Burlington Vermont area

I've searched the forums and found some good tips for diners/breakfast mostly (Penny Cluse cafe, Henry's, Oasis, The Farmer's Diner) - thx! Any recommendations for lunch and dinner in the Burlington Vermont area? Not just interested in Roadfood-type eateries, but ANY great food experience!

Walk along Church St. downtown and you will not find a bad restaurant. We really like the Brewery--good local brews and hearty,tasty food. If you go out of town south towards Middlebury head out to the Dog Team Tavern which is an old stop right along a rushing river. This is right out of the old days--great food in great quantites and a fun twist known as the spinning wheel of relishes.Nothing like it--lots of fun in a beautiful setting and a lovely ride to get there. Enjoy Burlington. Drive up to North Hero-islands in middle of Lake Champlain.South Hero Hotel and N. Hero House are both good.

original A&W in Middlebury on Rt 7 (not sure if closed for season, though)
Al's French Fries (burgers and fries, 50's decor)
any of the diners-including Libby's Blue Liner in neighboring Colchester
plenty of spots for imbibing-irish pubs on Church St. Marketplace
Sneakers in neighboring Winooski for breakfast
Speeder and Earl's in downtown Church St. marketplace for coffee
Another vote for Dog Team Tavern
Alternative newspaper in Burlington, Seven days in Vermont just published its "best of" list:
http://www.sevendaysvt.com/daysies/fooddrink.html

A buddy of mine went to culinary school in Burlington, and he allows as to how the cafeteria at NECI is the place to go.

The Dog Team Tavern is fasinating..........the food is fine but what sets this place off are the walls filled with wonderful antique Newfoundland and Labrador mats. They are works of art and must be worth a fortune. The history of Sir Wilfred Grenfell, a missionary to the far Northern coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, is really worth reading and to eat in this delighful and historic building is a must for anyone seeking an unusual restaurant.

I forgot to mention this place which is an Italian restaurant that has been in Burlington for over 60 years. You get a decent meal for the cheapest prices you will see in a long time.

http://www.boves.com/restaurant/

Fire and Ice in Middlebury is alo a very good place to eat. Unique decor and good food and a grrreat salad bar.

Sirloin Saloon On Shelburne Rd and also in Rutland is good as well.

My vote for best diner would either be the Oasis in downtown Burlington or the Parkway in South Burlington near the airport. Libby's Blue Line Diner is ok, but to me, it's really a restaurant in a diner building.

Wally

I forgot about Bove's! Our daughter used to love that place-very simple--but very good Italian. And very nice people,too.

we had fantastic meals at The Kahiki Moon, in Burlington ~ located at 1 Lawson Lane. we went there, because i love Tiki ~ a member of a list that im on, told us he was opening a restaurant/bar; since we were going to Vermont to see the colors for a week, we planned a meal here. we ended up eating there for 3 dinners. we would have gone 4 times, but they were closed on sundays! they also serve lunch.

the tropical drinks are top-notch. fresh lemon & lime, garnished and big!

for starters, we had the Kalua Pig Nachos (twice). Worth the 3060 mile trip from Seattle. Vermont Cheddar and Jack Cheeses melted onto tortilla chips, with plenty of smokey-sweet Kalua Pork, perhaps a hint of chipolte peppers..fresh salsa..sour cream..scallions. Huge portion at an incredibly low low price of $8.

dinners ~ incredibly priced between 12-20 dollars. they offer 2 vegetarian dishes, and specials daily. we ate:

Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura, Served with ponzu sauce, drizzled with a maple-hot mustard glaze.
Teriyaki Chicken Breast with grilled pineapple, ginger noodle salad and soy-wasabi vinigarette
Crispy Duck Breast ~ with vegetable lo mein, tempura scallons and pinapple papaya relish. absolutely the best duck. not a hint of fat, just an outstanding crisp skin, and meat cooked to your liking, i ordered and got a delicious medium.
Grilled Ahi Tuna~ beautifully plated with a pyramid of jasmine rice, wok seared vegetables in a chinese chili sauce.
Grilled Angus Sirloin with mashed potatoes, grilled vegetables and kentucky bourbon sauce
hawaiian BBQ center cut pork chop with sweet potato puree and green bean & beet salad

