Gypsy Apple Bistro — Restaurant in Shelburne

I surprised my wife with this place for our anniversary. The place is very small and intimate and the music choice was great. Our server, I think their name was Sabrina, was incredibly welcoming and very knowledgeable about the menu including the wine list and beers available. The kitchen is small so the food was a bit of a wait but I feel that added to the experience so my wife and I could reflect on our last 18 years of friendship and 13 years of marriage. Everything we ate was incredible. I am a very unadventurous person when it comes to food but my wife will try anything. She got me to try the Pate and Mousse appetizer and I could not find anything disagreeable with it. The Mushrooms on toast, as simple as it sounds, was a masterclass in how great mushrooms can be when treated well. I had the filet and my wife had the rack of lamb. Both were incredibly generous portions and cooked with perfection. During our meal, we couldn't help but notice how responsive Sabrina (again, I hope that was her name) was to everyone in the dining room and was offering incredibly insightful recommendations to other patrons with detailed descriptions of what the suggestions entailed (yes, I was being nosy). The entire experience was fantastic.

The only drawback people should be aware of is that there isn't a cocktail menu, which I could imagine would be over-the-top ridiculously good, but Sabrina could sell you on a wine or other beverage that you will appreciate so it won't matter.

The price for bread, two apps, two entrees, a desert, beers and wine, and a coffee had me thinking they left something off the tab, but in reality it is just an incredibly reasonable price for amazing food in a delightful atmosphere. I am very happy with my experience here and am looking forward to taking the drive out to Shelburne Falls to...

I live 3 1/2 hours away and would gladly make the drive again to eat here. The atmosphere reminds me of Paris. Warm red walls. Fresh roses. Real candles. I really like the attention to detail.

The meal began with hot bread and a generous portion of butter and dipping oil. I REALLY wanted to get a second order but had to save room for the rest of the meal. I would come here for just the bread.

Then the mussels, crab cakes and seafood chowder came out. The fish bites were soft and melted in my mouth. An excellent start. The crab cakes were pretty good but I wish they were a little bigger. Then I had a taste of the mussels. Wow. I have never devoured mussels that fast in my life! The butter sauce was amazing.

Time for the main course. The filet mignon was the best I had in my life. The best cuts are ones that the knife just touches the meat and it falls apart. Medium rare. I also had the porterhouse but out of the two, order the filet.

The spinach and mashed potatoes complimented the main course very well. The creme brulee had a nice coating on top and is always the perfect way to end the meal.

A mom and her son provided good company to talk to as she offered us some of her gnocchi! Who does that! Plus you get a hand written bill written on a black paper! A personalized touch!

I will be coming back again...

Hard to give more than 3. And we would like to. As it is nice local owned and seems to put in effort. But GA just didn't live up to the hype that some friends shared of being a local favorite. First, have to say that if you are going to offer outdoor seating - offer somewhat comfortable level seat. Wobbly uneven metal chairs leave something to be desired. Sorry. And a little love to straighten up the bamboo wall would go a long way. Also this is what we get for seating when we have a reservation? Just kind of uhg. Second the best part of dinner was the bread. Warm and tasty with tapenade etc. I love a good caesar but this was just too salty and too much dressing. Entree of Striped Bass and risotto was unfortunately uninspiring. Unless you dipped fish in hollandaise type sauce you really got no flavor...and the hollandaise was nothing special. The risotto was fine. Unfortunately the portion was undersized. Service was fine, not great. Polite but not exactly upbeat or warm. They are understaffed so I will try to be fair. There was pretty big gap between salad and entree. We are not saying we won't go again. And we aren't saying we wouldn't recommend. But hopefully this was an off night and in terms of a destination - it was a drive for us...not top...