Taste of Burlington - A Wonderful Meal
This was my second time at Taste. On my last visit the chef invited us to a showing of his paintings. My companion and I made the trip from Topsham and the atmosphere was wonderful. Complimentary hors d'oeuvres were passed. Once again the wine was superb. I had Kangarilla Road Langhorne Zinfandel for the first time and it is my new favorite Zin. The waitress was kind enough to send the label home with me. I had the Mediterranean chicken with soft polenta and tomato olive relish - delicious! The mix of flavors were very well balanced. The chef and owner (Rick Benson) was in the dining room playing the artist this night and it was nice to know that the food was still as good as last time with him not in the kitchen.    [08 Nov 2005 10:44:03]

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     ­OliviaC   OliviaCwell at hotmail dot com

Best Baby Back Ribs - Taste of Burlington VT
Can't say enough about how good the ribs were here. The desk clerk and chef at The Willard Street Inn suggested this as their favorite spot in town to send their guests and it was terrific! The staff was kind and kept this solo diner company - one of the chefs even tasted some wines with me. They had quite a selection of wines from my home state (OR). The ribs were perfect. Tender and falling off the bone. The pineapple BBQ sauce was spicy, sweet and tangy. My first trip to Burlington but when I come back this'll be my first stop.    [17 Dec 2005 13:32:55]

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Recommended Dishes: baby back ribs

     ­Nils   

Love This Place
I don't know where to start! Wonderful service and food. (I find it interesting that some 7nighters slam the service but include no details of their experience - that certainly undercuts the credibility of those reviews in my humble opinion.)

My date and I dined outside after drinks at the bar - the new bartender Kip is quite an exuberant fellow. My "Champlain Sunset" martini was fabulous, as it was made with freshly squeezed juice. My companion had a "Blueberry Breeze" made with Stoli Blueberry Vodka and garnished with sugar sweet fresh blueberries.

For dinner, we dined outside under the awning and watched a beautiful sunset over the Adirondacks. Appetizers were the crab cakes (full of meat with very little bread crumbs) and the grilled quail stuffed with whiskey-soaked cherries and toasted walnuts. Dinner was short-billed marlin from Hawaii and the Black Angus ribeye steak (a little over the top at 18oz, but I was having the fish, so whatever).

I don't agree with comments of "pricey" regarding Taste. The setting, decor, service (not snooty or over bearing - very familial - perhaps that is the turnoff for some?) and especially the wonderful dishes are well worth the cost.

The kicker this evening (8/25/06) was a show of "fire twirlers" in the parking lot. I didn't know what was going on when I saw the flashes through the windows. It turned out to be some of the employees (so the chef told me) practicing their "poi" which is the term for spinning burning balls of cotton on the ends of chains. They were synchronized like a dance. What a unique way to end the evening with my dessert wine! I just can't get enough of this place.    [31 Aug 2006 23:16:15]

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     ­O Catswell   Ocatswell at hotmail dot com

Hope It Was a Fluke
My wife and I went to Taste mostly because we'd never been there. It was a very cold Friday night, and there were only 3 or 4 other couples. The interior was nicely decorated with painting, and the little "cafe" corner was nicely done. The fish tank was smaller than I expected, and seemed to be filled mostly with common aquarium fish. Don't get me wrong, it was nice, but nothing spectacular.

We had the Chef's Choice appetizer, which was Mussels Diane, ribs, pear salad, and fritters. The mussels were cold, but the pear salad and fritters were very good. The ribs were unbelievably tender, but the flavor was very one-note: tomato base. Good, except for the cold mussels, but nothing to send your friends for.

Mains were the duck special and the seafood risotto. The duck was cooked perfectly, but again, no flavor layers. Skin was crisp, meat was moist, but in this case it was only duck. No other flavors. The risotto was a similar story. mussels cooked to peak tenderness, but cold again like the appetizer. Calamari was overcooked; salmon had dried out. Risotto was creamy, but tasted like milk. No butter, no spice. Overdone salmon and calamari were poor notes, but the dishes were splendidly plated. Very good presentation.

Drinks were the Champlain Sunset and the Vermont Gold martinis. Champlain was good on the top, and almost solid pulp on the bottom. The Gold was very clean, with a mild sweetness. Nothing offensive, but nothing outstanding.

Service was prompt, but not particularly attentive. We got the standard "how's-everything" check, but the server did not do any walkbys. Good, but not great.

The check came with a little dish of melted chocolate and strawberries. They were great! You really can't go wrong with chocolate and strawberries.

Overall it was so-so, visually very good, but very one-note on flavor/texture/balance in the food. Lost points for overcooked, or cold food, but extra points for presentation.    [22 Jan 2007 16:20:53]

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Recommended Dishes: cocktails

     ­VTGary