Rattlesnake Cafe

We happened upon the Rattlesnake Café on our way to Weston, VT. Since we had no cell/​internet service we considered ourselves lucky to find a Mexican restaurant. We were very pleasantly surprised. The food was remarkably fresh and affordable.

I love the new menu options and the fact that there is an in-​house micro brewery (West Mountain) is amazing! So many great new menu options! My favorite is the MoJo Burrito. The best sangria and margaritas in Southern VT! Always friendly staff and if I want to watch my favorite sports team play, I can do that too.

We ordered chicken nachos and were served nachos with chicken and cheese. That’s it. Then, we asked for hot sauce and were given a small bowl of Franks buffalo wing sauce. When the server came back we asked if there was any other hot sauce, being a Mexican restaurant and were finally brought some sort of peach hot sauce. Dining in Bennington is limited but… Skip this one.

This place is an insult to Mexican food. It’s overpriced and disgusting. Seriously, drive 20 more minutes into Williams Town and go to Coyote Flaco or Tony’s sombrero. Tony’s prices are way more realistic, you get more bang for your buck, and both are actually owned and run by real Mexicans, and yes that is in fact important. Even poncho’s in Troy beats this place (yes, I said it). If you don’t like flavor with your Mexican food, or good hot sauce, then by all means waste your time at this place. T My dad has told me to talk to the owners and give them advice from a real Mexican on how to properly cook Mexican food (lol). But honestly, what do the people of Bennington know about Mexican food anyways? Only this, these poor souls.

I was in town with a friend to enjoy Camelot Village and we got pretty hungry. We stopped at Rattlesnake Café and there were probably 3 other tables of patrons sitting outside, not many indoors. It appeared that there was one server on shift and a bunch of people showed up after we were seated. We gave our order and although it took a little while to show up, my friend and I enjoyed sitting on the patio with our chips, salsa and guac. We shared with a squirrel friend. When our food showed, I was a little full from the chips. I managed to eat half of a chimichanga and it was pretty darn good. Huge, too. I’d absolutely return.

Found this place on a drive out to Vermont on a Sunday afternoon. The chips and salsa are good. Though they charge a $ 1 for them. We ordered the beef chimis, enchiladas and a house quesadilla. All the good was delicious. The house quesadilla had smoked trout in it and was very good. I would definitely come here again

I would give 0 stars if I could. Sign says Fine Mexican Food. Lets start with the soup. Cream based tortilla soup was a watery soup with so much cumin that ir was i edible. I figured how could they ruin tacos so I ordered the. The beef one had bland chunks of roast beef with no seasoning at all. The chicken run was runny and the chicken was so mushy, it felt like it had been sitting in water. Worst meal I have EVER paid for anywhere ii have ever traveled.

I hadn’t been here in years but decided I liked that you can eat outside and friends had gone recently and said it was ok so we decided that we’d give it another try. Soooo sadly disappointed.
Not one bit of décor had been changed from my last visit…8 years ago? Not a good sign.
The server was nice enough but poorly trained, this is managements fault.
Prepare to be nickeled and dimed; I asked for some cilantro on my tostada, give it a little much needed boost… arrived with several (10?) sprinkles…$ 1.00!
My friend ordered the Mayan Chicken which he had tasted there recently but it wasn’t at all the same, it certainly didnt look anything like its menu photo but it was unbelievable hot… way too much heat. We told the server when he asked and instead of offering to take it back he offered some sour cream. Ok, give it a try. On the bill? $ 1.00. A small side order of guac? $ 4.00. Really?
When we complained, the server did remove the two charges from the bill but we shouldn’t have been charged in the first place.
First of all, the food isn’t even good tex mex, it’s obviously not prepared with any love or consistency and at worst it’s a mess on the plate. I really wanted to like this place, I really like pretty much all food, it doesn’t need to be amazing but it does need to be fresh and well presented, even simple is good.
I hope the owner checks Unilocal because he needs to wake up and put some feeling into this place. I realize that Bennington residents are a tough bunch but some restaurants have managed to keep it going and serve good food in a good atmosphere.

