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Colonial style dining
restaurants in Massachusetts
by Eric H.
What better place to soak up
the feeling of Massachusetts by eating in a restaurant with a
colonial or pre-colonial theme? Massachusetts is after all, the
home of the American Revolution.
The feeling of colonial times
strongly exists in Massachusetts today with a remarkable concentration
of period homes, museums and attitude. Even the roadways have
a colonial feel, seemingly left untouched due to state budgetary
restraints!
Many fine colonial type restaurants
grace this historical state. Some offer terrific Yankee cuisine
to match the wonderful atmosphere, often validated by period
furnishings, antiques, post and beam design, old wooden floors,
and waitresses dressed up in colonial-like apparel.
Sometimes, however, colonial
type restaurants cash in by taking a "tourist approach"
and not offering very good food. Other times, the theme can be
way overblown. One time in a colonial style restaurant, this
irritating lady dressed up in colonial garb and pranced from
table to table, asking anyone if they saw Ralph Waldo Emerson
anywhere in town. She was truly annoying. Ralph Waldo Emerson
is dead. We just wanted to eat, but she really pushed the envelope,
asking us more than once the vital question of the day. This
was the nadir of the "Where's Waldo" game.
We have pared down the list
of colonial restaurants to only the best, so you can truly enjoy
great food and atmosphere:
The Salem Cross Inn, West
Brookfield, Mass. Beautifully
situated on 600 acres of rolling hills and woodlands, the Salem
Cross serves Colonial/traditional cuisine within a remarkably-detailed
restored 1700s colonial farmhouse. The painstakingly crafted
wooden floors, colonial style designed walls, the post and beam
and high ceilings make this a memorable dining destination. Menu
highlights includes, maple jack chicken, apple raspberry roasted
duck, slow roasted prime rib, New England chowders, homemade
desserts, and sweet sticky rolls. Salem
Cross Inn, Route 9, West Brookfield, Mass.
Tel.: 508 867-8337.
Longfellow's Wayside Inn,
Sudbury, Mass. Creaky
wooden floors, the glow of a candle, classic colonial architectural
design (it's a rambling old red-painted wood home) wonderful
food and great value makes the renowned Longfellow's Wayside
Inn a perfect gathering place. The Wayside Inn, of course, is
the basis for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's renowned 1862 book
of poems, "Tales of a Wayside Inn." Part of
this landmark inn is modernized but still quaint-colonial while
other smaller post and beam dark rooms look like a place George
Washington could stop by for a few drinks and Yankee Pot Roast.
The Pot Roast is terrific, as well as lobster pie, homemade bread
and deep dish apple pie. The Wayside Inn "American Heritage"
menu offers reasonably-priced complete dinners, Monday through
Friday, including appetizer, entree and dessert. Longfellow's
Wayside Inn, 72 Wayside Inn Rd., Sudbury, Mass. Tel: (978)
443-1776
Toll-free: 1-800-339-1776
The Old Mill, Westminster,
Mass. There's no better
dining location than the 1761 Old Mill with its waterfall, covered
bridge, lovely front porch, tranquil pond, hiking trail and appealing
restored sawmill which is now where people love to dine in several
charming dining rooms. Perhaps the best dining choice near the
foot of the Mohawk Trail in north central Massachusetts, the
1761 Old Mill is a virtual household name that hasn't sold out
to becoming another tourist trap. Solid food, including roast
duck, chicken pot pie and an amazing apple crisp just add to
the feel good colonial atmosphere with good hosts and service.
The Old Mil also has a gift shop downstairs, where the twists
and turns in this very old basement will lead you to some familiar
and unique gifts. The
1761 Old Mill , Rte. 2A, Westminster, Mass. Tel.: (978)
874-5941
The Lafayette House, Foxboro,
Mass. Commercial Route
1 in Foxboro can be an eyesore -- with the exception of the Gillette
Stadium (home of the New England Patriots) and... the Lafayette
House. Begging the question "What's a nice restaurant like
you doing in a place like this?" the Lafayette House looks
like the last glimpse of real New England on this very busy and
rapidly developing stretch of road 25 miles southwest of Boston.
George Washington once stayed overnight at this large 1784 colonial
house that proudly resonates with charm and character -- as evidenced
by the updates that retain the post and beam, wooden floors,
low ceilings and nooks and crannies leading to several dining
areas. Recommended meals are the roasted prime rib, lobster and
roasted duck with ginger marinade. Lafayette
House, Route 1, Foxboro, Mass. Tel. (508) 543-5344
Concord's Colonial Inn, Concord,
Mass. What a great name
for a colonial style restaurant!. The name says it all at this
landmark, located at historic Monument Square in downtown Concord.
Built in 1716 and in operation as an inn/restaurant since 1889,
Concord's Colonial Inn offers a great rotation of New England
seafood and traditional New England fare. This author's favorite
is the incomparable chicken pot pie, bursting with flavor and
a wonderful crust. The main dining room is sprawling but charming
and romantic and the Village Forge Tavern cozy and comforting
(not just a result of the drinks) -- imagine someone once having
lived in a big, old beautiful home like this (Henry David Thoreau
did just that until becoming an isolated misanthrope while living
at Walden Pond). It's hard to imagine a more appealing New England
historical setting than Concord's Colonial Inn -- in the heart
of Revolutionary War country, impeccably maintained, with ambiance
and great food (and lodging) to round out your visit. Concord's Colonial
Inn, 48 Monument Square, Concord, Mass. Tel. (978)369-2373
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