Hathorne Has Flavor

Seated at a table in front of the window proved to be magical and inviting in what is formerly the fellowship hall of a church next door. We launched into our Hathorne experience with an ode to late summer: Watermelon Salad, Grilled Stone Fruits, and Peas & Tomatoes, the first two dishes gluten-free, and all three vegan. And all three tasty. In the first dish, the sweetness of the compressed watermelon and candied black walnuts was balanced by the caraflex cabbage, sea beans and mint. The Grilled Stone Fruits was actually a kind of play on the classic peanut butter and jelly, only one performed at an order of magnitude more complex and flavorful than anything mom ever made. But the star of the starters was definitely the Peas & Tomatoes. With the tomatoes cured in lapsang tea, the dish provides a subtle, smoky flavor that perfectly blends with the limas and purple hull peas.  

Our appetites thus wonderfully whetted, we were ready for the mains; soon our table all but overflowed with feast. For the vegetarian side of the table, there were the Sungold Cavatelli, a homemade pasta with blistered tomatoes and summer squash, and Rice Dumplings, a vegan and gluten-free dish of Korean-style dumplings with sweet corn and lion’s mane mushrooms. For the more carnivorous side of the table, there were the Crispy Half Rabbit and Fried Chicken Schnitzel, both outstanding with the latter a Hathhorne staple. But the star of the meat dishes was definitely the burger which, on this particular Tuesday, was the Fried Pickles & Slaw Smashburger, two Bear Creek patties, cheddar, smoky slaw, crispy-fried house pickles and a blue cheese crumble. Jill, Edible’s founder and editor-in-chief, doesn’t like blue cheese. That is, unless it’s crumbled on a Hathorne Smashburger. She raved about it, only pausing to take more bites. Once she’s hungry again, we’ll definitely have Hathorne on our heavy rotation list, and are excited to see – and eat! – what culinary creations Chef Gass has in store for the future.