I have been at my post as the Mouth for nearly a year now, and I can honestly say that my experiences have caused me to approach the business of dining out in a different way. Prior to becoming the Mouth, for example, I might not have noticed that the Long Beach Peninsula seems to have the greatest concentration of restaurants on a relatively small patch of coastline, rivaled only, perhaps, by Cannon Beach. It seems that from Seaview through Long Beach there is a restaurant on nearly every block.

The other interesting thing is that two of the three five-star reviews Ive written have come from the Washington side of the river, along with one of the three one-star reviews Ive written. On the peninsula, for many years, there have been a lot of wonderful, gourmet, high-end restaurants and a lot of downright dives Id rather not go into. There is a smattering of ethnic food, a pizza parlor, and a great bakery but for a long time, what the peninsula was lacking was a middle-of-the-road dining establishment that was clean, inviting, with decent food, that could accommodate children, large crowds or the Sunday football gang. The Lost Roo is exactly that, and thats okay.

The ample menu at The Roo seems a sort of collection of borrowed popular dishes from across the U.S., and I say this not as an insult but as a testament to being keyed in to what appeals to the masses. I began a recent visit to The Roo with a seared ahi tuna appetizer and was quite pleasantly surprised by its quality: seared with a sesame crust on the outside but red and tender on the inside, and, with a cucumber salad with wasabi-soy dressing, the dish rivaled local sushi establishments in terms of flavor and presentation.

Up next: a cup of fishermans chowder, with clams, cod and salmon. This is a nice departure from the standard clam chowder seen all over the coast, which I sometimes think might come out of a tap like water or pop. A spritz of sherry balances the flavors of the various seafoods perfectly.

A bacon, bleu cheese and barbecue burger was large and impressive but proved to be one too many flavors in a burger for my liking. The bacon and bleu cheese would have been ample on their own, or just the barbecue sauce on its own, but I found the combination of all three too tangy and rich and just downright messy. The burger itself was flavorful and juicy, but a combination of the juices and the barbecue sauce made the bottom bun mushy. The French fries were average in quality, although I liked their thinner, shoestring shape.

A standout of the evening was a steak salad with mixed greens and cabbage, smoked bleu cheese dressing, grilled steak, fresh avocado, tomatoes, red onions, bleu cheese crumbles and crispy tortillas strips. All the flavors of the salad were well balanced and not in competition with one another; even the crispy tortilla strips had their place, providing a nice light crunch to a very savory salad.

The evenings special of beef medallions in a Guinness gravy, served with garlic mashed potatoes, was executed well but fell short of the mark for me. The medallions were cooked perfectly medium as I requested but had very little flavor; even a coating of salt and pepper would have helped. The Guinness gravy, though, was mellow, almost caramel-like, and rich, and it helped the medallions tremendously. The garlic mashed potatoes were ruggedly smashed rather than being entirely smooth which I think fits the spirit of the dish.

Finally, I sampled a plate of fish tacos with tempura fried Alaskan cod on corn tortillas with spicy sweet cabbage, green onion, cilantro, chili lime sour cream, and pineapple salsa. All of the sides, such as the spicy sweet cabbage and pineapple salsa, were well prepared and tasty, but the cod was relatively flavorless. I dont think the crispy breading of the cod helped the dish, and, if I were to offer a suggestion, I might ditch the breading in favor of marinated and seared fish.

When the Lost Roo opened in 2010, Im not so sure that what it was offering was extremely inspired, as much as it was exactly what the peninsula was missing. The food is maybe a little average and unoriginal, but the concept behind it is brilliant. The Lost Roo has tremendous mass-market appeal; you could box it up and sell it as a chain in any big city with no problem. It is Outback Steakhouse-like in atmosphere, can host large crowds, accommodates noisy children like mine nicely, and with several flat-screen televisions and a large bar area, is a natural choice for a sports-watching crowd. It might not be the French Laundry, but on the other hand, the Lost Roo knows its demographic, and it serves that demographic flawlessly. Its reliably average to above-average food, for a decent price, in a nice space, with good service and whats not to like about that?