I enjoyed the Pantry when I first moved here 20 years ago, however in visits the last few years (I…read morewon a Pantry gift card as part of the town's restaurant week), I seem to hit disappointment after disappointment. (See attached photos and descriptions for some other recent misses.) Today I ordered a cold matcha latte with lavender. The counter server (I believe it was owner Zoe) was quick and friendly, however the drink had a hard to detect flavor of matcha, and was without "mouth feel" of matcha -- more like a clear plastic tumbler of iced milk. The lavender syrup was never blended, and only detected after being able to see it at the bottom of the clear plastic tumbler. (The latte appeared to have been blended -- same pale green color.) All this for around $6. Two stars for the availability of nice kitchen accessories, but I will never order a beverage nor sandwich again. I have come to conclusion that customers return here because it's a nice setting to sit and privately chat with a friend.

The lunch here was out of this world. The freshly baked rye sourdough bread was so tasty. And I had…read morenever before had apricot chicken salad. Beyond the food the ambiance inside was adorable, rustic and full of fun houseware.

The Warren General Store is so much more than a store! The prepared food is amazing. Items such as…read morechicken pot pie and shepherds pie are great meals. We stopped by after a hike today at one of the Warren Land Trust preserves and it was perfect to end with hot chocolate that included steamed milk and whipped cream, along with a chocolate chip cookie. The owner, John, is terrific and many times is checking folks out and offering friendly chatter. Not to be missed for so many reasons.

Came here to kill some time while waiting on a vet procedure in New Preston. Best breakfast…read moresandwich from New Milford to Torrington IMHO.. Delicious coffee! Nice people! Kicking myself for driving past it a few dozen times over the years.

Welcoming, very friendly and helpful staff. Busy but kept line moving. Small space indoors but nice…read moreback area to dine outdoors. Food was made on premises and very fresh. Reasonably priced. Will definitely go back soon

My family enjoyed a delightful lunch at Meraki today! The Litchfield Hilly is positively…read morescrumptious and hits on every dimension - the meat is tender and flavorful, the roll is soft and buttery and everything works beautifully together. The front of house is warm and professional and Martin is a brilliant chef. We can't wait to return!

Good food, quick service and decent prices. They also have a sweet spot outside that is just right…read morefor the family.

The food is really good! The service is bad. Only one person servicing all the tables. It…read moreappears that it is just a name change; the menu is the same.

Came here with some friends for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of this…read moreplace. From the outside, it is unassuming and seems like a very casual eatery. The food was so fresh and the flavors were really bright and complex. The eggplant parm was truly something special. The sauce was very well balanced and robust. The other dishes were also very good: fish and chips had a great batter to fish ratio. Jillian was our server and she was very helpful in providing guidance on the menu. This was truly a lovely dining experience and it is clear there is a lot of care put into the food.

My husband and I are from the area our entire lives We…read morereferred our son and his wife, who were visiting From from Florida, to go to your restaurant for their anniversary First, they were seated outside and ignored. They literally contemplated at least three times on whether or not to just leave. They moved inside.... to where a large group of people came in who were obnoxious rude loud and talking about things in public that should not be talked about The server attended to them immediately and often Our sons service was horrible The food was average at Best... They both had leftovers and chose not to take them home They were Very very disappointed ... we will not recommend again

Friendly folks in a small but interesting market offering a mix of dry goods, grocery items and…read moreunique ice cream flavors. Worth stopping for especially if you'd like to trade stories with the "denizens"! Glad we ran across it. I'd rate it a 5 for the serendipitous nature of the place and, perhaps a 4 simply because of the limited selection of some items (understandable).

Nice premade sandwiches for a quick pick up trip. Neat clean place fully stocked. Great selection…read moreof drinks and snacks.

