10 Best Restaurants in Central Vermont, Vermont

What does a mid-century burger joint look like in modern times? Retro décor including a vintage jukebox, pinball machine, and long diner-style counter, sure, but also fresh-ground local beef in the double-double-style Heartbreaker burger, Jump Back Sauce with house-made Japanese mayo, light-as-air doughnuts, orange wine, and the area's best beer list. It all comes together at Matt Walker's hometown restaurant for a perfect nostalgic experience that will bring you back to childhood summers, whether or not you spent them at one of Fairlee's lakeside sleepaway camps.

This sunlit café and bakery overlooking Otter Creek houses some of the best coffee and pastries in the state thanks to chef--owner Caroline Corrente, who honed her skills at pastry school in France before zeroing in on a love for brioche dough. Corrente's specialty sweet and savory buns change daily based on what is available locally—many ingredients are found within a few miles of Haymaker's doors. The OG Bun, always on the menu, is a cinnamon-spiced ode to the classic sticky bun that draws Vermonters from all corners of the state. Corrente added a location in Burlington's hip Soda Plant in 2024.

Since 1923, Jones' has been a destination for doughnuts and baked goods made fresh each day in the earliest hours of the morning. Fill a box with cinnamon rolls, pie squares, apple turnovers, and some of the best doughnuts in the state.

Stop by the takeout window of this new-wave snack shack for fried chicken, griddled burgers, and kimchi-stuffed grilled cheese. Stay for the homemade creemees, Vermont's answer to soft-serve ice cream; classics like maple are always on offer, as are seasonal specials like ginger, cinnamon, lemon, and fresh blueberry. The Bad Larry, a whimsical, Willy Wonka-esque sundae on a cone, tops a tall twist of maple ice cream with maple crystals, maple drizzle, maple cookies, and a cloud of maple cotton candy. And in typical Vermont fashion, most ingredients from beef to pickles are locally made.

The sky-high ceilings at this brewery's taproom and restaurant have earned it the nickname "the cathedral of beer" and IPA lovers have been lining up to get a Sip of Sunshine since Sean and Karen Lawson launched their namesake brand from a tiny mountainside brewhouse in Warren in 2008. This spectacular space—opened in 2018—is an appropriately sunny place to sit and enjoy a pint of the brewery's flagship brew, or something from the solid food menu designed to pair with beer: fancy grilled cheeses, local cheese and charcuterie boards, and a just-spicy-enough chorípan sandwich, with chorizo made just for the brewery by 5th Quarter butcher shop, located in the nearby Mad River Taste Place.

This cerulean blue A-frame is a mountainside gem for morning baked goods, award-winning chilli, and specialty drinks like the Mounds latte (espresso, steamed milk, coconut, and chocolate syrup). It also doubles as a local art gallery, so you can peruse the work of Vermont artists over a pick-me-up.

This charming two-story café in the center of Woodstock sources most of its ingredients in state. It's the perfect stop for a Vermont maple latte with local dairy, produce-laden salads, and wraps or egg sandwiches worthy of a long line.

After a decade of fine-tuning their skills and tastebuds in the coffee industry, Royal Oak co-owners Alessandra and Matthew Delia-Lobo opened their own café on Seymour Street, a cozy spot to hole up for a while. The menu, featuring beans from Burlington-based Vivid Coffee Roasters, is known for shaken ice maple lattes in the summer and frothy cardamom-vanilla lattes in the winter (a seasonal special that, say the Delia-Lobos, now never leaves the menu due to popularity).

Partially hidden in Middlebury's historic Marble Works district, this oasis of tea brews made-to-order spiced chai, house-roasted oolong, and loose leaf teas imported from small farmers in China, India, Nepal, Japan, and Taiwan.

This emporium of Vermont edibles has great sandwiches, cheeses, local beers, and delicious baked goods—perfect for a picnic or for lunch on the go.