Tell people you live in or near Deep River, and they’ll likely ask you if you go to The Ivory pub “all the time.” It’s not due to a dearth of eateries in town that people presume a local would frequent the place; it’s because reliably good grub, a home-y atmosphere and friendly service come with the territory.

When I first moved to the area, The Ivory was one of the first places we checked out because we’d heard the burgers are fabulous. They were. Fast-forward a few years and one menu change later, and alongside those tasty burgers are items like Tacos Carnitas ($12; on the lunch menu); Mussels Picante with Chorizo ($12), and “Trapiche Guacamole” ($10). That’s because the team behind the late-great Trapiche in Chester also runs The Ivory and brought some of Trapiche’s greatest hits to The Ivory’s menu in recent years.

We sampled from both sides of the menu with some classic pub stuff and some Mexican-Southwestern-Latin-inspired fare. During a recent lunch on a crisp fall day, a cup of Butternut Apple Bisque ($4) and the Coconut Shrimp Spring Rolls ($9) beckoned and we ordered them as starters. As it turns out, we ended up eating both items with our main courses — a burger and some tacos; more on that in a minute — due to a staff-change in the kitchen, during which our apps order was abandoned. Our waitress, who did an admirable job manning the dining room, pub tables and bar alone, got the apps to us ASAP when she realized the error and took 15 percent off our order in an unnecessary but most welcome apology.

Luckily, the bisque was delicious and just what a body wants on a chilly day. With the right balance of apple flavor and sweetness, we polished off the soup in short order and discovered that the house fries (served with burgers) dipped in the soup make for a sinful snack. While we’re on the subject of delicious warming concoctions, I also recommend The Ivory’s Firehouse Chili ($4 for a cup; $7 for a crock). A spoonful offers instant, sinus-clearing pepper-heat that backs off fairly quickly to give way to the flavor of the expertly seasoned (with just a wee bit of sweetness) tender beef and beans, which are topped with a goodly dash of cheddar cheese.

We think the spring rolls would have been a bit better if they had been hotter, but a dip in the accompanying orange chipotle sauce — a spicy, zesty mixture — amped up the flavor and muted what struck me as a bit too much coconut flavor in the filling. I won’t write them off just yet, as they were well thought out and constructed, with ideal outer-layer crunchiness.

Onward to our very tasty main courses: the OMG Bonnie Burger ($12), a perfectly cooked 8-ounce burger decked with spicy mango teriyaki sauce, gorgonzola cheese, pickled red onions and bacon, lettuce and tomato. From the yummy brioche-style roll to the very tasty sauce, we determined the burger aptly named, as several “OMGs” emerged from both of us after sampling. I don’t generally love gorgonzola cheese but found it to work well within the overall flavor-texture construction. Next burger on my list to try is the Messy Bourbon Burger, served with bourbon sauce, horseradish habanero jack cheese, smoked bacon, roasted peppers and a fried egg.

While the burger won raves, my main dish won the day. I generally can’t resist carnitas on any menu, and certainly didn’t at The Ivory, which offers Tacos Carnitas. I was eager to try more of the Latin-fusion dishes because days earlier I’d sampled and loved The Ivory’s Guajaka Quesadilla ($11) with refried beans. It’s tempting to think that you’ve tried one quesadilla, you’ve essentially tried them all, but The Ivory’s is a standout. Aside from the generous serving size, the excellent refried black beans (also available with chicken or chili), loads of chipotle pepper jack cheese and pico de gallo on the perfectly grilled grande tortilla combine to make a delightful, quickie, light-ish dinner for two.

As for the Tacos Carnitas, when you order it, you get two meals’ worth of delicious food. Within three large soft tacos you find pulled pork, black beans, relish, avocado and pickled cabbage topped with a fabulous tequila cilantro sauce. The ingredients sound great, but the sum of the parts is terrific. Paired with everything else we’d ordered, we had one taco leftover that I graciously allocated to my husband’s next-day breakfast (he loves leftovers for breakfast).

I suspect there will be more Ivory leftovers in our future. Armed with our initial research, we look forward to exploring The Ivory’s menu more, knowing we can fall back on old reliables like the burgers, while remaining confident that more signature dishes will not disappoint.

The Ivory Pub and Restaurant

1 Kirtland Street, Deep River

(860) 526-2528

http://ivory-restaurant-ct.com 

Cuisine: Pub fare; burgers and other sandwiches; steaks and other meat and seafood entrees; plus South-American and international-inspired dishes

Atmosphere: Part comfy local pub, part modern dining room with fun decor accents

Service: Friendly

Prices: Apps on the dinner menu average around $10; priciest entrees are $24

Hours: The restaurant is open Monday-Thursday, 4 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.; and Friday-Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to close. The pub is open every day from 11:30 a.m. to close.

Credit cards: Yes

Handicapped access: All on one level, with a few points of entrance; interior is spacious; small parking lot gets filled quickly and overflow cars line the street