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'Beyond barbecue'

by Melissa Pasanen
Free Press Correspondent

June 21, 2007
Like so many city folk who have a weekend place in Vermont, Jim Dotson and Tom Sullivan got to the point where "we just didn't want to go home," explains Dotson. So, late last year, they left the Manhattan rat race, traded their off-the-grid cottage in East Corinth for an old restaurant in Waterbury, and became restaurateurs.

Although neither of them had been in the hospitality industry, Dotson admits, "We knew opening a restaurant was a 24/7 job."

And when he says 24/7, he really means it. The couple lives on the property too, all the better to "keep an eye on the smoker," Dotson explains. "We come check it in the middle of the night. A smoker has a mind of its own. You have to get to know your smoker."

At Cider House BBQ and Pub, which Dotson and Sullivan opened in March after a complete overhaul of the space, "We smoke all of our meats a couple times a week. We smoke our onions. We'd even smoke shoelaces. If I put a tennis shoe in it with enough sauce on it, it would come out tasting good," jokes Dotson.

I can't speak for the barbecued footwear, but the other smoked barbecue we sampled was good and tasty: the beef brisket ($12.95) was tender with a not-too-sweet sauce (although it was not particularly spicy even though it was the spicy option) and the bone-in St. Louis-style ribs ($11.95/$14.95) were toothsome with a little pull still left to them.

The fried chicken ($13.95), although not smoked, was also good: buttermilk-marinated and deep-fried to a dark shattering crunch.

The toughest part of ordering was picking the two sides that come with each main dish. (If ordered separately they are $2.95 each.) The tangy horseradish-potato salad and deep, dark maple baked beans with bacon were extra-good. Corn on the cob had a nice touch of the grill and the coleslaw was creamy and not overly sweet. The collard greens were a little on the crunchy side the night we were there, not the melting, dark green heap I usually expect from southern-style greens and how -- I was told later -- Cider House usually serves them up.

After the standard delivery of cute mini loaves of cornbread served with maple-butter, we had started our meal with an appetizer plate of local sausages ($8.95) from Winding Brook Farm in Morrisville, a delicious trio of crusty, grilled chorizo, kielbasa, and lamb sausage served with a pile of pickles, and braised red cabbage.

I would not have skipped the sausages, but it did make it a challenge on the other end of the meal to fit in bites of the outstanding key lime pie ($4), which boasted a thick, crumbly, buttery crust; a pillowy filling with a sharp, clean lime flavor; and a generous dusting of zest on top.

It was selected with some difficulty from a mouthwatering list of homey desserts (peach pie, chocolate pudding, and a special that night of chocolate bread pudding) made by the restaurant's chef, Tara Tracy, a New England Culinary Institute graduate and Texas native, who was charged with creating a menu Dotson describes as "beyond barbecue to Southern comfort food."

Between courses, my husband and son enjoyed a game of pool in the game room and we debated whether we should have sat on the expansive deck, which was bustling and nicely breezy on a warm evening. It was a toss-up, since then we wouldn't have enjoyed the mellow fiddle and guitar played by Fabulous Martha, a local folk duo.

On Thursday through Saturday evenings, musicians set up in the high-ceilinged main dining room, which also has comfy couches gathered around a fireplace (used to vent an air conditioning unit in summer), and is painted in crisp Granny Smith-green.

The appley color and the old wooden cider press by the fireplace allude to the restaurant's name. Cider House does serve Cold Hollow cider, but the current list of hard ciders on the menu is limited. Dotson says they hope to add hard cider made by small, local producers in the future, although regulations make that challenging. They do offer Rookie's, a locally made root beer, and also have a fun list of signature cocktails featuring cider (all $6.50), including the Chattanooga (bourbon, cider, and bitters) and the Vermont Sidecar (brandy, cider, Grand Marnier, and lemon juice).

Three months into the restaurant world, Dotson and Sullivan are pleased with the community response so far. They do hope to attract tourists, but know that locals will be their base of support.

After they bought the property, they canvassed local residents for what kind of restaurant they wanted. The results were split between barbecue and Italian, Dotson says, but the couple concluded: "Barbecue's much more fun."


We want your restaurant, dining event, and food news for future Taste of Vermont features. Please contact Melissa Pasanen at mpasanen@aol.com.