A High School couple on a date sits at the table beside us. The young man wears a shirt and tie and looks like Baron Trump. There are no smart phones in use, typical of a true preppy. Groton School and Lawrence Academy are only a stone's throw away. A gaggle of college students stumble in sporting appropriate champion sweatshirts emblazoned with school names. Singles, older couples and families fill out the rest of the crowd and the place is really hopping. Even on a Sunday night.
We're at Forge And Vine in Groton which sits just behind The Groton Inn, a quiet country inn with understated New England elegance. Once you take the one minute walk and venture beyond the foyer at the restaurant, however, it's like stepping into Oz. From the outside we wondered if it was even open. Inside, the place is crowded and hip, the drinks are flowing and the food is plentiful.
We are seated beside the open kitchen, the flames warming us up on a chilly night. It seems that every other dish being served up is a thick, juicy burger. We each order a smashing German Riesling.
We began with the Roasted Squash With Wild Rice. A great cold night treat it also featured black beans, maitake mushrooms, toasted walnuts, grapes and baby kale. This comes as a vegetarian entree but the chef accomodated our interest. Very nice flavors.
Carmelized Onion Gratin: smoked bacon, Great Hill blue cheese and sourdough crisps. An easy fave of the night, we could have eeaten this alone and left happy. Rich in flavor and creamy in texture it was very satisfying with that sip of wine.
Grilled Berkshire Pork: herb potatoes, glazed carrots, braised red cabbage and mustard jus. Tender and well-balanced.
Filet Mignon: wilted greens, potato rosti, beet root and horseradish demi. Tender and, again, wonderful flavors.
Dessert was gelato made on-site.
All in all, a fun vibe at this casual, popular eatery that features what I would describe as classic tavern food, heavy on the beef and it's locally sourced. Well worth the visit. Next time, burgers.
Forge And Vine
126 Main Street
Groton, MA 01450
Telephone: 978.448.9200
We were invited to dinner here as members of the press/media with no promise of any editorial consideration.
No comments:
Post a Comment