A few weeks ago the HH and I were in Woodstock, Vermont and I must admit, the town of Woodstock ranks pretty high up there on our list of quintessential New England towns.
The town has EVERYTHING. A covered bridge, a white church with a steeple, a village green, a gorgeous library, an enormous amount of small shops, an old general store, and so much more. I think we must have spent an hour just walking down side streets and admiring the old buildings.
And well you know, all that walking can make a person hungry. So we stopped to grab a bite to eat at a highly rated local cafe for lunch.
I ordered a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon and avocado, and it came with a hefty price tag of $14.50. I was expecting fireworks. Yes, you read that right, I paid $14.50 for a sandwich. In a cafe type setting.
The sandwich was just okay. Not spectacular, not bad, but not worth $14.50. Not even in the hippest of towns in an establishment with a nice cheerful environment.
I think if you’re going to pay $14.50 for a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon and avocado, first of all, it should come with bacon and avocado. But hey, mistakes happen, I totally get that, and after nicely bringing it to the attention of the staff, and then standing there for 3 minutes waiting for them to decide {in a very calm and therapeutic tone} if they were going to just put the bacon and avocado on my sandwich or if they needed to remake the sandwich altogether, I was pretty much at the eye rolling stage.
I seriously thought I was in an episode of Portlandia there for a minute. And my husband has STILL NOT stopped talking about it, and now every time we’ve eaten out since, every meal is compared to the $14.50 sandwich.
Basically, enough with the fluff. He’s tired of the “hipster coffee house vibe” that has seem to have taken over eating establishments lately. I don’t mind the hipster vibe so much as long as the food is good and the price is right, but I have ABSOLUTELY noticed a shift in the last year or so. Have you? It used to be about the food. Now it’s about the “experience” and it makes him crazy.
But hey, the bathrooms were really cool. So there was that.
Isn’t this house lovely? One of my favorite parts about downtown Woodstock was how the stores and old homes seem to fit in so well with each other. If I was going to live in a city, I think it would be so much fun to be able to walk right out my door and down the street to get my morning cuppa, or take a stroll to the market or the library.
One of the really neat stores in Woodstock we visited was F. H. Gillingham and Son’s which has been is business since 1886. I LOVE old general stores and this one seemed to go on for ages.
Look at the old wood floors.
And the worn staircase towards the back of the store. Imagine how many generations of shop clerks have walked up and down those steps. F. H. Gillingham and Son’s is reason enough to visit Woodstock, Vermont and so far it has been the largest and best stocked general store we’ve been to on our many day trips around New England.
Maybe most people around these parts stay home during the winter months because of the weather, but I’m looking forward to more road trips and adventures. 🙂 🙂 🙂
Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone, enjoy the day!
~Mavis
Jenn says
So…..did they remake your sandwich or just add the bacon and avocado? You left me hanging. LOL. But yes I agree that the “trend hipster experience” has crept in and is starting to overshadow the food.
Mavis Butterfield says
Added the bacon and avocado.
Brenda says
They should have made you a new sandwich correctly AND let you keep the incorrect one. And apologized profusely. Or made you a new correct sandwich and not charged you at all.
Claudia A Uccello says
we recently moved to Florida for our old age and I AM MISSING NEW ENGLAND!! These pictures are a balm to my soul.
Cathy says
I too love Woodstock vt and you are so right about paying for the “vibe”. I too am over it.
Susan says
Ha ha, I have a hard time letting go of over-paying for something mediocre, too. It just feels so wasteful and unfair!
Woodstock is absolutley charming. I highly recommend a trip to Billings Farm and Museum and a tour of the Billings-Marsh-Rockefeller home across the street (both in Woodstock). The butler’s pantry at the house at museum is dreamy! It might be more pleasant to go in summer, though.
Mavis Butterfield says
Wahooo! Thanks Susan. Both of those places look right up our alley. 🙂
Gee says
Mavis, have you thought about going to Old Sturbridge Village? osv.org
It’s THE place for old New England. I think it closes in winter, but even in summer, you’ll want two days. You can watch a blacksmith at work, and a cow get milked by hand, and many other fascinating things that were routine back in the day. We took our granddaughter a couple years ago, and it was the height of our camping trip.
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes, my buddy Heather and I took our girls there a few years ago and I loved it. I plan on taking the HH there after the holidays.
Laura says
Just got my latest issue of Seattle Met magazine (all about restaurants) and in several reviews they kept talking about the Instagram worthy interiors. Guess I am a bit old because I don’t much care about posting restaurant interiors on Instagram and it certainly does not make me want to go to a restaurant so I can do that!
