Hen of the Wood reopens - and then re-reopens - at new location in Waterbury
WATERBURY ― It’s no big deal – just one of the best-known restaurants in Vermont reopening in its new space, a couple of months after its first reopening ended almost as soon as it began.
What is the place?
If you want to trace the roots of Vermont’s renowned farm-to-table movement, you might want to start with Hen of the Wood, the Waterbury restaurant founded in 2005 by Eric Warnstedt at the site of a 19th-century brookside grist mill in Waterbury. The snug spot oozed magical country charm and the menu featuring fresh-from-the-field ingredients drew gobs of locals and gastro-tourists, as well as several James Beard Award nominations for Warnstedt.
Hen of the Wood vacated its old space in late March, and on May 31 (after a short-lived attempt to open in April – more on that later) welcomed customers to its new location on South Main Street, across from another of Warnstedt’s properties, the Prohibition Pig restaurant and brewery. The décor is considerably different from the original Hen of the Wood, with a similar emphasis on natural wood but a more-modern feeling than the previous homey eatery had.
“It’s our updated version of Hen of the Wood,” Warnstedt said of the new location that has large windows overlooking South Main Street. The former bank building gave Hen of the Wood room to include a private dining room and a downstairs bar with a speakeasy feel and staffers putting vinyl records on the turntable.
Fans of Hen of the Wood need not fear that the menu has changed with the location. Warnstedt said the restaurant’s offerings are distinctly similar to what they had been at the Stowe Street spot. The menu on a recent Thursday included oysters, Parker House rolls and the restaurant’s namesake hen-of-the-wood mushroom toast, all familiar items to veteran customers. Entrees included hangar steak, duck breast, striped bass and ricotta ravioli. The selection of Vermont cheeses remains copious.
What’s the story behind it?
Despite its significant popularity – prospective patrons at the old Hen of the Wood space often had to book reservations weeks or months in advance – Warnstedt said that 40-seat restaurant would not have survived on its own if he didn’t have other restaurants in northern Vermont. His properties include Prohibition Pig, Doc Ponds in Stowe and a second Hen of the Wood that opened in Burlington in 2013.
The new Hen of the Wood nearly doubles in capacity, with seating for 70 inside. The patio will hold 20-30 diners, more than the 16 the Stowe Street location could handle. (Warnstedt hopes to use the Stowe Street location for another offshoot restaurant to be announced, but that likely won’t happen until 2024).
“Honestly, I think it was just to keep the train moving forward, not feel stagnant,” Warnstedt said of the reason for leaving one popular location to try to create another. He said he has a strong team of 40 employees who made this the right moment for a move to happen. “Now is a better time than ever.”
Warnstedt and his crew initially thought early April would have been an even better time to open in the new space. The last handful of customers on opening night at South Main Street remained when a sprinkler in an office above the restaurant malfunctioned, flooding the new restaurant. Hen of the Wood had to shut down almost as soon as it opened, taking nearly two months to repair ceilings, dry wall, lighting fixtures and flooring.
The physical toll of the flooding was not great. Warnstedt said the psychological blow might have been even larger.
“It took so long to get the place open,” he said, noting that work on the new location began around the time the COVID-19 pandemic affected supply chains and the availability of construction crews, delaying the project for years. “It was stressful.”
The flood was not the first time one of Warnstedt’s restaurants has had to close because of a disaster inside its walls. Hen of the Wood in Burlington shut down for more than three months in 2019 after a fire in the Cherry Street building’s duct work.
Following the pandemic and a false-step opening, the new space has been thriving since business resumed on the final day of May, according to Warnstedt. “It’s been an outstanding month,” he said.
Warnstedt was worried that customers would complain “It’s not the mill,” referring to the old grist-mill location.
“We haven’t heard that,” he said. “I’m sure they miss the mill. We miss the mill. But life goes on.”
Hours and location
Hen of the Wood, 14 S. Main St., Waterbury. 4:30-11 p.m. bar, 5-10 p.m. dining Wednesday-Monday. (802) 244-7300, www.henofthewood.com/waterbury
Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@freepressmedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Famed Vermont restaurant Hen of the Wood opens in new Waterbury space
