Dining
Our Dining Philosophy
At The Old Tavern at Grafton we feature "Inspired American Cuisine." Head Chef David Smith and his staff strive to provide cuisine that explodes with flavor. It can be either bold or subtle, but is always logical, simple, clean and elegant. We strive to include as many local items on our menu as possible.
Our service staff is extremely helpful and knowledgeable. They are eager to explain ingredients, methods and sources of ingredients. We invite you to come and explore our cuisine with us.
Visit our Dining Events page.
A Kitchen Garden Grows
In 2008, the Grafton Village Nursery, in conjunction with Noralee Hall of Daniel’s
Café, planted a bountiful kitchen garden on the premises of the Café with the
aim to supply all kinds of fresh, organic produce to The Old Tavern. The growing
plot is, as Noralee remarks, “pretty as well as practical,” boasting an
impressive roster of vegetables such as heirloom tomatoes, summer squash and
zucchini, purple beans, French beans, celeriac, kale, radicchio, hot and sweet
peppers, heirloom beets, winter squash, herbs, and neighboring Wardsboro's unique Vermont
turnip, the “gilfeather.” 
All of these vegetables are grown organically and
closely interplanted between rows and up trellis' to allow for maximum use
of space. Though the garden is not large enough to handle all of The Old
Tavern’s vegetable needs, it is able to offer delicious diversity and
flexibility to the restaurant’s menu; the home-grown produce is often a key
feature of The Old Tavern’s “Localvore” Nights, a dining series which features
an all-local, almost always organic menu. The garden is also a spot for
education, as each vegetable or plant is marked for visitors with a laminated
name card. Clearly, the efforts of the collective team
to help provide sustainability and flavor to The Old Tavern and the town of
Grafton itself are as laudable as they are delicious.
Vermont Fresh Network
We
are a proud member of the Vermont Fresh Network, which is a farmer-chef
partnership program started by the New England Culinary Institute. We
are also a member of Chef's Collaborative, which supports local,
artisanal and sustainable cuisine. The Chef's Collaborative is a
national network of more than 1,000 members of the food community who
promote sustainable cuisine by partnering with local farmers, producers
and fishermen; finding the best artisanal products; and respecting
local economies, traditions and habitats.
Featured Local Vermont Partners, Farmers and Artisans
Grafton Village Cheese, Grafton
Blythedale Farm Cheeses, Cookeville
Boyden Farms, Cambridge
Cabot Creamery, Cabot
Cold Hollow Cider Mill, Waterbury Center
Dutton Farms, Newfane
Evans Maple Farm, E. Dummerston
Harlow's Farm, Putney
LedgEnd Farms, Middlebury
Dwight Miller Farm, Dummerston
Misty Knoll Chicken, New Haven
Old Athens Farm, Putney
PT Farms, St. Johnsbury
Shuttleworth Farm, Westfield
Taylor Hill Farm, Londonderry
Thomas Dairy, Rutland
Vermont Fresh Pasta, Proctorsville
Vermont Shepherd Cheeses, Putney
Vermont Country Farm, South Burlington
Walker Farm, Dummerston
Bob Wright Maple, Grafton