A Weekend in Vergennes, VT

The Emerson Guest House, Vergennes VT

Off the Trail Favorites - Vergennes, VT


The Champlain Bridge to Vermont is reopening this week, and we thought it would be timely to write post about the smallest city in Vermont - Vergennes.  We took the ferry over a few weekends back, and spent a delightful Saturday evening out "on the town".
The expedition came about in our usual serendipitous fashion.  We have been hearing about a local restaurant, the Black Sheep Bistro, for many years, and decided to drive over from Schroon Lake for dinner. On our last visit to Vergennes, we poked our heads into the local theater - the Vergennes Opera House - and fell in love with the space.  Located upstairs from the town hall / police department (a popular configuration for small town New England opera houses), the cozy hall seats just a few hundred patrons, and a community theater group uses it to stage their productions.  As luck would have it, the group was performing Neil Simon's "Rumors" that weekend, and for a total outlay of $24 for two tickets, our evening was beginning to take shape.  I asked the box office manager if there were any inns within walking distance of the theater, and she recommended the Emerson Guest House, just down the block, which is where we decided to stay. It's a lovely B&B, complete with breakfast room and the requisite yellow lab to greet you at the door.
Having secured the theater tickets and a room for the evening , all that was left to confirm was the pre-theater dinner reservation.  You can see this coming right?

Vergennes Opera House

Of course, they were booked at our requested time of 6 PM, but they could squeeze us in at 5.  So be it.  We arrived in town around 3PM, checked in at the inn, and strolled around town. We found a wonderful department store - Addison Outfitters, which carries the holy trinity of casual clothing - Pendleton / Woolrich / Carhartt.  We still had time for a martini at Bar Antidote around the corner, which turned out to be more of a restaurant / night club than bar.  The evening's entertainment was a blues band who were setting up and doing sound checks.  They sounded well worth coming back for if the play ended early enough. The club also had what looked like a great pub menu that we will have to try on our next trip over.
We were looking forward to dinner at the Black Sheep Bistro, which was also within walking distance, and we arrived just in time for our reservation.  Our waitress offered the evenings specials, and we ordered a bottle of red to have with dinner - a very bistro like bourgogne rouge from negotiant Albert Bichot, reasonably priced at $30.  All of the appetizers were priced at $7, and all of the entrees at $19. So far I liked this place a lot.  The appetizers included a few bistro classics - escargot Provencal, chicken liver pate, a Caesar salad with black olives. I tried a dish of duck "cigar rolls", spring rolls filled with tender shreds of roast duckling, served with a tangy tarragon apricot sauce for dipping. A nice idea, and very nicely done.  One of the entrees piqued Mary's interest - a petite tender.  We thought it was a filet mignon, but on presentation you could tell by the grain it was not a loin cut.  It turned out to be a shoulder cut of "terrus major", beautifully carved from the chuck to mimic a filet medalion, and for my money more flavorful than a filet mignon.  It was also very nicely done.  I had some confit of duck for my entree, which was served with an apple raisin slaw and some crispy frites, accompanied by a homemade basil ketchup that finished the dish nicely. A bowl of the house specialty - garlic mashed potatoes was a delicious overkill. We saved some room for later in the evening.  The tastiest part of the weekend was yet to come.    
A recent edition of Food and Wine had featured the local bakery - The Vergennes Laundry. The bakery opens at 7AM, and we made a point of stopping on the way out of town for coffee and some pastries.  This place is the reason to make a trip to Vergennes. We started with a croissant.  I have never tasted better.  I had to keep looking at my hands to see if they were dripping with butter. They weren't, but it seemed like they just had to be.  The croissant was as light and airy as a cloud, but the buttery flavor and aroma was enough to season a lobster tail.  Just unbelievable.  Things were about to get even better.  On the counter next to the register was a small pastry case.  In the case, displayed like diamonds in the jewelry cases at Tiffany's, were the morning's just baked caneles. Part custard, part pastry, part bakery lore, caneles are to baking what Monte Carlo Grand Prix racing is to driving.  Do not try this at home. You must try these, though.  Impossibly moist and creamy in the center, infused with an essence of vanilla bean and rum, the pastry was encapsulated in a perfectly carmelized exterior to complete the package.  Patisserie perfection.  $2.  Plus gas.
  
The Vrgennes Opera House
120 Main Street
Vergennes, VT 05491
802 877 6737
www.vergennesoperahouse.org


Black Sheep Bistro
253 Main St.
Vergennes, VT 05491
802 877 8991
Facebook Page


Bar Antidote
35 Green Street
Vergennes, VT 05491
802 877 8555
BarAntidote.com


Emerson Guest House
82 Main Street
Vergennes, VT 05491
802 877 3293
www.emersonhouse.com


The Vergennes Laundry
Wood Fired Bakery
247 Main St.
Vergennes, VT 05491
802 870 7157
www.vergenneslaundry.com


If you do stop in please let our other readers know about your visit in the comments section.

I hope you'll "Like" Rambler on Facebook  
You can Follow Rambler on Twitter 
Ideas? Recommendations? Email me at NorthCountryJoe@gmail.com

If you enjoyed visiting the blog, please pass it along: