The Horned Dorset Restaurant

A formal restaurant without the stuffy waitstaff! This restaurant was approximately 1 1/2 hours from my house, if it were closer my hubby and I agreed we would probably put it close to or at the top of our list.

You start with house made crackers and a crock of cheese onion souffle. That was reallly good!

I wanted to do the Chef's Tasting Menu but my husband would not agree to do it and the whole table has to do it. So it was on to the menu to decide...

I  had the butternut squash lobster bisque. That was excellent. The squash taste was pretty strong but I love butternut squash, so that was fine with me! Both entrees came with a house salad which had blue cheese and a light vinaigrette, which was good.

I ordered one of the specials-salmon in a champagne horseradish sauce. It was excellent. My husband had the filet of beef, which was very tender and cooked perfectly! It had a mushroom sauce. Both entrees also came with vegetables (carrots, zucchini, squash, green beans) and potatoes. The beef had a greater amount of the sides with it.

All in all a very good meal. Not the best I've ever had but one of the best that I've had in Central New York!

Lovely experience!  The servers are attentive and the food is excellent.   The ambiance is quiet and what a joy to be treated so well.  The owners are very personable and stopped by the table.   Excellent scallop appetizer and wonderful striped bass entree.   Thank you for a relaxing, special evening!

I visited this restaurant last Saturday night with my mother. We live about 2 hours away and arrived nearly a half hour earlier than our 6 o'clock reservation, but we were seated immediately. We were given the choice between sparkling or tap water, and we both ordered wine. After browsing the menu and hearing the specials of the night, we both ordered the chef's 7 course tasting menu, which consisted of all of the night's specials. We came there just for the chef's menu because we had never been to a restaurant where you simply eat what they bring you, and we were really looking forward to it and had high expectations.

The meal started with a cheese soufflé and house are crackers. The first course was a vegetable pistou with bread and butter with Hawaiian salt. The second course was foie gras torchon with brioche toast and rhubarb compote. The third was a seared scallop with risotto and a ramp purée. The fourth was cod fillet with spring vegetables and a saffron sauce. Next was a pomegranate sorbet, followed by the fifth course, the entrée of lamb loin with ratatouille, green beans, basil jus, and sweet garlic purée. The sixth course was a cheese course, with four different local cheeses, honey, peach chutney, and a slice of green apple. And finally the seventh course was four different chocolate dessert preparations: cake, mousse, biscotti, and pudding, along with a plate of beignets and sugar cookies, and coffee.

The meal was wonderful. Each dish had components that were very good on their own as well as together. Everything was cooked perfectly, fresh, and seasoned well. A couple negatives of the meal were that bread was served at room temperature and not warm, and the coffee was lukewarm, not really hot enough. But these were easily overlooked, and the meal was easily the best I've had. My favorite dish was the scallop and risotto. Aside from the risotto, the meal was mostly classical french, with the pistou, foie gras, and desserts.

The service was just as good as the food. Each plate was taken soon after we finished eating, and the next course was brought at just the right time. The drinks came quickly, and the water was refilled regularly, although seemed to stop once dessert was served. There was also a live classical guitarist in the room we were eating in, which was a nice addition. Overall, the 2 hour drive and $265 bill were well worth it, and I can't wait to go back. It was a wonderful experience!