Would Restaurant, Highland, NY

Duck

The Would Restaurant is an odd name for a restaurant and I'm not sure how they came up with it. What I do know is that I like it. I'd heard good things from some fellow food bloggers with similar tastes and decided we needed to stop by. 

They open at five and we got there at five on the button, without reservations. They weren't needed as it wasn't all that crowded in the ninety minutes or so that we were there. I've found that arriving right after they open usually works out well if you don't have a reservation. It is a rather interesting restaurant. I suspect that it was once the dining hall of a Villa, or resort, where city folk came during the summer to escape to heat of New York. As such it has more the rustic look of a lodge than a white tablecloth restaurant. In fact, I don't think the term white table cloth applies as they cover the tablecloths with white paper. 

As people came in we saw that they were far better dressed than we were, but I wasn't concerned. Jeans are fine in any restaurant where you can take crayons and write on the table. In conversations with friends who have been there I was informed that the regulars do indeed dress nicely to eat there, they look at it as a special place to go.

We started with the mac and cheese appetizer at $7. Our waiter, Tomasz, was excellent. He gave us space while being attentive, that perfect balance of good service. He informed us that the mac and cheese would take twenty minutes as it was made to order, as were all dishes. He also told us that they bake their own bread, make all of the deserts in house and even make their own ice cream. 

The mac and cheese, a good sized portion I might add, arrived about twenty minutes after being ordered and was quite good, and piping hot. It got even better and better as we ate it and it may have needed to rest a couple of minutes more before being served. 

I ordered the duck at $25. It was quite possibly the best duck I have ever eaten. I ordered it medium and it was delivered a shade below medium with a crispy crust, which was absolutely perfect. The cinnamon and pomegranate reduction sauce was just the right balance of sweet and heat and the corn and zucchini side dishes were good. Even the rice (I don't like rice) was good.  

Teresa had the vegetarian dish at $22. It featured risotto (delightful) and grilled vegetables. She said it was good, but thought that perhaps she should have ordered a different dish as there were a couple of others that struck her interest. I guess that means we'll have to return to try them.  

Vanilla Crème Brulèe

In spite of being quite full, at the end we decided on the Vanilla Crème Brulèe at $7. It was delicious and light enough to sit well after a rich meal.

Overall, a very good dining experience. There has been a bit of hype about The Would and I would say they certainly live up to it. I think you need to get there soon. We'll definitely be returning.