By the time I had finished my third recent meal at Newmans at 988, I wasn’t quite sure how to frame this review. I’d visited Newmans in 2007, shortly after the original Mouth had bestowed upon it his highest honor, Restaurant of the Year. After experiencing it for myself, I found his gushing review to be absolutely warranted, not a single misstep in regards to the holy triumvirate of food, service and ambiance that together form a wonderful dining experience. I appreciated the lack of pretense, the casual air that the servers exuded and the humble fashion in which such amazing fare was served.

Years later, Newmans is still among the most elegant and distinguished fine dining restaurants in our area, and I assumed my return would prove just as satisfying as before.

But recent visits didn’t live up to my memories or the lofty expectations they created. The ambiance has not changed. Located in a beach house, the feeling is intimate, with small tables bathed in the soft muted glow of dimmed overheads and tabletop candlelight.

Dean Martin would serenade on every visit, just enough volume to allow private table conversation, not too much to be imposing. Though servers may vary in their styles with more formal or more casual nuances, they are extremely professional and can answer even the most specific questions about ingredients and preparations. On one of our visits, however, we never quite felt welcome or comfortable. Though the professionalism was there, we were served in a most perfunctory manner, and the slightest touch of condescension was evident, something I rarely encounter in a restaurant of such reputation. As with expectations regarding food, these bitter pills are all the more difficult to swallow when the hefty bill arrives.

Foodwise, it’s an array of peaks and valleys. I must elaborate that the peaks are indeed towering, and the valleys are not considerably deep. But again, I previously knew Newmans to be nothing but peaks, and their prices still reflect it.

Housemade Ravioli du Jour ($11) was impressive both times I had it – once a four-cheese containing smoked gouda, Gruyere, Parmesan and cheddar, the next time a French goat cheese stuffing, with pancetta, roasted tomatoes, a light buerre blanc sauce and artistic flair achieved with a playful drizzle of carrot juice reduction.

Although not made in-house, the torchio pasta used in Foie Gras Pasta ($18) is a high quality import, and perfectly cooked. This is one of my favorite dishes anywhere. Two diminutive slices of Foie Gras are seared to absolute perfection. The liver is rich and silky, firm but not overdone, appropriately moist but not runny. The flowered tubes of pasta are coated in a rich, buttery truffle sauce with juices of the Foie. Portions are indeed small at Newmans, but when they are at this level of richness and flawless execution, one cannot complain.

Newmans’ crab cakes ($14) are the best I’ve had anywhere, ever. I feel almost remiss to even call them crab cakes, for there is little but sweet Dungeness crab with the shape and crisp exterior of a cake. These are garnished with a candied lemon twist, a flavorful parsley oil drizzle and shallot aioli. This dish is required eating on any trip to Newmans.

Soups are more hit than miss. For $8, you’re served in a bowl the amount that would elsewhere constitute a “cup.” A potato spinach with gorgonzola and Italian sausage missed the mark for me, too thin, the cheese and sausage too bold for the subtle potato and spinach. A tomato consomme was absolutely fantastic-tasting, though slightly marred by a touch of cloudiness and sediment. A seafood stew of crab, calamari, salmon and scallops was exquisite. The cooking was flawless on all seafood, impressive considering each has a radically different cooking time. Rich and fragrant, after I’d finished the seafood and most of the liquid, I used the wonderful house-baked bread to absorb the remainder.

Another outstanding starter was the dish of seared sea scallops ($16). The two large scallops were perfectly seared, browned and cracked on the surface, medium-rare within. Enhanced by wild shiitake mushrooms and truffle oil, I found the small dish to be worth the high tariff.

Salads were equally impressive. A grilled romaine heart ($9) was cooked with enviable restraint, bereft of the charred and ashen outer leaves and wilted countenance I’ve experienced elsewhere. A light balsamic vinaigrette, candied walnuts, shaved Parmesan and chewy pancetta cubes came together harmoniously with the inherently bitter lettuce. An organic baby gem salad (part of a recent $53 four-course prix fixe menu) with sundried tomato vinaigrette, fried kalamata olives, candied walnuts and Gruyere, was also first-rate.

If the appetizers are defined as palpable hits, the entrees are better characterized as near misses. Medallions of beef ($26) were surrounded by a melange of appropriate accompaniments such as fingerling potatoes, caramelized onions, gorgonzola and pancetta, but the meat was overcooked, and not fork-tender as promised. A grilled chicken breast with a carbonara cream sauce (the entree of the prix fixe) was a bit dry and overcooked. As with other entrees, I found myself wanting more of their delicious sauce. And as Newmans categorizes itself as French/Italian, I’d have preferred hindquarters, as European cuisine is generally more partial to dark meat.

I asked that my seared duck breast ($26) be cooked as rare as the chef was comfortable with, and apparently that was medium. Again, after being told it would be unnecessary, the knife was employed. Although the star of the dish was not to my liking, the supporting cast of truffle oil and foie gras was somewhat redeeming.

I enjoyed a recent special of fresh wild Chinook salmon ($28), served perfectly medium-rare as requested. The wild mushroom risotto cake was half the size it should have been, but had a nice crispy exterior and was soft and chewy within. My foremost complaint was the “caviar butter sauce.” With foie gras and truffles dotting the menu, I was excited for a little caviar garnishing my fish. The garden-variety orange tobiko was indeed disappointing. Black squid ink or green wasabi tobiko would at least be more aesthetically pleasing, or better yet, salmon roe to garnish salmon.

Desserts are above reproach and shouldn’t be missed. Newmans is one of the few places in the area to employ a full time pastry chef, Nancy Williams, and her work is as beautiful as it is delicious. A recent huckleberry crème brulée ($9) was outstanding. The wonderful cheese plate ($8) is also a satisfying denouement.

In summation, I found that starters and finishers fared much better than the pricier entrees, and the level of perfection should be consistent with each and every dish at these prices.

I noted on all of my visits that Chef John Newman was not in the kitchen cooking. I’m aware he has his fingers in many pies, with the Cannon Beach Conference Center, the various culinary competitions and his annual trips to cook at the James Beard House in New York. I won’t directly blame his absence for any recent shortcomings, but I will say that he was hard at work in the kitchen back when I had some of the most memorable meals of my life. Newmans at 988 is still, for the most part, very, very good, but its current performance isn’t keeping pace with its favor. I hope that in the future, I can return Newmans to the high pedestal on which consistent excellence deserves to sit.