauteed or blackened and chicken breast straight off the grill. For a buck more there’s a nice 8 oz. rib eye steak, half order of the popular scallops Buena Vista, or even a 6 oz. slice of the restaurant’s signature prime rib. And these are full dinners, by the way, including not just piping hot bread from the oven but also choice of baked potato, rice or vegetable, which combines to make an impressive plate when it arrives.

    All these dishes, by the way, include one trip to the famous salad and soup bar, which goes a long way toward providing real value when dining out. The salad bar is packed with all the usual tempting offerings plus there’s pasta, cottage cheese and other delights. It’s always been a cut above the norm, right down to the bacon bits, sunflower seeds and bread sticks.

    While some salad bars provide a saucer plate, Captain’s Anchorage offers a large one that resembles a casserole. Oh, and let’s not forget soup that’s included either—the famous clam chowder is always one offering but the second rotates, and on our recent visit was onion.

    “Anywhere else you get a little chunk of lettuce,” Battiste chuckles. “We’re especially known for two things, the prime rib and the salad bar, so our Under $20 menu had to include both.

    “I was looking for variety in the menu,” she adds. “We’ve been selling a lot of pork chops and mahi mahi. I tested several pork chops to come up with something that would work for us. Some were tough when we grilled them.”

    The rib eye was a natural offshoot of the restaurant’s penchant for prime rib. “We go through so much prime rib (my personal favorite is the prehistoric-sized 16 oz. cut...a full pound!) that we could do a nicely-priced rib eye out of it,” she says.

    That’s the selection I settle on and my cut arrives grilled medium to perfection, every bite succulent and flavorful. After a robust visit to the salad bar I didn’t need the full pound of prime that I usually order—and then take home in a doggie bag—anyway. And the steak was trimmed so well that the half-pound ate bigger than that because there was practically no annoying fat or gristle to deal with.

    Sandy opts for the mahi mahi (sauteed) and quickly discovered why it has become one of the favorites on the Under $20 menu. “That’s excellent,” she says after one luscious bite. The fish is cooked to perfection, flaky and tender.

    Scallops Buena Vista is a favorite on the regular menu, where it is priced at $26.95 and worth every penny. Scallops are sauteed in garlic, peppers, mushrooms, olive, capers and those pricey artichoke hearts, in a buerre blanc sauce. “The Under $20 menu needed something different and a half-order of the scallops made sense,” Battiste says.

    While early bird specials at “The Hook” as the restaurant is called by locals are gone, replaced by the Under $20 menu, midweek dinner specials remain. Including prime rib on Monday, and as football season arrives Captain’s Anchorage will again be serving free tacos or quarter-pound hot dogs during the game to customers purchasing beverages...the ultimate under $20 offering!

    And about ghost George: server Lorraine Little is probably the person most acquainted with the resident spirit, and she’s prepared a sheet detailing some of the stories for those who ask for it. There’s some good ones, from the employee who ran out screaming after a sighting and heavy foot falls upstairs when no one is around to the bottle of Crown Royal that flew off the shelf and exploded. Curiously there were witnesses who thought the whole thing was rigged to “prove” The Hook is haunted!

    —by Marcus Dietz

    Captain’s Anchorage is off the boulevard at Moonridge Rd. Call (909) 866-3997.