SIMON PEARCE

She says:
If you like to dine while looking out over waterfalls, then Simon Pearce Restaurant in Quechee, Vermont is for you. Set inside an old mill, the restaurant is designed such that the dining room literally juts out over a waterfall. From where I sat I could peer out the window and watch a roaring river gush over the rocky edge, with huge icicles clinging to the boulders below the falls. With such an impressive scene below me, I’m not sure I made for great dinner conversation!

The mill also serves as a showcase for Simon Pearce’s famous glassware. All the plates, cutlery, and glasses are made in the workshops below and can be conveniently purchased for outrageous prices in the spacious gift shop.

He says:
Simon Pierce is pretty much considered THE restaurant in the Upper Valley – it’s where well-heeled Vermonters go for anniversaries and graduation dinners – and the staff takes its job seriously. The service is fairly impeccable. When we asked for a window seat, they asked us to wait 5 minutes and then provided us with a gorgeous view of the waterfall. Whenever I looked up for our waitress, she was there within seconds. If only all restaurants trained their staff at Simon Pierce!

As for the food, it’s certainly a notch or two above anything else in the area. The mushroom chevre strudel is a wonderful appetizer. The “exotic” mushrooms are incredibly bold, their flavor enhanced by a rich sauce infused with truffle oil, and the many layers of baked phyllo dough provide an airy crunch. The salad of seasonal greens with warm goat cheese is good but not much better than what you could make at home.

She says:
We also shared two entrees. Sitting atop a bed of fluffy mashed potatoes, the horseradish encrusted cod was done extremely well, with just a slight crustiness enveloping the tender fish. It was piled high with thinly shredded leeks, which were fried to a delightful crisp, reminding me a bit of tempura.

He says:
I think I liked the cod even more than Uptown Girl … after she finished her portion it only took me a few minutes to wipe the plate clean!

She says:
Not that that’s a big surprise…

The second entrée – ravioli filled with gorgonzola, walnuts, and apple – was a disappointment. The home-made pasta was too thick, and the sharpness of the gorgonzola overwhelmed any other flavors. I tasted no apple whatsoever. On a positive note, I was worried that the three-cheese fondue sauce that it came would be too thick and oily, but it was nice and light.

He says:
The three chocolate bread pudding we ordered for dessert seemed tailor-made for us, since Uptown Girl loves chocolate and I love bread pudding. While she felt it wasn’t chocolatey enough to fulfill its role as the sole chocolate item on the menu, I thought it was very good. The bread pudding had the perfect texture, not too soft and not too firm, and for me the amount of chocolate was spot on.

We say:
If you find yourself anywhere near Quechee, Vermont, it’s definitely worth stopping for a scenic meal at Simon Pearce. The food isn’t revolutionary, but it is well-executed for the most part.



Simon Pearce Restaurant
1760 Quechee Main Street, Quechee VT
http://www.simonpearce.com/CSTM_restaurantsQuechee1.aspx