Marsh Tavern At the Equinox

I would never have described this place as a tavern. It was definitely as good as everyone suggested it would be! The place is full of history as indicated by the past visitors dotted over the backs of the menus. Our host told us 11 presidents had been there over the years as well as some of the unique history to the place (and I quote … «this place is haunted as hell»).
As for the food, oh man. There was the normal pub menu that about half our party ordered from, as well as an extended normal menu with starters and entrees. I had the venison loin which was cooked to perfection and melted in my mouth, over a bed of sweet potato mash. We even packed our already full stomachs with the slew of deserts offered up.
Our server John was funny and inquisitive about our trip up to Vermont. The servers kept our glasses topped off, and the atmosphere was pheonomenal. We sat at a table for 8 near a roaring fire place that kept us warm on the outside while the beer and wine did the same on the inside.
If you are in Manchester, you have to visit the Equinox.

For such a nice place, the service in this restaurant is awful. The lazy and forgetful waitstaff seems to be imported from a third rate Caribbean resort.
They forgot one dish from our order, and when my $ 15 grilled cheese came out — it was ice cold. I sent it back, and the new one that came out wasn’t fully cooked. At least they took the cellophane off of the Kraft Singles before partially grilling it.
Sadly they automatically added a 20% gratuity to our bill due to the size of or party, but the incompetent staff that served us deserved about five percent max.
The ambiance is cozy and welcoming, and some of the dishes we ordered were delicious, but I’ve gotten better customer service at the Brattleboro Burger King.

Fantastic! Sandra the manager is so friendly and accommodating!!!
They bent over backwards for us during our stay. Food and menu are very nice.
Salmon was outstanding and huge!
Kids pb&j was oozing with jelly and they loved it…
Bartender knew how to make a nuts and berries for wife, which is very rare…
Kale salad is hard core healthy eating, but worth a try! Enjoy the atmosphere.
Pricing was reasonable and Equinox is fantastic!

Food is good, but not amazing. My sister had the tomato soup in the grilled cheese and soup combo which literally tasted like marinara sauce. However I had the chicken pot pie though which was yummy.
We stopped by here for lunch. This restaurants location is good, the interior is sparce (could have been very cozy), and service is quick (plus warm bread while you wait).

One of my favorite places to eat & drink in Manchester. I’ve been coming here for 23 years (way before Unilocal was born) & I’ve never had a bad meal. Lovely atmosphere & excellent service! The menu varies and the food is fresh & tasty. This is no rural ‘hotel’ like one reviewer feared. It’s a five star resort & it deserves all 5 stars! Have a drink at the outside fire bar too!

Service was fast, courteous and knowledgeable, food offerings were outstanding and portions were sumptuous.
My wife had salmon and I had duck breast which was one of the best I’ve ever had.
For an appetizer, they brought a Board with muffins fruit and a wonderful jalapeño jelly

I really don’t get why this place isn’t very highly rated. The food is ridiculously good! The service is extremely good and the ambiance is nice. I mean this is high quality fine chef food. It’s not cheap but it’s what you would except to pay for a restaurant of this caliber.
The bread basket is scrumptious too, try the pepper jelly. Highly recommend!

If not for the atmosphere and the good service, this place would have received 2 stars from me. If you like jalapeños in your bread, you might like the bread box. We did not like it. The food was just ok, but very over-​priced. I had the $ 40 steak. It tasted like $ 20 steak.

The entire resort experience is lovely. Service is on its game especially at the Tavern Bar. Great drinks as well. I only ranked two stars because the famous bread box out weighed the veal Milanese. The prices were in line with a resort hotel. The veal was tasteless, over breaded and had tasteless pasta on top. The sparse greens were hiding on the side. I was very disappointed.

The bread box thing! You have to go just for that complimentary sample box. So good! It has a bunch of different breads, special Vermont butter, spicy jelly and fruit. We had the soup/​grilled cheese/​salad lunch and it was very good. Maxine was our server and she was great. Also, the manager Joe was doing a great job of helping out and checking in on everyone. Nice atmosphere, outside seating available too.

Our very good friends took us to dinner here at the Equinox Hotel & Spa, and the venue itself is beautiful. We sat outdoors in the shade overlooking Main Street, the view was spectacular! The bread basket was amazing with a homemade jelly, butter. 3 – 4 types of artisan bread, fresh fruit, & a veggie all presented in a wood bento box. We ordered and enjoyed the fig arugula goat cheese flatbread pizza. Plus had the slightly greasy apply fritters. Then off the menu we had a delicious roasted beet arugula and goat cheese salad, the best part of our meal. Entrees going around the table were a very good NY strip with polenta cake, salmon with mashed potato, fettuccine with clams, and a subpar cast iron chicken. The main courses were just ok, but we ended with 2 desserts that made us happy, an strawberry rhubarb crisp with ice cream and a Vermont maple bread pudding, yum. Wines were pricey as was the overall meal, typical of Vermont Tourist ski area. Would I go back… absolutely. This was our best Vermont meal to date.