A little slip from previous experiences??? FOOD: Say hello to the $25 burger!!! Overall, 3 separate…read moremeals were pretty good, but their Beers on tap all tasted (off) or flat? ownership needs to check the cleanliness of lines, and cooling system? SERVICE: Our server (L) could have been a little more attentive, too much time spent talking to full tables of guys. AMBIANCE: Always nice, with a more formal (cloth napkin type) section, good bar section with enough raised tables for two or three, and outdoor seating is always an option, but could be a little dusty being right next to the unpaved parking lot.

This is one of my most favorite places to eat locally. Each meal I have eaten here over the years…read morehas been outstanding. The owner, Henry, really cares about his customers and regularly checks in to see how the meal was. The waitstaff is very attentive and surveys diners regularly. Many times we eat upstairs and there is artwork displayed on the walls and contemporary music playing on the background. Always a pleasant experience! I highly recommend dinner at The Old Oak.

Ore Hill has a brief, but somewhat tangled, history. Along with Swyft, a more casual sibling…read morerestaurant that shares the same address and ownership, and Rock Cobble Farm, a nearby estate in South Kent that supplies incredible produce, dairy products, and beef to both restaurants, Ore Hill was the brain child of philanthropist Anne Bass. We have loved the wood-fired pizzas, cocktails, and anything vegetal at Swyft since star chef Joel Viehland (previously of Noma, Gramercy Tavern and Community Table) opened it in 2018. Sadly, Chef Viehland left Swyft in 2020 without realizing plans for Ore Hill and not long after, Ms. Bass passed away. She provided for the farm and two restaurants in her estate, however, allowing Ore Hill to finally open in April 2023 with Chef Tyler Anderson as culinary director and Ryan Connelly as executive chef. The New York Times recognized Ore Hill as one of the best restaurants in the US the same year, the only restaurant so recognized in Connecticut. But the story doesn't end there. For reasons not made public, it seems that Chef Connelly left in late 2024 and Chef Ryan Carbone was brought in as a replacement. At our recent meal, Chef Carbone had not been long at the helm. We do not know first hand what the kitchen was like prior to his leadership -- but we can comfortably say that Ore Hill under Chef Carbone is inventive, interesting, and delicious. It makes brilliant use of lesser-known, lesser-appreciated ingredients that can transform a dish -- like nasturtium flowers and gooseberries. This kitchen takes risks, combining ingredients in unusual ways -- and it often pays off big time. Whoever is designing the food here is brilliant and those who are executing the food are doing a fine job of it. Ore Hill is only open for dinner and only offers a five course prix fixe or a chef's tasting menu. There is bread service, something we have learned to never take for granted given that it is no longer a norm in most NYC establishments: Two extremely thick slices of toasted, smoky sourdough with extremely yellow butter sourced from Rock Cobble Farm. (There could be doctoring of other sorts, but I usually associate butter this color with well grazed cows.) We chose a bottle of wine to go with our meal, a light 2020 Rossese di Dolceacqua, "E Prie" di Anfosso Lorenzo from Liguria. I did not love this wine on first sip, immediately after opening and without food, but the wine grew on me, playing surprisingly well with seafood, cheese / dairy, even lightly acidic dishes and red meat. Our courses: Canape: Black Point Oyster, tomato dashi, cucumber, basil First: - Beef tartare, farm beets, anise hyssop: Finely minced beef and beets were visually indistinguishable, served atop an anise hyssop leaf. We were instructed to eat everything together as though it were a hand roll. - Sea scallop crudo, cucumber, shiso, gooseberry: Sea scallops were pleasantly firm, just yielding enough, and interestingly reminiscent of the cucumber in texture. The gooseberry-based sauce was quite tart and little bit tannic, a fascinating stand-in for more familiar lemon. Second: - Tomme bottoni, green garlic, chive, chervil: Pasta "buttons" were filled with mellow, nutty Tomme cheese and topped with tendrils of flavorful micro greens, both from Rock Cobble Farm. Interestingly, this was the dish that paired best with the Rossese wine. - Grilled summer squash, skate wing, wild rose, red currant, mint: The rose had quite a concentrated fragrance, but was incorporated so gently and thoughtfully into the dish -- as pretty petals garnishing the dish, blended into the sauce, and in the poaching liquid for the skate -- that it was not overwhelming. Third: - Beef flat iron, green beans, bb carrot, lemon balm butter: The beef was perfect: perfectly seasoned, perfectly juicy, cooked to medium rare and wonderful with the lemon balm butter. -Steelhead trout, tomato jam, wood sorrel: The surprise star was the peppery pop of nasturtium flowers sprinkled atop. Fish was oversalted, but otherwise expertly handled. Cheese (a kind gift of the chef): a bloom, a gouda, and a tomme, all sourced from Rock Cobble Farm's dairy cows + spelt crackers Dessert: Summer berries, farm yogurt, sunflower granola, chocolate, lemon balm: Such a fun play of textures and flavors. The essence of summer berries captured perfectly. Black walnut miso pot de creme, blueberry, creme fraiche, sesame: Clever use of blueberry, present as a concentrated powder sprinkled atop the pot de creme, and alongside the creme fraiche and sesame tuille. Ore Hill's kitchen does a wonderful job of highlighting the flavors of intensely fresh ingredients and not impeding their clarity. I'm not sure where Chef Carbone's and Chef Anderson's visions overlap, begin, and end. But whatever they're doing to collaborate -- it is delicious without doubt.