The decor and music makes you feel like you're on The Big Island, resort quality food in the Green Mountain State.

if you want to see pictures, i've posted on Tiki Central: http://tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=11290&forum=2&3#fresh

we did eat at other places in vermont:

NOT RECOMMENDED: Shanty on the Shore, Burlington. I had the fisherman's platter: the whole body clams tasted like oysters, very "innard-y", nothing special about the scallops or scrod either. my husband's Scampi was unremarkable, save for its lack of garlic.

NOT RECOMMENDED: Parkway Diner, Burlington adorable diner, with really unremarkable food and weak coffee. my blueberry pancakes were dense, but edible, but the greasy, barely cooked bacon was not. my husband had the apple french toast, looked unappitizing, with a thick coating of scrambled egg (yet it didnt soak into the bread) and home fries

RECOMMENDED: Putney Diner, Putney VT. i had side dishes, the mac n cheese, clam chowder and boston baked beans. i was a bit disapointed that the mac n cheese was microwaved and had water at the bottom of the dish, but i stirred it up, and it was fine (heat and water redistributed). LOVED the baked beans! todd had the Ruben and fries, and though its not a deli (stacked high) sandwich, it tasted wonderful. we shared the maple pie alamode. oh that is SWEET! of course, we ate it all anyways!

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: Farmer's Diner, Barre, VT ~ ham, eggs, homefries (oh, those were absolutely THE BEST) raisin bread. Todd had the Hash and Eggs (and didnt share, and barely came up for air) i've never seen him enjoy breakfast like this! coffee hot and strong, and refilled! we shared a piece of the coconut cake.. homemade goodness.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: Klingers Bread Co. Burlington, VT (several locations, we ate 10 Farrell St South Burlington) pre-made (*but incredibly fresh) sandwiches on fantastic bread, focaccia topped with olives and dried tomatoes. huge cookies and beautiful desserts (we had an apple tart)

argh, no edit feature to add to my previous post:

we also at at the Dog Team Tavern. we had eaten there 14 years ago and were anxiously anticipating our Big Sticky Bun (which is no longer really big) and Relish Wheel. Unfortunately, our order did not get placed correctly, and we were informed, (after soup, salad and relish wheel) that the Fried Chicken Dinner would take 20 minutes to prepare, the kitchen couldnt accomodate that, and we'd have to order something different. argh.

so i had the stuffed shrimp and scallops (unremarkable) and todd had the prime rib (huge and wonderful) ~ again, unfortunately, our waitress abandoned us, and never delivered horseradish or refills on our drinks. we FINALLY got her attention, and she realized she hadnt checked with us since delivering our food. she did comp us coffee and the oatmeal pie alamode.

not sure we'd take the long drive out to Middlebury again for this kind of dining experience.

All - Thank-you for your suggestions! My bad - we left too soon after my post to take in all the recommendations but at least they will be here for future reference to travelers headed for Vermont. I'm especially sad that we did not see Dogbytes post about Kahiki Moon - thanks Dogbytes for linking to posted pictures - everything looks fantastic! We did eat at the Farmer's Diner and had a very good breakfast.
We stayed at the NECI and ate there twice and were under impressed both times - kind of sad actually.
We ate at 2 other places that will remain nameless - ketchup for barbecue sauce and a bean soup with hard, under cooked beans.
So, I have learned my lesson the hard way! ALWAYS post WELL in advance of going on a trip - I'm sure with all of the good advice listed above we would have had much more enjoyable dining experience in VT.
We missed Kalua Pig Nachos... argh!