Stissing House dates back to 1782 when the building was a tavern that also had beds for travelers and America’s first domed  ballroom.  It fell into disrepair after WW1 when the railroad tracks that brought people to town had been torn up to make ammunition.  In the 1990s Christian Eisenbeiss saved it from demolition and along with Dale Mitchell it underwent a 2 year renovation.  They repaired the old-growth floors and restored the domed ballroom and in 1995 opened Stissing House as a French restaurant.  In 2022 Clare de Boer took over as chef/proprietor.  (She rose to notoriety through her work at King, her French/Italian restaurant in SoHo, NY.)  The 6,000 sq. foot building divides diners into multiple smaller rooms including the second floor.   They no longer have sleeping rooms but the dome is available for rental.  As you walk on the wide plank old wood floors on the way to the table you pass by a kitchen with wood fired ovens which are a part of their cooking process.  Candles light the tables as well as the numerous windows to the outside and a few electric fixtures on the walls.  The small tables are covered with white cloths but then topped with paper and little art is on the walls.  Music was in the background and for some time was just country music which then turned into old rock and roll.  It was a good meal but had a few issues.

Set-Up

 

Food

The bread service was a couple slices of brown sourdough with a slab of softened butter.  It was made at a local bakery rather than in house but it was good.

 

A large cool artichoke was alongside mayonnaise and a wedge of lemon.  It was cooked nicely and tasty.  The mayo was seasoned well and it was a fun appetizer to split.  My objection here was that the server brought it at the same time she brought the salad.  You can’t really go back and forth as your hands are involved in the artichoke but they were both cool so no issue.

 

Spring salad was made with radishes, asparagus, peas, mint, Bibb lettuce greens, Fava beans and slices of Goliath cheese.  The lightly dressed mix was well seasoned and good.  The mint was a nice touch and it felt like eating a bit of spring.  I did have to add a sprinkle of salt but I’d rather as you can’t take it out.

 

Ribeye grilled was topped with grilled green garlic and served with coal-baked potatoes.  The grass fed beef that had been dry aged for 3 weeks was from Happy Valley Farms in PA.  It was cooked rare as requested and came sliced with the bone on the plate.  Knowing they cook over wood I was surprised at the lack of smokiness in the meat.  It was plenty tender but did not have a deep beefy flavor.  The potatoes were cooked nicely, not fluffy but tender.  They needed a pinch of salt but also did not have a smokey flavor.  The garlic scapes were excellent and did have a smokey, grilled essence.

 

Coconut cake was a huge slice of buttery cake topped with coconut infused whipped cream.  It wasn’t the multi-layered cake I expected but I have to admit it really grew on me with every bite I took. The cake was light with a wonderful flavor and the subtlety of the coconut was a nice touch.

 

The sundae contained a rye brownie  with hot fudge sauce.  They had scoops of ice cream on the dessert menu and the brownie usually came with vanilla but they were willing to substitute the coffee toffee crunch ice cream in the sundae which I appreciated.  First I think the sundae is way overpriced at $22 when the cake was only $16, however they were both quite good.   The hot fudge sauce was excellent as was the quality of the ice cream but then they topped it with a cheap maraschino cherry.  The brownie was nicely fudgy but I couldn’t discern any rye flavor.  All things aside though, it was a delicious ending for the meal.