The Driftwood Inn Restaurant and Lounge in Cannon Beach is nestled in the heart of Hemlock Street, and it has welcomed diners with its warm, casual atmosphere for more than 60 years. Prior to visiting for a review, I had never eaten there, but every time I have driven by it, with its sunny deck overlooking the bustling street, I have made a mental note to stop.

I visited for a late dinner recently and began with an appetizer of tempura prawns. The dish was something similar to the fried shrimp one might find in a Chinese restaurant, including sweet and sour, cocktail and hot mustard sauce. The portion was ample and the flavor what I expected it to be, given the description in the menu not terribly original, but tasty enough.

I was a little disappointed by the clam chowder. The cream base of the soup was much too thick for my liking, and in a few bites there were harder, congealed bits of soup, as if the soup had been scraped from the side of a pot. The flavors of the chowder were adequate, but I could not get past the consistency. When I returned on a different day for lunch, I sampled the chowder a second time and found the consistency much more appetizing, looser and creamier than the first time.

I approached a first entrée of halibut with great optimism, as I love halibut it lends itself well to a variety of preparations, but it is also delicious on its own with a clean, fresh taste and a typically moist and flaky texture. The version served at the Driftwood is baked in a creamy dill sauce. Unfortunately, the sauce was used heavy-handedly, and the creamy, baked top of the sauce had separated from a layer of grease at the bottom of the serving dish. The result was a very oily-tasting fish, and it was difficult to taste the halibut at all. The French fries that accompanied the fish were nicely flavored and crisp, though, which helped, and the garlic toast was well seasoned and not overpowering.

I sadly also found the last entrée, a rib-eye steak, to be lackluster. I love steak, and the rib eye is my favorite cut, so perhaps my expectations were high. If youre a regular reader, you have probably read more than once my assertion that a well-prepared steak needs no extras like A-1 sauce or Heinz 57. Although the steak arrived cooked to my specifications of medium doneness, it was flavorless. Even a good dash of salt and pepper improved it, and I actually used A-1 to make it more palatable.

During my subsequent lunch visit, I ordered an Asian chicken salad, with mixed greens, grilled chicken, ginger, wontons, sliced almonds, water chestnuts and wasabi vinaigrette. I appreciate that the chicken was tender and flavorful, but too much fresh ginger was used for my liking. Fresh ginger, depending on the age, can be extremely potent and spicy, and it was the dominant flavor in this dish. I also didnt pick up any flavor of wasabi in the dressing. The vinaigrette instead tasted like something more akin to balsamic vinaigrette.

I watched an enlightening documentary recently, Jiro Dreams of Sushi (and I know this seems out of left field, but go with me for a minute). The film profiles 85-year old Jiro Ono, considered by most to be the worlds greatest sushi chef, and proprietor of Sukiyabashi Jiro, the first restaurant of its kind to be awarded the prestigious three-star Michelin Guide rating. The movie isnt about sushi, really, as much as its an inspiring meditation on a persons life work and the constant pursuit of perfection.

Every day when I sit down to my computer to write, I have the opportunity to do it better than I did yesterday. No matter what our various vocations, whether youre a writer, a restaurant owner, an auto mechanic or a doctor, we owe it to our vocation to constantly push the envelope of perfection, to keep striving every day to do just a little better. I encourage all restaurateurs, not just the Driftwood Restaurant and Lounge, to continue to pursue excellence, even if the usual way we do things seems to be working, even if your doors have been open for 60 years.

Although I found some faults with my overall experiences at the Driftwood, I believe the foundation for greatness is present and that with more attention and vision, the restaurant could flourish.