My spouse and I dined at the Morse Mountain Grille two times during our two-night stay at the Smuggler’s Notch Resort in late September 2018. The restaurant is open daily for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and drinks from 8:00 am until 9:00 pm. The interconnected pub is open daily from 11:00 am until 9:00 pm.
Morse Mountain Grille is located at the Smuggler’s Notch
Resort near the Village Center (where guests register and where they can visit
the Hearth & Candle restaurant and the Country Store). Guests enter Morse
Mountain Grille from the ground level near the main parking lot, then climb a long
flight of stairs to reach the host stand/bar room level, followed by a short
climb of stairs to reach the dining room. A handicapped entrance is located
around the rear of the building, with doors that lead to both the bar room and
dining room levels. The bar room offers seating a regular-height tables,
high-top tables, and at the small bar. High ceilings and a fieldstone fireplace
create a spacious yet cozy feel. The main dining room is located a few steps up
from the bar room and has both booth and table seating. Sometimes the main
dining room is reserved for private parties, and the restaurant has some clever
ways of using room dividers in order to camouflage the booths that line two of
the perimeter walls.
Our first visit was only for drinks and a light snack, so we
sat in the bar room at a high-top table. We shared the Vermonter flatbread (with
apple chutney, spinach, red onion, cheese, and bacon); however, the base
flatbread seemed pre-packaged. Afterwards, we ordered the cinnamon bun bread
pudding, which was neither warm enough nor moist enough.
Our second meal was breakfast in the dining room, where we sat
at a table with several friends. We enjoyed the veggie omelet (which included Cabot
cheddar cheese, a red bell pepper strip, green bell pepper strip, and
portabella mushroom strip), served with a choice of toast or English muffin,
and a side of breakfast potatoes (which were well seasoned and tasty). Our Bloody
Mary cocktail was a bit disappointing, delivered without the black
pepper-and-salt rim that was described on the menu.
Our experiences at the Morse Mountain Grille were acceptable,
but next time, we’ll try the Hearth & Candle instead.
