Rick's Food & Spirits — Restaurant in Kingston

Do not be fooled by the look of this place! It appears to be a cozy little bar room, but they offer an elevated cocktail and food menu that would comfortably fit into any Boston venue. Three cheers to owner/chef Rick Korn, and GM Greg Rodgers who provided a stellar dining experience.

My husband Charlie and I decided to take a long ride on (another) rainy Saturday, and found ourselves here just before 4 PM. No reservations so we weren't expecting to be seated right away. Looking around, there appeared to be several available tables, but the friendly host, GM Rodgers assured us they were all booked for 4pm, but he asked if we minded sitting at the large high top table for 8. No problem! We were seated immediately. First good sign. How many restaurants have you been to where they will willingly seat a couple at an 8-top and give up all that potential revenue? (Toward the end of our meal, they asked if we minded if they seated another couple at the other end of the table, and we gladly allowed it.)

Our charming server Chris came right over with water and to take drink orders. I ordered the Local Brew Espresso Martini. Delicious, made with their special espresso, and a hint of Maple Cream liqueur with 3 espresso beans floating on top of the frothy foam. One of the best espresso martinis I ever had. Charlie ordered a can of Little Wizard IPA, which arrived icy cold, as he likes it.

Next, Chris delivered a basket of hot freshly baked rolls with seasoned whipped butter. OMG. I am a bread person, and I will get all judgy if a restaurant doesn't measure up on that level. No problem here. These were fabulous!

OUR APPETIZER Trio of Shrimp • Shrimp Ceviche • Shrimp Fritters • Buffalo Shrimp with a large chunk of blue cheese Beautiful presentation. So unique and tasty. Of the three items, we agreed our favorite was the ceviche.

ENTREES I ordered SUMMER CHICKEN. This entree made me soooo happy! The ingredients were so fresh and delicious! The chicken was flavorful and juicy, and the raviolis were light with such a unique flavor! It was a very generous portion, and I enjoyed my leftovers for lunch the next day.

Charlie ordered the Hot Honey Chicken Sandwich. Delivered hot and juicy with a basket of crispy fries. He happuly devoured it!

DESSERT Although we were already full and satisfied, we had read reviews about Grandma Aseret’s Homemade Seasonal Bread Pudding dessert, so we forced ourselves to make room, and we were not disappointed.

This is a large, dense square of tender warm gingerbread-like pudding served up with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream.While walking by the table, Greg noticed that we had this amazing dessert and he asked how we liked it. He revealed that all the desserts are truly from his grandma's recipes, and this one is made by his mom for the restaurant. (As I said before, judgy bread person, which extends to desserts! Again, not a problem!) We did not leave a morsel behind on the plate!

I give this entire dining experience a five out of five. The service was stellar, the ambiance cozy, and the food was absolutely phenomenal.

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First, let me say that I will return, see end review. WE say this on Phantom and saw the food challenge.

I was a little turned off when entering to find a portable basketball hoop and the garage door open with junk in the front and that makes me think of a home /restaurant and it's a turn off. The inside is awesome and cozy and there was a great cross breeze and it was comfortable. The wait staff were outstanding, very nice, and helpful.

We chose Arancini which the sauce was a little off, needed salt but not a clear red sauce. Turn off was that the shredded parm. was bagged where it doesn't melt at all, fresh with some melting would have been better, after all they are $11

Wife had Haddock and side of risotto from the ala carte section and that was good, risotto a little bland.

I had the Mixed Grille because I was interested in having the lamb chops. They cooked it all perfect but the BIG disappointing part was there was no seasoning to any of the meat, no salt or pepper. But the wife's meal and app also lacked any seasoning too.

I would understand if they mentioned on the menu that they don't season the food and let customers chose the salt and pepper but that's not the case.

When I get grilled meat, I don't want to shake S&P on it after it's cooked, I want it properly seasoned and grilled into it. I was so ready to bite those lamb chops and taste it with seasoning and I got bland meat across the board, very sad.

Wherever they locally sourced the andouille, as they mentioned they did, that was the best I have ever had. We had left over and made an omelette the next day.

We had that food and 4 beers with tip for about $105. I know times are changing but to payt hat much for bland food, OUCH.

Now, I said I would be back and I will because they inside was great, staff were outstanding, and had a comfort feel. When I go back though it will be to have the "SANDWICHES AND BURGERS" portion...

Great top shelf food and drink in an old house in the middle of nowhere. We tried this because we were referred to it by a family member. Otherwise we never would have found the place. Glad we did find it. It really is in the middle of nowhere. The dining areas are nothing special--you either eat in the bar or at a high top in the main dining room but ovrall the place has a sports bar atmosphere. Nothing fancy. The menu, however, is very high-end as are the drink selections. We had the ceasar salad for an appetizer and the steak tips. Ceasar was excellent and the tips perfectly cooked. Great portions. The Dunks mushrooms were fantastic. We even had dessert, the chimichunga. Excellent. Sevice was flawless. A little pricey but would definitely go back despite the drive (for us anyhow). Note to Management: Covid is over and even my teen children dislike reading the menu on their phones. Print some menus and laminate them if you must. Also, thank you for disclosing the "non-cash surcharge" on the chalkboard as you walk in but maybe 50% of your customers register that and maybe 50% of those even know what it means. I'm sure not everyone notices the surcharge on their bill and I'm also sure 100% of diners hate junk fees. Call it what it is--a credit card fee. Better still, just raise your prices 3% and do away with it and give a 3% cash discount. That would sound sooo...