What Mexican place serves food without hot sauce? This place does. We were offered Frank’s or enchilada sauce but that is obviously not the same.
Each dish lacked flavor and I’m guessing some ingredients are canned. Serving sizes were enormous, even on the lighter fare side of the menu. If you’re expecting fresh, this isn’t your place. Not to mention, one of my friend’s dishes had a hair in the guacamole and the server asked if she would like another. The thought was there but he should have apologized, brought a new one out, and knocked it off the bill.
I was actually surprised to see this place so busy. The owners of this place should actually visit an authentic Mexican cantina to understand what they are serving.
Unilocalers, you were warned.

I really like eating here. I was disappointed a few times when I went because they were out of the avocado quesadilla (the main reason I go). My friends love their
margaritas!

How the heck have I not reviewed this place until now? During my college summers I worked at the Bennington College July Program. It was an insane job, probably the best I ever had, and with the one night a week off we got, it always included a stop at Rattlesnake for cocktails or food.
Vermont and Mexican food, you can raise your eyebrows but give it a try. The food is always fresh, beautifully presented and tasty. It’s typical Mexican restaurant fare but with a touch of Vermont. The drinks are amazing (is Boogie still tending bar?) and while the beer list is lacking, the cocktails make up for it. And, I am NOT one to drink anything other than beer or wine. Except at a few places. Like this one.
There can be a wait but it’s worth it and you can usually find a place to stand in the bar with a drink while waiting for a table.
I have never been to a place with such consistently good service. The waitstaff is made up of friendly, fun folk who love this spot in Bennington.
Order he mudslide dessert. Trust me. Save room and do it. And saving room means planning on getting a box as soon as your meal is served and putting away at least half of it — portions are pretty substantial.

Great service! I was in a party of six so it was about a 20 minute wait to be seated (because it’s a small place!). Once seated, our waitress was forever at our service. I ordered chicken burritos and they were good, a lot of chicken but not enough cheese for me. Large portions! You’ll most likely be taking some home with you. All in all, great service and an awesome atmosphere. I will most likely come here again!

My wife and I stopped by for a light dinner and some cold beer. We were pleasantly surprised with both!
After enjoying some warm & crispy tortilla chips with salsa ($ 1), we split a very nice chicken quesadilla. The quesadilla was a good size for sharing, came with a delicious chipotle salsa (spicy kick without any lasting burn), rice and beans. We added a side of some fantastic guacamole, and we were HAPPY!
But, what made our night was the beer. Out of a dozen beers, four of them were IPAs, our favorite!
Good food, great beer, happy patrons! :-)

We found this restaurant on a Sunday night, after we found ourselves well out of town and following our GPS from closed restaurant to closed restaurant. As college students we’re always hungry, and Sunday nights are often the worst to be hungry during since everything closes early. Luckily enough, the Rattlesnake Café’s winter hours have it open Tuesday — Sunday from 4pm until 9:30pm, so when we finally chanced upon it around 5pm we required no further convincing to go in.
Business was slow that evening, so there was only one waitstaff; he was attentive and polite, yet did not hover or pressure us while we took our time looking over the menu. The complimentary chips and salsa were quite good; the chips were hot & fresh and the salsa tasty, though much spicier than expected.
Once we’d decided, she ordered the House Quesadilla (jack cheese, onions, peppers, and trout with sour cream and pico de gallo on top). She was hesitant about ordering a side of guacamole for it, because while she loves guac, she does not love the steep extra cost. However, a generous dollop on top was only $ 1.50 extra. She’d never had trout in a quesadilla before, and was glad she took the chance on it.
He selected — at the waiter’s recommendation — the Fajita Enchiladas– a nice compromise between a fajita burrito and the enchiladas. The black bean salsa wasn’t as spicy as the waiter had suggested it might be, but the entrée was still delicious.
Though we ended up there on accident, we were glad we’d stopped in. The restaurant had colorful décor but the atmosphere that night was relaxing, the waitstaff attentive, the wait for our food reasonable, and the dishes quite good.