Enjoyed lunch here our last day at the hotel. I am usually VERY skeptical about dining at hotel restaurants, especially rural hotels, but this restaurant definitely proved to be a delicious exception.
We had salads and sandwiches — and the amazing bread box. We asked for both courses to be served at once, as we needed to start our drive back to good ol’ NYC fairly soon, and everything arrived very timely, and with very friendly service. Absolutely no complaints on the meal.
BEAUTIFUL outdoor seating. If the weather accommodates, ask to sit outside.
My one-​star off is more to do with the hotel amenities.
The hotel check-​out is at noon, but this restaurant doesn’t open until 1130. They were very accommodating to extend our room until 1pm so we could check out after we ate, but it appears a simpler solution would be to either extend breakfast (in the other restaurant on site) until noon, or, open this place at 11am? Just a suggestion.

The service is pleasant and professional. And its not their fault if the kitchen puts out sub par food. I dislike poor reviews. Really. But when we pay almost $ 100 for a lovely bread basket, a beer, a meh martini, flavorless and minuscule mussels and the worst putin with burned foie gras (criminal) ($ 21 for that)… Given the Equinox hotel and spa, and the lovely wine shops in town, its UNFORGIVABLE to charge $ 16 for a 6 onz glass of La Crema Pinot Noir. Really sad wine list, and a sidecar we had to send back. Sad. And not good. By a longshot.

Poor dish presentation. Over cooked lobster. Boring chicken. The Chop house is a much better value for your money. Wasn’t impressed, especially since it was somewhat expensive for what you get. First time I was disappointed at the Equinox.

This place is solid, especially for breakfast and room service. Love breakfast in front of the fireplace. Crepes and Belgian waffles are our breakfast favorites. Caesar salad is excellent but they seem to have different chefs each day. On good days, we will get a cute little spoon with anchovies and pickles with our salad. Chicken pot pie is great, fresh pulled chicken and tasty sauce. Prime burger and ham/​cheese sandwich are good. Kids menu is good. Huge portions all around.

If I based this review on my lunch alone, it would be 1 star. I ordered the wrong entrée for certain… the so called prime rib sandwich– which was old dry shoe-​leather shaved meat with a stale taste, served on a burger roll. The fries were good. Everyone else enjoyed their lunch — especially the meatloaf with short rib, with a mound of tasty mashed potatoes. The bread box was gross. The bread was tasteless and very dry, and the dried out carrots in it were certainly not edible. The tangerine in the box was also old and dry!
The beer selection is very good, and the beer well chilled.
Home made chocolate ice cream was dense and creamy, and the maple bourbon bread pudding was especially good… well, they certainly have enough stale bread to turn into bread pudding! Service was attentive. The atmosphere by the fire was lovely.
The quality of the food overall simply needs to be better.

Sadly, food is bland, poorly presented and in my view does not use quality ingredients. The bread box is nothing special, but they present it like they are introducing the dalai lama. Manchester is shockingly not a place for food anyway, but eat elsewhere. Service was terrible, but because it was a holiday, I tipped better than I should have. Maitre d’ couldn’t care less when we left, our waiter didn’t even say thank you or goodbye as we left. We don’t need handholding, but servers are poorly bred, devoid of any common courtesies
Oh and the wine list is insanely expensive. And I’m from New York City!

We were seated in a nice corner table right next to the fireplace. The service was great and we enjoyed our meal. We ordered more apps than entrees.
Scallop appetizer was so good. Perfectly cooked and fresh and had a beautiful presentation.
The vegetable minestrone was decent.
The crab salad was pretty good with crab meat and an avocado purée.
The Shepards pie was pretty good
My sister enjoyed the kale salad although I’m just not a fan of kale so was my least favorite.
The bread box had so much in it including muffins, focaccia, multigrain, jalapeño jelly, carrots, plum, and butter.

I’m such a fan of Manchester’s restaurants and this one, in the lovely Equinox, is no exception. While not as farm to table as I usually select you’ll still find a fresh, hearty meal with complex but well-​balanced flavors, an impressive wine list and delicious desserts.
Service is friendly, attentive and excellent without being overbearing.

Sit by the wonderfully cozy fireplace In the creamy leather high-​back chairs if you can!
Warm, elegant yet casual, upscale but not pretentious.
We had the charcuterie– good variety but on the smaller side, baked Brie w apple butter, and the leek & potatoe bisque. Everything was good, not super tasty but just right for a casual Saterday afternoon of shopping in the brisk air. Excellent spicy Bloody Mary’s & hot cider w spiced rum– perfect!
Excellent service– the perfect combination of congegenial & conscientious.