Lumber Yard

Chose Lumberyard based on background of owners and chef. You guys can do so much better! Have you gotten lazy? Taking your customers for granted? Why would you serve flat Prosecco? For $ 10 a glass, your guests deserve better.
Salmon was outstanding. But the Bok Choy was served cold and greatly undercooked so that it tasted like a stick of celery. Again, this is lazy. The sweet potato was too dense and overcooked, but hard. We know you can do better.
The Prosecco was replaced with a sparkly glass and the bok choy was exchanged for a warm one. Learn some class, guys. Comp the drink and please please cook the bok choy a LITTLE so we can at least cut it with a knife!
Your restaurant is the prettiest one in town. Please make it a winner and entice us to return time and again. We need the place you want to be.

I travel for a living and feel extremely fortunate to have dined in some wonderful establishments over the years but dining with you was one of the best experience we have ever had. I would like to point out a couple of examples that truly made the evening perfect.
1) I called early in the day to confirm our reservation: I received a very pleasant call back confirming our reservation along with «we look forward to seeing you tonight and serving you a wonderful meal». Very kind and welcoming.
2) While I am never late for anything, we were 6 minutes late (I felt bad) but the host joked with me about it and said that is not at all an issue and gave us a choice of two tables. He was wonderful and very welcoming.
3) Nicki our waitress, greeted us with a huge smile, ask if we had ever dined at the Lumber Yard before and this is where Nicki and The Lumber Yard took it to the next level. Nicki said «This is your table for the night, so please don’t feel rushed, we are here for you». Do you know how refreshing that is to a patron and how at ease that statement made us feel? You know we did relax and enjoyed every bit of the evening from multiple appetizer, drinks, entrees, desserts and cappuccino’s. We loved every minute of it.
4) Nicki’s suggestions on the drink specials where spot on and delicious.
5) Nicki’s answered all of our questions and her suggestions where just as she said.
Our meal and drinks were absolutely fantastic, the staffing is phenomenal; all together one of the best dining experiences we have ever had.

Our party of 5 celebrating a birthday tonight had a spectacular time at Lumber Yard! What a warm and welcoming spot. We LOVED everything we ate… three of us got the chicken (guess the gnocchi with pulled chicken that came with it sounded too great to pass up) which was amazingly moist, the short ribs were rich and tender and the hake over faro so flavorful! They were generous enough to allow us to bring in our own birthday cake! Oh, and Emily took the very best care of us! Can’t wait to go back!

Yes, very good. Definitely relies on the local college clients (interview dinners, etc). Management should be aware that some of us pay attention to how they treat musicians that they hire. As in they don’t always treat them well. You can be better than that.

–slow service
–undercooked good
–slow kitchen service
–undercooked burgers (raw)
–slow service
–French fries were hot
–slow service
–nice wine list
–kitchen is horribly slow and not customer focused
–nice people
–accommodating reservations
–slow service
–painfully slow and non responsive chef and service

I was taken here recently during an interview by colleagues from Amherst College. It was an excellent experience. The food was fresh, tasty and the service excellent. I would note that it is relatively pricey. Overall, recommended!

My boyfriend had tried to make reservations early on the day we were going but was told that they weren’t taking any more. When we went inside we were asked if we wanted to sit at the bar, but we said we preferred to wait for a table. Kindly, the waitress gave us a table instead.
We started with the smoked trout on grilled baguette which was absolutely amazing and was probably the best thing on the menu.
Dinner was, in my opinion, strange. The menu was small but that is to be expected. There is not something for everyone on the menu but I settled on the salmon with soba noodles. The waitress informed me that the salmon was cooked medium rare and I said that I was fine with that, but I learned that I dislike salmon cooked that way. My boyfriend ordered a swordfish steak.
I don’t understand why someone would throw so many flavors into a dish. The salmon had soba noodles, snap peas, enoki mushrooms, nori vinaigrette and wasabi pea purée. That was weird. I don’t know why peas would ever work with that dish, and if there was wasabi I couldn’t taste it. I also decided that salmon not cooked through and left raw in places does not appeal to me (not really their fault there.) After awhile I just decided to bank on dessert filling me up. My boyfriend liked his dish better than mine, though he also had strange flavors in his. His dish included fried green tomatoes, avocado purée, corn pico de gallo, sriracha lime glaze, and ricotta. To me those flavors conflict in a bad way. I am surprised these items are still on the online menu.
They have about 700 different flavors of ice cream and I’m pretty sure parsley is one of them. Very unique, but we weren’t that bold. My boyfriend got an affogato and enjoyed it, but I found the ginger cookie a little too salty. I got the tartufo, which is «frozen hazelnut mousse, chocolate shell, sherry spiced bananas, and crème fraîche whip.» It wasn’t bad, but I didn’t like the crème fraîche whipped cream, I felt like it didn’t do anything for the dish. The plating for this was very pretty though.
Overall, I don’t think I picked the right thing off the menu but we’ll will probably try this place again when we’re in the mood for a little more upscale dining in Amherst.

