By NEVA TRENIS

THE FREE LANCE-STAR

It is a lucky traveler who finds himself at King Street Blues .

The restaurant, just off Interstate 95 in Stafford County, bills itself as a roadhouse. But the extensive menu offers fare that far surpasses road food.

On a recent Tuesday night visit, I got a warm welcome and a half-hour wait-this place is popular. But the time passed quickly as I studied the funky menu with dishes like “squid vicious” and multiple “sammiches.”

Then there was the fun interior of bold blue , red and green walls; whimsical art such as paper sculptures of a bluesman with stick legs or a black-and-silver airplane; and words painted on walls that admonish diners to call their mothers or hang tight for a table.

Sticking with the roadhouse theme, dinner arrives on brightly colored melamine that’s mixed and matched-or anti-matched-at whim. Sometimes diners get a cup and saucer that coordinate; other times the color combos offend the eye.

It’s all part of the fun.

It is hard to go wrong with food at King Street Blues . Servings are ample, so the appetizer menu portions are perfect for a light appetite. Try the aptly named “great legs,” four tender, zingy chicken legs served with a tomato-laced ranch dressing. Add a small house salad of mixed lettuce, corn and fresh vegetable relish and a hunk of King Street Blues primo cornbread for a just-right light meal.

Do the same with the irresistible “crystal fire” shrimp, fried and dipped in a vinegary hot sauce. They’re small; they’re delightful. Squid get the same savory treatment in “squid vicious,” but calamari lovers should also try the deep-fried “squid happens,” with fresh marinara sauce.

King Street Blues impresses, too, with its entrées, like the chicken “cordon blues ” or the pecan-crusted catfish, both from the “roadhouse traditions” section of the menu. Though the Blues is part of a small chain started on Alexandria’s King Street in 1990, the restaurant’s ambience and food don’t play like chain fare.