Horn's Tavern does casual right

Having a real restaurant in the spot, near the Brunswick Community Library and several ball fields on Route 2, seems like a major plus for the semi-rural neighborhood as well as a complement to the barbecue spot down the road.

Horn's is a restaurant to bring the kids for better food than chicken fingers, to stop in for a burger or bowl of pasta or to satisfy a craving for filet mignon without having to go far from home.

Some of the neighbors, at least, have liked what they found in the 13 months since Horn's opened; I take it as a sign of quality that the chef Larry Schepici was eating pasta at the bar in shorts and a T-shirt on a recent Saturday night, a reward to himself after hosting a daylong yard sale.

The preparation changes often; the night we had it, chunky mushrooms, baby spinach and good-size shrimp studded perfectly al dente rice, with just enough cheese to make each mouthful creamy.

The dish was clearly the creation of someone who cares about simple, well-cooked food, and at $14 for a modest portion, the risotto is the right price and size to make a fine meal with a salad.

Two large fillets of fresh haddock, gushingly moist inside, get a crispy coat from dark-beer batter, and the accompanying mound of homemade fries will sate the heartiest of appetites.