My family tried the LumberYard for the first time for my daughter’s birthday, five in our party. The atmosphere and décor were pleasing, waitress very nice, bar was nice and bartender suggested appetizers which turned out to be very good. We ordered apps and entrees and overall were pleased with presentation, portion size, taste and creativity in the combinations. Prices are a bit high, but the food quality is very high, local, free range or grass fed, etc. My daughter is on a fairly strict and healthy diet and was able to order items that fit within her needs. Until dessert. She asked the waitress if she could have a small serving of fruit and a bit of whipped cream rather than a high sugar and caloric dessert. The waitress said she would ask the chef, and we thanked her indicating it was her birthday and we would appreciate it. Thinking it would not be an issue since there were at least three types of fruit in other desserts or dishes, we were totally floored when the waitress came back to say that the chef said he could not do that. His reason? He didn’t think he would have enough fruit to do so! In the meantime, we received one order of strawberry shortcake complete with several strawberries, one tartufo with several banana slices as a garnish, and had been told earlier that the Mac and cheese special came with apples. So tell me, 3 bananas slices, a couple of apple slices and a couple of strawberries would cause them to «run out of fruit»?! My daughter was very disappointed and I was incredulous and rather angry. The waitress was as nice as she could be, but I do not understand the attitude of that chef. We would have paid the highest dessert price on the menu to provide our daughter a simple dessert for her birthday. I run several food establishments and I know that special requests are accommodated all the time, in fact, it is the opportunity to distinguish one’s establishment and create customer loyalty. As far as I am concerned, either the chef did not know how to put fruit in a bowl and top it with whipped cream, the procurer does not order appropriately if the chefs are worried about running out halfway through the serving period, or the chef was just lazy and did not want to be bothered. Either way, it speaks of poor customer orientation and has resulted in the loss of our return business. At a $ 400 bill, they have lost a potentially well paying customer. Their loss.

We had a very enjoyable dinner at the restaurant. It seems like a menu designed for people to have a starter and move to some major entrée. I tend to like to eat lots of smaller plates and made out pretty well. Beet Salad with Burrata was pretty, refreshing, and straightforward. I also had a more unusual and just as successful special starter of sea scallops and lamb rillettes (!) with ramp pesto.
The restaurant has a nice, clean, open atmosphere and our server was quite nice.

One of our favorite places to dine. We so enjoy ALEX! He always greets us with a smile and remembers all of our favorites! He is a wondeful asset to the Lumber Yard. The food is amazing, ALWAYS !!

i had been excited to try the Lumber Yard since seeing it under construction. Then finally we were in Amherst looking for a different place to eat and walked from the center of town to give it a try. I would love to write an awsome review of the place, or even a bad one. Sadly after being seated at the bar and waiting (about 5 minutes) for the bartender to acknowledge our being there we were served water and given menus. We would have enjoyed to order a few coclktails and appetizers but didnt have that opportunity. WE NEVER SAW HIM AGAIN! After an additional fifteen minutes of waiting and sipping water we decided there were plenty of other places that wanted our business that evening and we left. The bar only had 4 other patrons seated and the restaurant itself wasnt all that busy. Dissapointed…

I couldn’t belive what an amazing parking spot I found.
…and that was the highlight of my visit to The Lumberyard
The wait. Oh the horror. The horror. Oh the horror. To be ignored by multiple bartenders.
Bartenders Please Note: LET YOUR PARTY KNOW WHEN THE FOOD IS RUNNING BEHIND. THIS IS A MUST. AFTER 45 MINUTES BEGIN TO OFFER THEM ANYTHING. ANYTHING. BREAD!!! ANYTHING!!!
After one hour the food came out eventually.
«What did I eat? I don’t remember what I ate…» is what my girlfriend is saying to me as I write this.
«…well,» adds this reviewer, «I had a $ 17 hamburger. Two dollars extra for a tablespoon of blue cheese.»
By the way, bartenders… again. Don’t hand pour the wine for people you know, and then use the cruvinet for people you DON’T know. Super classy!
Bonus: If you know the chef you’ll get a huge portion of the Italian sausage bolognese. It’s always fun to sit beside someone who knows the chef, so the food comes out — extra-​portion sized!!!

I enjoyed my meal at the Lumber Yard. It was tasty though a bit expensive. The waiter was friendly and very accommodating about my friend’s gluten-​free restrictions.

Last evening we arrived at The Lumber Yard at 8:15 PM. and were advised by the Host that they were no longer seating guests for Dinner. Though we could have Cocktails at the Bar. I had a long workday with a quick cup of soup for lunch and it was now time for dinner. I was with a Friend that was visiting from East Hampton Long Island New York. I had googled their web-​site that evening at around 6 PM and their web-​site stated: Tuesday 12÷30÷14 OPEN 5 – 10:30pm. To anyone reading this I would highly recommend calling for a reservation before driving «30 minutes» to dine at the Lumber Yard. I asked the Host why they were closing early and he said «they were afraid they would run out of food» for New Year’s Eve. I was dumbstruck by this comment. I worked in the Hotel business for 25 years in Sales and the week between Christmas and the New Year was a vitally important revenue week. Whomever does the food ordering (Chef?) apparently is not experienced in forecasting. Needless to say I was dissapointed.
Thankfully we enjoyed perfectly made Cocktails, Superb Wine, delicious Appetizer’s, Salad and Dinner at a longer established well known restaurant at Northampton. (but that’s another story)
I will return to the Lumber Yard someday in the future but, this experience has left an indelible mark. Oh and BTW in addition to potentially loosing a Patron I was purchasing a $ 100.00 (thank you) Gift Certificate for a friend that evening.
I purchased the Gift certificate at the selected restaurant at Northampton.
I am giving one star because they should be updating their web-​site with correct times. Though I am fairly sure the Early Closing was a spontaneous decision made by the Chef moments before we arrived.

