Business & Tech

Bites Nearby: Chateau Italian Family Dining in Norton

A review of Chateau Restaurant located at 48 Bay Road.

Overview: is an Italian restaurant with seven locations in Massachusetts. This location is on Bay Road next to Winnecunnet Pond. The Chateau has a large menu of Italian foods and also has a buffet and catering services.

Decor: In the daytime, you can’t help but to wonder what the inside of the Chateau looks like, since the exterior is so intriguing. Though the word ‘chateau’ refers to a manor house or country house of nobility or gentry, to me it looks like an elegant barn, minus the animals and anything at all associated with a barn. The restaurant is also located on the water, right next to Winnecunnet, so you can see the swans swimming by as you eat your meal.

On the inside, you can tell you are in a traditional Italian restaurant. It’s essentially a giant room lined with red booths and wooded trim. When you are greeted by the hostess, a neon red sign saying “Home of the Toasted Ravioli” catches your attention. It’s definitely not a modern style restaurant, but you know what you are going to get on your plate just by looking around.

Atmosphere: I went to the Chateau on a Saturday night with three other people. We were initially surprised that it was an older crowd, but it didn't bother us as we were there for the food and each other's company.

The Drinks: The Chateau has a good beer and wine selection, but I can vouch for their sangria. Typically I do not drink sangria, because it is usually too dry for my tastes. But here it was done to my liking. It was just fruity enough and didn’t leave me floundering for my water.

Appetizers: Before my dining experience, I went to the Norton Patch Facebook page and asked readers for recommendations. Almost everyone said I had to get the toasted raviolis. And so when I arrived with my party of four, we ordered the Italian Tower ($12.99) with fried calamari, mozzarella sticks and fried ravioli. The fried calamari was amazing. Generally speaking, restaurants tend to overcook calamari into a rubbery chew toy. The Chateau’s was tender and tasty. The mozzarella sticks were average, but to me the marinara sauce was a little too watery. Now, onto the fried ravioli. In one word - Amazing. It had just the right amount of breading and was filled with cheesy goodness. Instead of being either oily or chewy like at many establishments, my teeth sunk right in and my taste buds were very pleased. Like my Facebook followers, I highly recommend the toasted raviolis.

Entrees: The Chateau’s menu is quite extensive and even contains quite a few gluten free options. It took me about 20 minutes to come to a final decision on what to order, which was the chicken marsala ($10.99), a traditional Italian dish. I figured I may as well start with something comparable to dinners I’ve had elsewhere.

The Chateau version had penne sauteed with marsala wine, proscuitto and fresh mushrooms. Normally I would not be a fan of proscuitto, but this dish needed the saltiness of it. Otherwise, it would have been rather bland. I still liked it, but I have had the same dish better elsewhere.

The other people in my party ordered the gnocchi pomodoro ($9.99), fettecini alfredo ($13.99) and lobster, shrimp and scallop diavolo ($19.99). They thoroughly enjoyed their dishes.

Sides: Side dishes include a variety of pastas such as eggplant parmigiana ($7.50), meatballs ($2.99), Italian sausages ($3.50), sweet potato fries ($3.99) their famous toasted ravioli ($7.50) and more.

Desserts: I stopped reading the dessert menu when I saw the word ‘cannolli.’ I was too full to eat it just then, but I made sure to bring one home, as did three out of four people in my party. It was absolutely delicious. Inside a fried tube-shape dough shell was a creamy ricotta filling, topped with chocolate chips. I savored mine, eating it as slowly as possible. My boyfriend, however, didn’t show any restraint and ate it in two giant bites. It was that good.

Service: Staff at the Chateau were generally young and quite friendly. In addition to bringing all our food and drinks in a timely fashion, our waitress was conversational and always had a smile.


Address: 48 Bay Road, Norton
Phone: 508-286-4050
Price: $$$ (Varied from very reasonable to a little pricey)


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