Salt Marsh Winery
Just minutes away from the ocean in Scituate, Massachusetts, there's a place that's redefining what a winery can be. So let's sit back, relax, and let us pour you a glass at Salt Marsh Winery.
Salt Marsh Winery isn't stomping grapes on site, but they are pouring more award-winning wines than you can count, and they're paired with deliciously unique dishes guaranteed to fill you up.
The restaurant takes its name from a book written by chef-owner Douglas Rodriguez's grandfather called Mystery at the Salt Marsh Winery, and the menu was inspired by his passion for modern cooking and traditional New England ingredients.
“The idea behind the cuisine is New England coastal cuisine, just approachable, refined, sort of a spot where families can come in. You can have a date night, but you're going to see things like fish and chips, lobster roll and things like that. When you come down to Scituate in the summer, but also refined and upscale dishes like escargot and foie gras, and seasonal dishes like truffles and other just hyper-seasonal ingredients when they come around, we have something for everyone here.”
While the atmosphere is welcoming, the menu is packed with nostalgic favorites kicked up with premium ingredients and creative presentations.
Starting with their appetizers, the coconut shrimp is fried until golden brown and served with hot mustard and preserved lemon.
Then there's the housemade Parker House rolls that are super fluffy, served warm with their miso maple butter and a sprinkle of garlic sea salt.
And move over, Bloomin' Onion. The Salt Marsh Winery's take on the fried onion dish features sweet onion petals served with a black pepper sauce and miso aioli.
But for something truly unique, you got to get Chef Douglas's signature dish, the composed Glidden Point oyster. The chef tops these freshly shucked oysters with an herby mignonette, quail egg yolk, and caviar for an over-the-top ocean taste.
“So you get the brininess of local waters, almost like a splash of the ocean in your face. A bit of sweetness from mignonette. And then the quail egg yolk sort of smooths everything out, gives it some body. It's the best oyster you'll ever eat.”
Salt Marsh's entrees pack some serious flavor combinations, too.
The char siu pork belly is braised confit, deep fried, and glazed in a Cantonese-style barbecue sauce that brings a little sweetness to the succulent pork.
They also fire up a lemon-glazed hake. The simple white fish is basted in tons of butter and lemon oil, and served over a clam and corn chowder.
Salt Marsh takes the classic lobster roll to the next level as well. That fresh claw and tail meat is poached in butter and topped with shallots, chives, and a dehydrated lobster soy sauce.
“When you take a bite of the lobster roll, you get a very juicy, plump bite of lobster just covered in butter and salt. It's the best lobster roll you can get around here. It's just the care and techniques that we use to make our lobster, and it's delicious.”
That fresh, local lobster is also featured in their stroganoff, accompanied by chunks of slow-braised oxtail tossed with buttered egg noodles and a brown butter, tomato, rosemary, and Parmesan sauce.
The Salisbury steak comes smothered in a classic but luxuriously rich mushroom and onion gravy, along with some mashed potatoes and string beans.
Another nostalgic standout, the chicken pot pie, gets a glow-up here, too. It features roast chicken, sweet corn, carrots, and butternut squash simmered in a rich gravy beneath a golden, flaky crust and topped with a medley of those fresh vegetables.
Or, for a truly unexpected, upscale twist, Chef Douglas recommends, believe it or not, his gourmet spin on a tuna casserole.
“The tuna casserole on our menu is just an upscale version of what every family knows from their family cookouts. We step it up with a little bit of matsutake mushroom cream, confit of fresh tuna, and you have the option of topping it with a piece of seared foie gras as well. It's a textural smorgasbord.”
No meal at Salt Marsh Winery is complete without what they call the After School Special dessert.
This trip down memory lane features creamy chocolate marshmallow meringue, Oreo crumb, banana bread croutons, Ritz cracker ice cream, and a banana tahini caramel sauce.
It's like taking one big, delicious bite of all your favorite after-school snacks all at once.
So, for a wonderfully familiar yet surprisingly creative meal paired with a glass or two of your favorite wine, you have to check out Salt Marsh Winery in Scituate.
