My spouse and I
dined at Hen of the Wood Burlington for dinner on a Thursday evening in late
September 2018. The restaurant is open daily for dinner only. You can book a
table using the online Reserve dot com reservation system. The restaurant’s
name “Hen of the Wood” refers to a type of mushroom that grows in clusters at
the base of trees; it is also sometimes called “maitake”, “ram’s head”, or
“sheep’s head” mushrooms. (We didn’t think that mushrooms featured prominently
on the menu, so we aren’t sure of the reasoning behind the restaurant name.)
The Burlington
location of Hen of the Wood opened in fall 2013, whereas the original Waterbury
venue opened in the fall of 2005. (The restaurant group also operates Doc Ponds
Eat and Drink in Stowe.) Its chef-owner (as well as the chef de cuisine) has
been a James Beard best chef semifinalist. The Burlington restaurant is located
on Cherry Street and is associated with the neighboring Hotel Vermont. Exterior
wall-mounted gas lamps encourage guests to enter the dimly lit wood-clad space,
where patrons immediately notice the restaurant’s laid-back vibe and rustic
urban feel.
Restaurant guests
can sit in one of two main areas: the bar section (with a large three-sided hickory
wood drinks bar with interesting attached swivel chairs, a standing drinks rail
that overlooks the main dining area, a leather sofa, and low lounge seating against
a wall stacked with wood that leads to the corner fireplace), and the main
dining room (with tables with leather chairs [some of which share a banquette
on one side for semi-booth seating] and a long chef’s bar). The restaurant can
accommodate almost 100 people at a time. Although we had reserved a table, when
we arrived and saw the chef’s counter, we agreed to wait so that we could sit
there to watch the chefs at work. To us, the open kitchen is the showplace of
the restaurant, with its wood-fired oven (notice its metal cooking shelf that
can be raised and lowered with a pulley) and open fire/flame cooking areas, as
well as more traditional components like a multi-burner stove and a fryer. On
the long hallway to the restrooms, be sure to peek through the window of the
restaurant’s walk-in cooler to see meat aging and other cool products.
Hen of the Wood
serves seasonal farm-to-table cuisine. As we waited for our spots at the chef’s
dining counter, we ordered a draft beer and the Penicilina cocktail (mezcal and
something sweet like honey syrup and ginger). After we were seated, we shared
three small plates (beets, braised shredded ham, and smoked pork [served in
thin deli-style slices], the latter two plates were served with thick slices of
grilled bread) and one large dish (rye tagliatelle). For dessert, we ordered
the honey tart and two kinds of cheeses (Cabot Creamery Clothbound Cheddar and
Mad River Blue). The food was delicious; we particularly loved the ham and pork
dishes and had a playful disagreement about which was the winner.
We loved our
dinner at Hen of the Wood; the food was delicious, the service was great, and
the atmosphere was comfy. A great experience!
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