My spouse and I dined Red Bistro at Terrapin for lunch on a Saturday afternoon in late September 2015. Terrapin itself is open only for dinner daily, while the more casual Red Bistro is open for both lunch and dinner daily. Terrapin accepts reservations via telephone or using the Open Table system, but Red Bistro does not accept reservations.
Terrapin and Red Bistro
are located a block from Market Street in Rhinebeck in a restored circa-1825
First Baptist Church. Terrapin opened in 1998, and the fine-dining side
occupies the more beautiful historic space, with the indoor Red space being
more casual, hip, and modern-looking. Restrooms are located in the basement;
however, we did not see an elevator leading down there (perhaps there is a
handicap-accessible restaurant somewhere on the main level).
Terrapin serves
contemporary American food. We shared two of their tapas as appetizers (the
duck quesadilla wedge and the brie and mango crostini) that are really meant
for only one person each, and are priced accordingly at $3. (In retrospect, we
should have ordered four of the tapas.) Next, we shared the soul food plate (fried
chicken, collard greens, mashed potatoes, and mac & cheese) and the crispy fish
tacos. The soul platter was good, but we have had better fish tacos elsewhere.
We would have liked to try two of the pasta dishes, but sadly, they are
available only after 5:00 pm. Service was terribly slow; in fact, we had
planned to order dessert, but it took so long for our server to come back to
our table that we just requested our check and then went elsewhere to finish
our meal.
Red Bistro at
Terrapin was a bit of a disappointment. It was lovely to sit outside on a
beautiful fall day, but based on all we had heard and read, we expected much
more from the food and service.