Great guacamole, the chimi was delish, and loved the kitchy interior. My only complaint, the margharita wasn’t big enough!

I went here when I was tagging along on my boyfriend’s business trip that we decided to turn into a vacation, although Bennington wasn’t the vacation spot. It was a work spot. However I think that this place is quite a gem!
It looks like a little 2-​story house from the outside, and it looks like a house-​turned-​restaurant on the inside with some neat little Mexican decorations. We didn’t need the menu, cause my man had been talking this whole trip about the chimichanga’s and that we were gonna get them and share them (he’s no stranger to Bennington and has been to every restaurant there several times).
Well, the chimichanga’s lived up to the hype, and it was plenty to share. I loved everything about this dish. The crispy, flaky crust yet soft at the same time, mounds of melted cheese, juicy shredded chicken on the inside. This dish was to die for. The rice and refried beans were perfectly cooked and seasoned too. Also (a major plus at any mexican restaurant), there was an endless amount of warm chips and fresh salsa too.
We decided that we would get the Sangria for a beverage and went with a liter. It was sweet and full of wine. I have had better Sangria before but this was just fine and acceptable for the evening. I could have gone with some chunks of fresh fruit hidden in that liter of joy, but the slices of lemon, lime, and orange on my glass was a nice touch. After one glass, Justin (my man) decided it was too sweet for him, left the rest of the liter for me, and switched to a double-​extra-​brain-​blasting-​hoppiest-​hop beer on the menu (BLECH!).
We had a great evening here!

I guess this is Mexican food in the northeast?
Tried this place with my dad since there is so much hype about it on campus. Bad choice. I was embarrassed I had him take me here.
The staff are very friendly and the decorations are kind of neat. The guacamole, as promised by everyone, is fresh and quite good!
The food is just not good as mexican food, as american mexican food or anything. I got a mole chicken enchilada, the waitress said they were almost out and got me one of the last. I tucked right in. After a little bit I started poking it around on my plate and then started eating more chips and salsa. The chicken was watery and the mole was kind of bland– which I didn’t think mole could be! My dad didn’t seem to enjoy his food much more and after a minute of sitting awkwardly we asked for the bill. I left basically the whole dish doggie bagged in the dorm kitchen for other people to eat.
It wouldn’t have been a huge deal had it not been so pricey!
Maybe my taste buds are corrupted, but I usually even like bad Americanized Mexican food. It is certainly better than taco bell or chain burrito places but I was disappointed.

Came here because the brewpub was slammed and I was starving. Sangria was decent, the burritos were good, although the Rattlesnake sauce, which is kind of ubiquitous here, reminded me alot of pizza sauce.

I suppose this is Vermont Mexican food. Some of the touches they had when I ate here several years ago are now gone, and I would say that overall, the quality has gone downhill. The warm and fresh tortilla chips are great but the salsa is now canned. The chicken in my enchilada was tasteless (not freshly cooked). There was a very good fresh chopped vegetable side. The waitress was excellent. The Mud Pie was excellent.
A major problem is the lack of soundproofing. We ate in the smallish main room, where walls, floor and ceiling lack any kind of sound absorption. Therefore, people at all tables kept raising voice pitch and volume to be heard and it got worse and worse. It would be fairly easy to fix this problem with ceiling tiles, carpet and/​or wall baffles, but we would not return under the current circumstance. The situation was close to physically painful and certainly prevented communication among friends, which was one of the reasons for the meal.

Good mex without being greasy. It’s too easy to make Mexican food very heavy and I was pleased with my sizzling fajita was it came with a heaping plate of fresh veggies and salsa and cheese. Girlie had a chimichanga and I normally don’t go for that kind of thing but it was delicious.
We were in town for the Southers Vermont Home Brew Festival and I had sampled much beer this day and drank no more. Our total bill was $ 30.
The décor is festive and a bit cramped. With a table of 6 or more you might feel tight but you’d have a great time.