Inn At Baldwin Creek & Mary's Restaurant

When you make your reservation, be sure and request the dining room with a/c.  If you cannot be seated in that dining room, don't go-it's not worth it.
I became overheated and miserable during my meal.  There were also no cold options on the menu for summer.  I recommend that Mary's does not seat people in the dining room without a/c.
All 5 of us were very uncomfortable by the end of our meal and very eager to leave.  It was much cooler outside immediately when we walked out the front door.
It's amazing that we spent over $200 for a meal with an overall experience that we do not want to repeat.
The food was not much to write home about.  
They may have won awards in the past,  but I did not
anything noteworthy as far as the food goes.  It was hard to focus on the food due to the heat.
We all wish we had stayed home.

Livid Localvore

Delicious local cuisine at appropriate prices.  If you want amazing local sustainable food and VT hospitality, come here.  Great local beer selection on tap too. Stay the night in one of their rooms upstairs for a real treat--the breakfast is to die for and included with a stay!

I've been to Mary's many times in the past decade, and my husband's family has been going even longer.  As much as I love the place, my affection is primarily sentimental.  I don't know if Doug and Linda read these reviews, and given that Yelp can be a hotbed for wannabe food critics and "foodies," I wouldn't blame them if they didn't.  That said, I hope they do read the reviews because they are telling Mary's something about its food.

Mary's was a pioneer in the Vermont farm to table movement, but the food has not kept pace with the times and seems stuck a few decades back.  Take the farmhouse salad, for example - it includes not only homegrown greens but also grated carrot, cucumber, and onions.  In short, not a composed salad worthy of a modern American restaurant but one resembling something you'd put together at the salad bar in a Ponderosa's.  It's also totally overdressed and watery from the cucumber.  

I've never had a decent risotto at Mary's.  I've ordered it twice, and on the "fool me twice, shame on me" principle, I haven't ever ordered it again.  The first time was a lemon risotto that tasted of absolutely nothing and appeared to be made from medium grain rice.  The second time was an herb risotto that was cooked to mush, like congee.  House-made fresh pastas are always hard.  I don't know whether they put too much egg in the dough or don't rest it before rolling but the pasta texture is terrible.

The "Kitchen Confidential" option combines two entrees on one plate, which is just bizarre since it gives the plate a buffet-visit feel.  It doesn't even make sense since Mary's has introduced small plates.  If you don't want to settle on one entree, order two small plates or two appetizers.

And on most of our visits, between half and two thirds of the entrees have included a sort of vegetable medley - a combination of squash and peppers most of the time - what they refer to as the "seasonal accompaniment" or "vegetable of the day."  In fine dining, though, the kitchen should give specific thought to pairing vegetable accompaniments with the protein rather than just slapping a pepper and zucchini medley on the plate.  It isn't special, and it feels Applebee's-ish.  Speaking of which, plate presentation is a mess.  Protein, starch, veg, each with its third of the plate, and huge portion sizes.  

Best bets in my experience are the garlic soup, game meats, and burgers.  The kitchen does cook game meats quite well, the cocktails are usually pretty decent, and the service is attentive.  I like these guys so much and wish they'd join the 21st century, since I think they want to be in the same league as, say,Black Sheep or Hen of the Wood, and they aren't even close.  Please, Mary's!  Step up your game!