Even on a gorgeous Sunday morning, Marge's is not much to look at. There is unassuming-and then there is Marge's. However, we had driven all the way to Northampton, hangovers be damned, and we weren't going to let the missing apostrophe on Marge's sign (one of Sarah's pet peeves) foil us in our quest for a reasonably priced piece of Americana.
The restaurant, while little more than a roadside stand, seats rougly 25 in a typical small luncheonette. The menu was what you'd expect for a restaurant that closes at 2 p.m.: eggs, pancakes, breakfast meats, home fries and the like for breakfast; sandwiches, burgers and soup for lunch. This is not where you go for a salad.
We saw no indication that you couldn't procure a tuna sandwich at 7 a.m.-but when the breakfast food is this good (and, like lunch, served until closing time), why would you want to? Kate's blueberry-banana pancakes ($4 for two; $5.25 for three) were bursting with blueberry flavor and were just light enough for Sarah's taste. Rachel enjoyed her breakfast sandwich ($3) with a fried egg, cheddar cheese, ham and tomato, though she noted that the egg could have been runnier. (That said, we decided we couldn't really trust Rachel's judgment since she's never had a McMuffin in her life. That's what you get for growing up in the Bay Area.)
Nick ordered the breakfast special: two eggs, sweet potato home fries, toast and ham ($4.75). The poached eggs were perfect-moist, not cooked all the way through, but not runny either. The wheat toast was fluffy and delicious, and the jam was also better than average (though its provenance is unknown). The ham was thick and pan-fried, while the sweet potato home fries needed more grilling and grease. Nick also ordered bottomless coffee ($1.25), which he pronounced better than Starbuck's but not as good as Dunkin' Donuts'. As for the orange juice, well, save your money: A glass of Florida's Natural shouldn't cost $1.75.
Alicia took the biggest risk-and was none the better for it. Her breakfast burrito, a steal for $1.50 (!), proved what Nick and Sarah suspected all along: You don't come to a roadside stand and order anything remotely ethnic. The burrito was as miniscule as the price and contained only eggs and cheese, which clumped at one end; the accompanying salsa was more El Paso than Mi Tierra.
Sarah, who always has to be different, ordered lunch-a half sandwich and soup combo. On our waitress' recommendation, she chose the chicken salad sandwich; the only soup on offer was corn chowder. The chowder was as disappointing as the sandwich was superb. Corn may be out of season, but canned corn is more flavorful anyway; there is no excuse for a corn chowder as bland as Marge's version, which also suffered from a surfeit of potatoes. The chicken salad, however, was perfect. The chicken was cubed, not shredded, and while there didn't seem to be much else to it besides mayonnaise and maybe tarragon, the salad had a more subtle taste than its ingredients would suggest. Sarah found the bread every bit as good as Nick did.
All things considered, we would recommend Marge's with one caveat: It is no better, and only marginally cheaper, than Stables and Sully's-both of which are a good deal closer to campus. If you happen to be in Northampton, then by all means, go. But in our opinion, it isn't worth the extra 15 minutes each way. Still, we thank Jeanne for the recommendation, and encourage our other reader(s) to do the same.