We go to St Albans a lot to see family so we’re very familiar with Burlington and their restaurants. We choose to cook at home a lot.
Skiing in VT this weekend. As a creature of habit, I grabbed a burger at Farmhouse and am having Folino’s with my Aunt and Uncle tmrw night. But just as I was about to order a cocktail at Farmhouse, I remembered this thread and headed over to Paradiso Hi-Fi for a drink. Wow. Just wow. I was stunned. NYC cool but in flannel shirts. I think I’m in love. Can’t wait to try the food.
Second weekend in a row in Burlington to ski. Last night’s dinner was at Paradiso Hi-Fi. The previous week I just has a cocktail there. Had four dishes (Most of the dishes are tapas sized). Started with the Marinated Mussel Toast which was excellent…I need to do a much simpler version at home with some good bread and tinned mussels escabeche. Their version was in the Scandinavian vein. Second dish was the Smoked Carrot Dumplings. It’s early in the year, but this is the running for top dish of the year for me. I could have eaten three plates of this. Followed that with the Cured Trout. It was served skin on and the skin was lightly torched. The part that sounded odd to me turned out to be really tasty…the fish was served with shaved frozen buttermilk. The main was the Rabbit Roulade over Farro. I had an excellent cocktail called Under Pressure which was a riff on a Negroni. This was my second Friday in a row sitting in the same corner bar seat and the staff instantly recognized me when I sat down yesterday. The bartender even remembered what I had to drink last week. @Robert_Dentice I wonder if you will agree with me…Paradiso Hi-Fi gave me Four Horsemen vibes but with cocktails. Amazing food that exceeds expectations for the low key environment, great music and acoustics, friendly, hipster service.
I overheard the people next to me at the bar discussing Pizzeria Ida with the staff at PDHF. The take away was amazing pizza made by an unhinged chef/owner. I felt bad cheating on Folino’s which is always outstanding. But I decided to get out of my Vermont comfort zone and try Ida tonight. I’ll preface everything I’m going to say with the pizza was good (not great). And the chef/owner, he was quirky for sure, but nice to me. The pizza was New York style. The pie itself was huge and for $35 it better be (gratuity included). Again, the pie was good, but give me Scarr’s in NYC any day of the week. My issues with Ida were it’s a dump. Folino’s is a dump, but compared to Ida, Folino’s is a “deluxe apartment in the sky”. Ida doesn’t allow outside alcohol and only serves wine by the bottle. There are like 4-6 choices of wine and I didn’t recognize any of them. When I walked in I immediately was struck by the fact that they were playing the Grateful Dead on the stereo which made me happy. But this was at concert volume. The water in my glass was shaking with the bass. Bottom line is the pizza is good, but I’ll be heading back to Folino’s next time.
@T_Melloni I’m curious to hear your take on Ida.
On my way back from skiing, I stopped into Pro Pig for a snack and a beer. It’s such a great place. I obviously haven’t been in a long time (probably pre-pandemic) because the first thing I noticed is they no longer serve beer from other breweries. Just stuff brewed by Pro Pig. I was bummed cuz I was looking forward to a Hill Farmstead Susan or Edward, but a Pro Pig Little Fluffy Clouds was a great substitute.
$35 for that pizza? i didnt think folinos is great but its fine and you can byob.
years ago, i used to like american flatbread in burlington but is it downhill?
Was there yesterday for lunch. It was great.
Where?
Yep…$35. That pizza and a liter of pelligrino was $51. Gratuity included.
I’ve never eaten at American Flatbread. But I’m a huge Folino’s fan. The olive oil based pizza with bacon and leeks is amazing.
American Flatbread
So happy you love Paradiso Hi-Fi as much as me. I was blown away by the food. And yes I think it does have some Four Horsemen like vibes.
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i graduated from uvm in '85
nice to see leunigs on an above list
the only name i recognize from the old days!
It’s been a while and I’ve been to VT a lot…I’ve eaten at Paradiso Hifi about a half dozen times. Right next door is Dedalus Wine Bar. And of course, Folinos.
Chicken Heart Ragu at PDHF was outrageously good.
French Ham with Comte at Dedalus
Steak Tartare at Dedalus
Mussel Toast at PDHF
Endive and Apple Salad at PDHF
Perfectly cooked Filet with Crispy Mushrooms at PDHF
Folino’s - Bacon and Leek Pizza
I went to try Poco and Devil Takes a Holiday, but they were full.
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Hmm, may need to stop by Burlington for lunch on the way from FLX to Montreal.
Headed here on Sunday, looking for new recs.
Sadly Paradiso is closed, replaced by Doma
Mike,
I’ve eaten at Poco twice this month and think it’s really good. Shockingly inexpensive too. I also had two meals at Hen of the Wood in Burlington and liked both quite a bit but I’m sure you already knew about HOTW.
I was really bummed about Paradiso Hifi closing. Also bummed about Dedalus Wine Bar’s demise.
I don’t know anything about Doma. Will have to check it out. Unfortunately, my ski season came to an end this week due to an unexpected (not ski related) injury so it’s unlikely that I’ll be in Burlington until next season.
Edited to add: I just looked at the Doma website which is pretty sparse on details and information. Looks more like a bar/lounge in the Paradiso space. If they make cocktails that are as good as the Paradiso ones,I’ll try it, but it doens’t seem like one is having a full meal there.
My first time in Burlington, skiing Stowe M-W, love the midweek vibe, not crowded and I can take the time to enjoy the Mtn. Will report back on some restaurants and the overall vibe during winter!
Oh! Fun. Love Stowe but haven’t skied there in about 7 years. I’m an Ikon Pass guy these days.
If you’ve never been to Burlington there are a couple of fun things:
Restaurants: Hen of the Wood is the “fanciest”. Very good food, nice list, beautfiul place. Poco is small plate mediterranean. Big fan. Folino’s pizza is amazing and BYO. FWIW, it’s kind of a dump but I go everytime I’m there. If you’re into craft beer, the city harvest supermarket in the Folino’s parking lot has a solid selection that you can bring right to Folino’s. Probably won’t work on a ski day cuz they don’t open until 7:30, but August First is a great place for breakfast or lunch. I just saw that they are closed for renovations thru 2/8.
In a bit of an odd ball suggestion, the J Skis Intergalactic HQ is right in downtown. It’s a combo, ski shop, game room, and bar. Oddly fun. That said, I’m a J Ski early adopter and my kids have them now too.
The Alchemist Brewery (Heady Topper) is right at the base of the Stowe access road. Also, you will go through Waterbury if you’re traveling to Stowe from Burlington. Home to one of the great bar/bistro’s in VT. Prohibition Pig. It’s a bar/brewery with a world class beer list, great cocktails and food that is soooo much better than it needs to be.
Have fun!
We stayed overnight in Burlington last summer on the way to the Eastern Townships and Montreal. We ate at Hen of the Woods, sat at the bar, and enjoyed it a lot.
Ellison Estate tasting room is in Stowe and worth a visit if you’re there. Not cheap but top notch, similar to and inspired by La Garagista. ,
Bummer about Paradiso. Had a great meal there last time I was there.
Don’t miss Cafe Hot for breakfast.
Hen of the Wood.