My daughter, 16, loves posting good Insta shots, so I guess it is generational.
Carrie C says
A grilled cheese and BLT are the two things I just can’t pay someone else to cook. They are so easy and cheap to create at home I wouldn’t spend more than $3 for one.
Mary says
I totally agree. And when with the grandkids and they order mac and cheese for $8-10 I about croak! My question is how many times have they served it that way and people complain to themselves but not to the establishment and they bilk the customer out of what they waaaaay overpaid for in the first place. I love the little shacks without the”vibe” ’cause I feel I get a lot better food and I always ask around for best food at best price. I love hearing about your adventures!
Mavis Butterfield says
I will happily fork over money for a Beecher’s grilled cheese sandwich in Pike Place or at Seatac Airport, it’s the best I’ve ever had. 🙂
Glenda Sessions says
Beecher’s grilled cheese sandwich….the bomb diggity!! YUMMY!!!
Richelle says
I’m with you on the Beechers grilled cheese. The best one I’ve had was a SAMPLE, with tomatoes, from the Metropolitan Market in Tacoma. I’ve recreated it many times, and they are always tasty, but not as good as the first one.
Martha Harris says
Ha, ha, ha! Your story is so typical of Woodstock. I grew up “just over the mountain” from Woodstock (I went to high school in Rutland, VT and grew up in Brandon-small little town). While I agree it IS beautiful, many of your native Vermonters (as in the ones that have lived there for generations) just make fun of it. Totally a tourist town. Or a town for people who made money elsewhere and decided to live in Vermont because it’s just so cute. I loved seeing your photos because it reminded me of the many times I’ve walked those streets. Now that I no longer live in Vermont, I do love visiting Woodstock when I go back home. But go visit Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) next time you’re in Woodstock! I know it’s not your usual stopping place, but I interned there and it has grown so much. It’s a very fun place. And I really like Woodstock’s farmer’s market-it’s been there forever.
Michele says
My grandson and I spent the day at VINS this summer while his mom rode in a horse show. The science center is fantastic
LAURI CRUMLEY COATES says
I am wildly and hopelessly in love with that wallpaper. I love the odd and offbeat, {and make the hubby crazy with my obsessive searches for just that thing that will make a particular room in our basically cookie cutter tract house that he refuses to leave) look like no one else’s……………this would do the accent wall in the bathroom off the hall perfectly. Thanks for making my day!
Katherine says
I love the wallpaper too! I was thinking it would add a bit of cheery and whimsy to my laundry room.
Nancy D says
Googled rabbit/jack slope wallpaper… I think this is the link:
https://wallsneedlove.com/products/the-legend-of-the-jackalope-removable-wallpaper
Mavis Butterfield says
That is totally the wallpaper. Good job Nancy D!
LAURI CRUMLEY COATES says
Wow! That was fast! I guess I know who to ask for help when I go on a weird item fact finding mission in the future. Thanks so much!!!!!!!
Helen in Meridian says
That bright red counter if the perfect contrast with the black and white wallpaper. I wonder if you googled rabbit wallpaper, it you would find that print? OSHA would have a hay day with the uneven worn wonderful floor and that well worn steps.
Helen in Meridian says
Oh, I see you found it for us. Thank you…and duvet covers to match.
E in Upstate NY says
yet the sink is contractor standard!
Nancy W says
Having spent the last twenty plus years living one town over from Woodstock, i enjoy walking around the town and do so whenever we have company. One of my favorite weekends in town is Wassail Weekend. The highlight is a parade of horses and riders all dressed up in their finery! So Chrismtasy! https://www.woodstockvt.com/events/wassail-weekend
Mavis Butterfield says
Have you been to the Woodstock Wassail Weekend Artisan Market? What is that like?
Leslie says
I’m scrolling down slowly, ready. I notice the rabbit wallpaper. Watching the paper, I continue slowly scrolling. Then reveal the sink. What? Did they blow their budget on the paper and just have to pick up a free sink and top on craigslist?
Nancy says
Since you love General Stores, have you visited Dan and Whit’s in Norwich, VT? It’s near your beloved King Arthur’s store so it could be a two-fer outing. Need a harness for your goat? A new axe handle? Red Wing work boots or maybe felt boot liners to keep you toasty in the winter? A butter churn? Some late season, dark maple syrup (less sweet and more maple than that sissy early stuff)? As their sign says, “If we don’t have it, you don’t need it.” They also have a terrific deli where you can get delicious sandwiches or soups without anyone worrying about a vibe. If you go, be sure you keep exploring past the green wall— the best stuff is way in the back through several rooms.
Mavis Butterfield says
Thanks Nancy!!!