Dining Room

When Sandy and Chris Ross were in Portland, Ore., they lived in a house built for those who buy large suburban dwellings. "Our house was a McMansion, designed for most people who want a front and rear entrance, a dining room, and a recreation room," says Chris Ross, a software engineer. But the Rosses are not most people. When they moved to Bryn Mawr, they wanted a house built to accommodate their family's special needs, limited finances, and environmental awareness. "We didn't have a great amount of money to spend, so we shopped for a site we could afford," says Sandy Ross, a computer-company lawyer.

The server was uncorking champagne almost as if she were taking part in a locker-room sports celebration. Between pops, she noticed a gentleman's empty glass - one she had filled only moments before. "Oh. I see your glass has a hole in it, sir," she said good-naturedly. "Yes," the diner agreed. "Could you fill it please?" And more bubbly was poured. The unlimited champagne was part of a $19.95 brunch held Sundays at Marriott's Seaview Resort on Route 9 in Absecon.

What we like: This Boyertown restaurant is unabashedly down-home, with a cheerful staff and casual atmosphere. The large, open dining room is paneled and beamed in a country version of chalet style. Plenty of seating awaits the mostly local crowd that wanders in for breakfast, lunch or dinner. What to watch for: A large waterwheel quietly churns in one of the three rooms. Installed 16 years ago, the wheel was made especially for the restaurant. Decorative plates featuring covered bridges - no two alike - line a ledge that rings the main dining room.

A 72-year-old man died in a house fire in Northwest Philadelphia Sunday night. The man was found in the dining room of his home in the 7000 block of Georgian Road in the city's West Oak Lane section. The house was fully engulfed in fire when firefighters arrived at 7:36 p.m. The fire was under control in under 20 minutes, according to police. The cause of the fire was under investigation. - Jeff Shields

The landmark Mickey Rooney's Tabas Hotel was hopping again yesterday, but the scene was far different from the old days, when Frankie Valli, Frank Sinatra Jr. and Bobby Rydell packed them in to Downingtown's version of a borscht-belt resort. Yesterday's crowd did not want to bring down the house - they wanted to take it with them. "Everything goes," said auctioneer Barry Slosberg. "If you see something you want, just yell out. " Helen Ekaro of East Lansdowne took the fountain in the lobby of the Lancaster Avenue landmark.

Some words of advice to the folks at the new Ritz-Carlton: Less is more, guys. Trust me on that one. At two recent review meals at the new Center City hotel, I kept hoping that the young and enthusiastic staff would just back off a bit, leaving us to enjoy our meals relatively uninterrupted by their eager attempts to please. And that the talented kitchen crew could do a little less in the way of decorating every plate to the point where I wasn't sure whether I should eat or frame some courses.

In response to advice on how to clean a toaster oven, a reader in Chicago wondered how to clean the glass. The answer, from a reader in Baltimore, is "just use the cleaner designed for use on glass cooktops. I've been doing it for years - works every time. " Thank you. Question: I have a very expensive stone dining room table, imported from Italy, that has some type of finish on it. Recently, I discovered a ring stain from a glass. How can I remove this? I called the shop where I bought the table several years ago, but they were unable to help me. Answer: We have a polished-marble top on our dining room table (it took four movers to get it to this house from our last one 10 years ago)

The lunch menu featured angel-hair pasta bolognese, with a side dish of marinated peppers that dazzled the palate. The wine was exquisite, the salad top-notch, and the bread as fresh as can be. The patrons, well-dressed professionals, seemed to push aside their workday concerns in the elegant but friendly atmosphere of a tastefully decorated dining room. Another chic Center City eatery serving three-martini lunches to expense- account yuppies? Wrong. None of these people would even consider going out to lunch on Friday, no matter who was paying.

MARIGOLD MAKES IT BACK The Marigold Dining Room, 501 S. 45th St. in University City, is up and running again under the new partnership of Richard DeMatt and Charles "Chaz" Covington. When Dish reported the deal in the spring, the guys weren't ready to reveal their identities till they quit their other jobs - DeMatt was a waiter at the Four Seasons' Fountain Room, Covington cooked at the Harbor League Club in New Jersey. Both were eager to see the Marigold restored to its long-running Americana style under previous owner Betty Rastelli, who still owns the quaint Victorian building.

Main Line restaurateurs Win and Sutida Somboonsong have completed their takeover of the short-lived Maia (789 E. Lancaster Ave. in Villanova), which they began last summer with Azie on Main , a pan-Asian concept, on the second floor. Last week, they opened MIXX (610-527-0700), a comfort-fooder with a bar, on the first floor next to Summit Sports Training Center. MIXX is intended as a Main Line drop-in, with a menu of $8 and $9 burgers and sandwiches, $6 to $12 apps, pizzas, salads, and $12 to $16 entrees.