Great interior. Bartender was sub-​par. Cocktail list looked great, execution was sub-​par. Server was very knowledgable. I’m allergic to mint. Asked to have the salmon dish without mint, chef came out and TOLD me I couldn’t do that. I asked why, he acted like a child. Other good was still good. Remember, you’re obliged to me, not he other way around.

Kalun L. and I had the pleasure of dining at Lumber Yard tonight, after an unfortunate incident of my being electrocuted by a fence at an alpaca farm. Needless to say, dinner was much more enjoyable…
On the menu… Crispy brussel sprouts (to die for,) chicken rillette, farro risotto, meatloaf sliders, raspberry ice cream. All outstanding dishes, generous sizes and very reasonably priced for what you received.
Who knew that such deliciousness was situated in between all the standard college hangover food. Welcome to adulthood.

I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at the lumber yard. The waitstaff was more than accommodating. I sat at the bar and enjoyed the seared salmon and affagato. This was the perfect close to a work meeting in Amherst.

This was across the board by far the most disappointing dining experience I’ve had in a long time. For the most part because of all the excellent reviews and the menu I had high expectations. next!
Yet again another restaurant needing better management.
No one greeted me at the door, nor said good-​night… That’s basic restaurant 101 … who are these people and do they have regard for their guests and/​or the hospitality industry???
I stood there waiting until I finally made a move on my own. with no one greeting me, needless to say I ended up at the bar.
The bartender was far too casual and I believe more pre-​occupied with eating his meal in the kitchen than providing good service. I’m not going to waste my brain cells focusing on the lack of service and poor etiquette.
Appetizer:The crab cakes were ok. I did not care for the texture. They were more like a baked crab mousse meaning they were made with too much egg or a gelatin base … making the texture unappetizing.
The vegetarian plate was one of the worst offerings I’ve ever had poorly executed and conceptually wrong! I can not understand how anyone would enjoy this dish.
Johnny Cakes with Broccoli Rabbe and Portobello Mushrooms. The Rabbe & mushrooms were good the Johnny cakes were 2 thick cake-​like pancakes with no flavor. Imagine BAD pancakes for breakfast and instead of syrup bitter broccoli and chunky mushrooms on top! What A Mess, a total disaster!
The chocolate dessert was another major miss… basically a dense chocolate (slab !!) …lacking flavor (how is that possible ??) and lacking creativity.
The only thing I enjoyed was the bread and guess what… just like the diner next to me I had to ask for it … really ???
BTW: I didn’t enjoy hearing the kitchen nor seeing staff smoking when I left.

After hearing many good things about The Lumber Yard, my wife and I finally got around to visiting Friday night. It was excellent. The space was beautiful. The lighting and décor were elegant without being fussy or stiff, the staff was friendly, polite and engaging, and the food was top notch.
Had a drink at the bar prior to dinner that was nicely made and the wine selections were reasonably priced and very tasty. The menu was of a decent size, however none of he entrees were particularly interesting to me. A couple of fish dishes that I would have tried if I had too, a chicken that my wife was ordering, the requisite steak and potatoes and a veggie. I ordered off the ‘snack’ section and had schnitzel. It was wicked good! So was the chicken entrée as well as the mussels app. My crab cake app was good, but I’m tough to impress with crab cakes.
Every dish we had was well made. My only criticism would be that the menu was a little limiting. Only one special, and it was another fish dish. I defiantly want to go back but after another visit, I think I will have tried everything I want to try.
Oh yeah, the fries were AMAZING. I can’t believe anything could come close to Duckfat fries in Portland. but these were better. Wow.

I stumbled onto this place via the most ridiculous means. I was checking out Hell’s Kitchen contestant Mary Poehnelt’s FB page because she’s from the area (Belchertown, MA) and in her relatively short list of «Likes», the Lumber Yard popped up. I had never heard of it before despite passing through Amherst regularly, so I looked it up and decided to give it a try.
Man, how have I been missing this place? First of all, it looks absolutely gorgeous. Beautiful lighting and design that certainly sets it apart from other spots in the area. We sat at the bar for dinner and everything was delicious — their cocktails were strong, food inspired, and presentation exceptional. Fresh seafood (mussels with Pernod and sausage — yowza!) and local produce were highlights, and the seasoning of all the dishes had a seductive complexity to it without being overbearing. We were in the area four nights and would have gone back again on the Monday had the restaurant not been closed.
What a gem! Thank you Mary P. — this may well have been the first time reality TV has paid such a delicious dividend for me.