Ye Olde Tavern — Restaurant in Manchester

FIRST VISIT: This place was suggested to me and my girlfriend by Michael, our innkeeper at Ira Allen House in Sunderland (a place with a colonial/revolutionary-era vibe that goes hand-in-hand with this restaurant). He mentioned that the food, atmosphere, and cocktails were all great.

We made reservations and were seated in the bar area at what we were told was the tavern's oldest table, which lacked a tablecloth in order to show it off. The waitress was incredibly friendly and did not rush us at all, even later in the evening on a weeknight. My girlfriend ordered a really great Brandy Alexander and I ordered a Rusty Nail.

For an appetizer, our waitress suggested the mac and cheese. My girlfriend and I have pretty high standards for our mac, and this didn't disappoint in the slightest. Breadcrumb topping, vermont cheddar, bacon, and lobster mixed in. We were also enjoying the cranberry fritters and maple butter.

For dinner, I ordered the venison with wild mushroom bordelaise. It came with mashed potatoes and veggies. Juicy and tender. My girlfriend ordered yankee pot roast, which was really hearty with rich gravy.

The desserts were good - the cranberry-apple crisp was satisfying served warm with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. SECOND VISIT: When we made the reservation, we wanted to make sure we sat at our preferred table, which was an old quilting table in the corner of the bar room. Unfortunately the host gave the table to another party, but we didn't mind. He was very apologetic but honestly provided such great service to us and was so friendly that we didn't mind about the table at all.

We obviously had to order some good old-fashioned cocktails. My fiancée went for the Brandy Alexander, which was excellent. I decided to order a Ward Eight, which satisfied the craving for bourbon and sweet.

First we ordered the onion soup, which was excellent. A really solid rendition of a classic, with the cheddar and taproom ale providing a good funk compared to a typical French onion.

During our appetizer, we read about the restaurant's history in the back of the cocktail menu. We saw a little blurb about the third-floor ballroom with sprung floor and decided to see if they'd allow us to take a look. Surprisingly, the host was more than willing to lead us up into the unoccupied third-floor space and show us the ballroom. What an experience! The paint and floors are all original, and in the adjoining closet, you can see original construction as well as renovation work done over time.

After that cool detour, we got back to the table for our salads. I got the house salad with field greens and blue cheese, while my fiancée got the Caesar. Both salads were delicious.

At this point we realized we never got the cranberry fritters. The waitress was swamped but was doing an great job and, like the rest of the staff, was extremely friendly and personable. When she came to get our salad plates, we asked about the fritters and she said she'd bring them, but unfortunately we never received them and felt bad asking again. The rest of the meal was good enough to make up for it.

My fiancée ordered the mac and cheese, which we ordered as an appetizer the first time we came. Super delicious, creamy, full of lobster meat, bacon, and cheddar. I ordered the filet mignon with horseradish cream sauce. It was excellent, and I was really feeling like a good steak.

For dessert I ordered a pineapple upside-down cake, and it was awesome. My fiancée ordered the mocha bombe, which was fun to watch get flambeed, but tasted a little too heavily of alcohol. It wasn't bad, but it was just a little too much. We also decided to indulge in the "naughty chocolate milk" - Godiva liqeur, Bailey's, Kahlua, coffee vodka, and milk in a glass milk carton. For some reason I don't think this is period-accurate to the late 1700s but it was delicious.

So glad I got to return for our second trip to the Manchester area. It's one of my...

This was a great experience! Immediately you're treated to a building that's stuck in time and now you're ready to eat in one of the greatest environments possible!

Menu is super clean with a lot options. Table came with 4 Cranberry Fritters and a maple butter for dipping and holy **!

Our appetizer was the $15 meat platter which was 4 slices of Pepperoni, Sausage, Prosciutto, Sausage and then little apple slices and breads which was great with the rest of the maple butter!!

My wife got this half pound chicken thing covered in the best sauce! I believe it was apple cider and maybe something but it was unbelievable, tasted like Thanksgiving if you if you could eat Thanksgivings! :)

I have always been skeptical of lobster and I've never had a $30 Mac & Cheese so I had to try it! It was a very good but I still don't understand the the hype behind lobster, maybe in its own it's awesome but in a Mac & Cheese it's completed covered in the taste of cheese and tastes just like a chewy piece of meat.

For drinks I had a $10 Maple Vermontini which was vodka with a dab of maple syrup and was very powerful! It was the size of two shots glasses if I had to guess. Had to follow it up with a $5 Citizen Hard Cider which is probably my favorite next to Harpoon!

Wife had a mulled apple cider which had an orange slice in it and was super hot...but by far one of the best ciders I've ever tasted!!

Dessert was tough to pick. I ended up going with the $8 chocolate ganache cake that gets set on fire because it's covered in liquor! One of the best chocolate cakes I've ever had, easily.

Wife had the $8 Slice of Pumpkin Pie which was pretty good but didn't blow is away. I question if Pumpkin Pie can be...

We dined at Ye Olde Tavern in Manchester, Vermont, on a recent Sunday night at 8 pm, as it is one of about three local restaurants actually open on a Sunday night during the summer. The atmosphere was a highlight, with its historic colonial decor and old-fashioned food providing a unique and cozy dining experience.

The service was friendly and helpful, which added to the pleasantness of our visit. Our server was attentive and made sure we were comfortable throughout the meal.

The menu featured a vast choice of traditional proteins, each accompanied by the same: starter of 2 cranberry fritters per person, a lovely mixed salad with blue cheese crumbles, bread and butter, wild rice (mixed with regular rice) or potatoes, and side vegetables.

While the cranberry fritters, bread and salad were enjoyable, the wild rice mix was a letdown. It was bland and mushy, lacking the proper flavor and texture. The side vegetables, on the night we visited, were seasoned mushy zucchini chunks and plain undressed green beans. Unfortunately, these veggies were also disappointing, with the green beans in particular desperately needing salt and pepper at the very least.

The scrod white fish and pork schnitzel were good. But they definitely need better sides.

Overall, while we appreciated the historic charm and good service at Ye Olde Tavern, the side vegetables and rice left much to be desired. If the kitchen could elevate these components, it would significantly enhance the dining experience.

There is a free parking lot beside the restaurant. The women's washroom is upstairs on the...