After failing to squeeze in nine holes before sundown at Swansea Country Club and playing…read moremiserably, my friend and I needed an emotionally supportive meal. My friend had been to the Aviary before and spoke highly of it, and after scanning the menu, I also thought it was a great selection. It was around 8:15 pm when we arrived so we luckily just barely made it before the kitchen closed and we were able to be sat outside.
We started with drinks - a Maracuja (which translates to passion fruit in English) and Lychee Martini - both were excellent! They were refreshing, not overly sweet, tasted just like the fruit advertised, and didn't have a ton of ice. All the appetizers made my mouth water just by reading them on the menu, but we decided on the garlic rosemary wings to keep it classic. The menu said they'd be jumbo wings, but they looked like normal size to me which I was actually pleased about since jumbo wings scare me (they're usually raw closer to the bone). They were very crispy on the outside which almost dried them out, but the garlic and rosemary infused butter did bring them back to life a little. I could taste both the garlic and rosemary in the butter and the parmesan cheese shavings were a great touch. For entrees, I ordered a CT style lobster roll and my friend had the swordfish (with fingerling potatoes and asparagus). On Wednesdays, a lobster roll is $20 which is a really good price especially since it also comes with homemade chips. They give you an option between CT style (warm and lobster tossed with butter) and New England style (cold and tossed with mayo and lemon), so I learned something new that day. The bun was buttered and toasted, and it was stuffed with a good amount of fresh lobster meat, and mixed with a light amount of butter. The chips were crunchy, seasoned, fresh, and tasted like real potatoes but just a millimeter or two thicker. The swordfish was flavorful, moist, and did not taste fishy at all. The fingerling potatoes were soft and flavorful as well. They also brought us out an order of fries and they were quite good, maybe missing some salt but I liked that there was a variety going on such as crispy, oily, soft, long, short, edges etc.
Our server was great throughout the night; brought us everything we needed without checking in too often. Even though they were closed, the staff did not make us feel like we had to rush out; they were rather patient and we left around 9:45 pm. Both the inside and outside of the restaurant are very nice. The inside gives classy, and the outside gives great space for laughter and good vibes. They even have a section with lawn chairs over turf with string lights. The entrance/exit path is also very nice, with hydrangeas, roses, and other flowers on either side, a white arch, and string lights too. Overall very pleased with the ambiance, quality of food, prices, and service.