FALL 2023 Menu Highlights…read more The tasting menu begins with a single canapé as an amuse-bouche. A bite elicits delightful surprise... so spoiler alert, skip to first course description if you want to be likewise surprised! The New York State cheddar is melted and encased in a pillow of pastry dough. Black honey (yes, it's a thing) is drizzled on top of caviar that is perched on top. A bite elicits simultaneous bursts of flavor and texture -- crunchy pops of salty caviar, creamy cheese. Just dreamy! First course added to the excitement and demonstrates why New York Times selected Ore Hill as sole restaurant in Connecticut their writers consider to be a national favorite in 2023. Sunchoke custard is truly sunchoke three ways -- moist chunks of sunchoke and veil thin fried crispy slices of sunchoke on a bed of creamy sunchoke custard. Sibling restaurant Swyft is known for their innovative and sophisticated pizzas, and another first course took pizza to unimaginable levels with toppings of tiny beef tartare cubes, thin, tart slices of pickled tomatillo, and slightly spicy horseradish cheese curds. With the second course came agnolotti filled with smoked ricotta, surrounded by cubes of pickled beets and juices, and topped by toasted rye crumbs. This vibrantly colored dish is befitting for fall, with the earthy rye, smoky cheese, and vibrant beets. Another second course available on the fall menu invited surprise-- seared scallops and potatoes are visually indistinguishable as the potatoes were cut and roasted in a way that mirrors the appearance of scallops. Two scallops and two potato rounds sit in a bright green pool of yuzu and lovage infused sauce and topped with broccoli florets. Two meat dishes are offered in the early November 2023 menu -- lamb and strip streak. While well-prepared meats can be experienced in many places (including home), what makes these courses noteworthy are the innovative sauces and preparation of side vegetables that accompany them. An Asian-inspired concoction comprised of bok choy, celery root, and five spice juice elevates several medallions of lamb. A wide sliver of strip steak is paired with a sophisticated iteration of the classic onion and mushroom pairings. Choice of two desserts end the Fall 2023 tasting menu -- "campfire cake" and apple tart. The campfire cake has a creamy layer of chocolate ganache wedged between a graham cracker crust and toasted meringue topping. A delightfully reimagined s'more! The apple tart is a lighter dessert choice, with delicate mini cubes of apples encased in pastry and topped with a dollop of crème fraiche and a leaf-shaped cookie. SERVICE: With two or three items on a tasting menu of an acclaimed restaurant it is unlikely to make a bad course choice, but the server is eager to explain the origin of the restaurant and answer any questions. Service is attentive and mindfully unobtrusive. In the upper floor Rose Room dining area there are two entryways from the hallway through which the server periodically visits five widely spaced tables of two to four customers.