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Our Story

The Simon Pearce Restaurant was originally established at The Mill in 1983 as the Glassblower's Café, a place where visitors could enjoy lunch overlooking the falls of the Ottauquechee River and its covered bridge. Soon locals discovered the lovely setting and the superb food and the Cafe evolved into the Simon Pearce Restaurant. A terrace dining room overlooking the falls stands open in the summer and is glass-enclosed during winter. The restaurant is acclaimed as one of Vermont's finest, drawing Gourmet Magazine’s highest rating from food critic Peter S. Jennison, who writes, "The coarse Ballymaloe bread that arrives at your table with a crock of sweet butter is, almost alone, worth the trip. We have never been disappointed by the cuisine." House specialties include homemade breads and soups, fresh salads, seafood, roast duck and an award-winning wine list.

The Cuisine

Chef Joshua Duda and his culinary team focus on creating exciting dishes featuring as many local ingredients as possible. We have been describing our cuisine for years as “Creative American with Irish Accents”, but as time has progressed our focus has evolved. Our accents have changed from simply Irish to a more global influence encompassing Country French and Italian, Asian and even a little Indian. We stay true to our roots with our perennial house favorites at dinner, Horseradish Crusted Cod with Herb Mashed Potatoes and Balsamic Reduction, and Crisp Roast Duckling with Mango Chutney Sauce and Vegetable Fried Rice.

Our Environmental Commitment

Over the last few years we have come to realize that restaurants leave a large footprint on the world. As an industry, our energy usage of propane, oil and electricity is quite high. We generate waste that fills our landfills. Our guests, purveyors and employees release a significant amount of carbon into the air while delivering our product, coming to visit and driving to and from work.

When Simon bought this building in 1981 he installed a turbine to harness the natural power of the Ottauquechee River. We have generated our own electricity for the last twenty-five plus years, long before being green gained mass attention.

Chef Joshua drives a Mercedes to and from work that we converted to run off the canola oil leftover from our restaurant. We no longer have to dispose of this oil and the engine emits considerably fewer pollutants into the atmosphere than gasoline powered vehicles.

We have always recycled our glass, metal and cardboard and are currently considering composting all of our food scraps in a commercial composting facility. Our goal is to reduce our waste to as close to zero as possible.

As our incandescent light bulbs shine their last light, we are committed to replacing each and every one with Compact Fluorescent bulbs to reduce our energy consumption. We are working on replacing our paper towel hand dryers in all of our restrooms with air dryers, as we create our own electricity.

To support local agriculture and secure the freshest ingredients, we buy local whenever possible. We try to use vegetables and proteins from sustainable agriculture as often as possible. While organically farmed foods taste better and are arguably better for us, our mission is to balance this principle with supporting local growers. Buying locally also reduces carbon emissions. Trucks don’t come from far away; they come from just around the corner.

Our Local Connections

We are proud to be long-time supporters and purchasers of produce from Tim and Janet Taylor at Crossroads Farm in Post Mills, Vermont. All of our dairy products come from our dear friends, Tom & Pat McNamara at McNamara Dairy whom we have supported since their inception 13 years ago.  Our delicious, organic ice cream comes from the Strafford Organic Creamery. Paul Ralston, owner of Vermont Coffee Company in Bristol, Vermont, supplies us with our own special blend of organic, shade grown, fair trade coffee. The incredible sorbet we serve is from Pamela and John at Blue Moon Sorbet here in Quechee. Pamela is also one of our wonderful bartenders who makes a mean Martini. Misty Knoll Chicken, a family run farm in New Haven, Vermont, has been a major supplier of ours for many years. Their chickens are naturally raised, antibiotic free and incredibly delicious. We use local lamb and ground beef from various suppliers and feature two excellent great Vermont vodkas made by our friend Duncan at Vermont Spirits in the Northeast Kingdom. We also have a fantastic offering of local maple syrup and local beer.