Dining Out: 1640 Hart House

Today my family took advantage of the bevy of Easter dining specials and made a reservation for lunch at the 1640 Hart House in Ipswich, MA. Ipswich is about 50 minutes north of Boston, and the 1640 Hart House is just 5 minutes off of Route 1.

The restaurant is an unassuming building on a beautiful, quiet, residential street. The restaurant has a tavern, a formal dining room (rooms actually) as well as a gorgeous roof deck. Today we were seated in the large formal dining room.

The ceiling is braced by thick, wooden beams which gives the room a colonial look and feel. The ceiling was also adorned with dainty chandeliers and natural elements, such as thin tree branches and tiny white flowers.

Waiting for us at our table were chocolate Easter bunny lollipops, one at each place setting. A very nice touch!

Our waitress was bubbly and friendly and advised us that each entree on the Easter menu was also served with a garden salad (bonus). A few people at the table started with the spring roll appetizer which they devoured in seconds, and a bowl of clam chowder that came in a serving bowl so large it could have fed three people.

Between the seven of us, a variety of entrees were ordered. While we waited we noshed on the garden salad which came with a delicious house dressing, which was an apple cider vinegarette. Below are photos of three of the entrees - the crispy risotto cake served with fried eggplant, bok choy and mushrooms, the prime rib served with mashed potatoes, asparagus and a pop over, and the dijon chicken served with mashed potatoes and spring vegetables.

Everyone at the table licked their plates clean and kept saying over and over again "Wow, that was so unbelievably good." You would think with portions of such generous size we would have been too full for dessert. Wrong.

We ordered practically every item on the special Easter dessert menu. The edible Easter basket stuffed with fresh berries, the blueberry tart served with vanilla bean ice cream, the jumbo chocolate chip cookies a la mode, and the chocolate peanutbutter egg. Each dessert was sinfully decadent and came with an exquisite presentation.

On a weekend afternoon or evening, it is absolutely worth the drive to eat a meal at the 1640 Hart House. The restaurant has an average Yelp rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars. For those familiar with Yelp, that's practically unheard of.

The sun's out, roll your windows down, hit the highway, and head to the roofdeck at 1640 Hart House. Your taste buds will thank you.

 

Molly Galler

Welcome to Pop.Bop.Shop. My name is Molly. I’m a foodie, fashionista, pop culture addict and serious travel junkie. I’m a lifelong Bostonian obsessed with frozen confections, outdoor patios, Mindy Kaling, reality television, awards shows, tropical vacations, snail mail and my birthday.

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