Restaurants in Marlborough

Settled on the pastoral landscape of the Mohawk Trail, The Harley House Restaurant welcomes travelers with servings of familiar home-cooked fare, catered celebrations and weddings, or weekend getaways spent in lodgings styled after a country home. Guests dine on dishes culled from seasonal menus in the rustic confines of the intimate, 20-seat tavern, or sup among the rough-hewn wood-plank walls of the charming, folksy barn. Boarders laze in the shade of the gazebo, or amble through the private, wood-fenced garden lined with perennials like every American president's Mardi Gras tuxedo. Winter finds lodgers enjoying a library of CDs and movies, card games, or a drink before a roaring fireplace, while spring and summer see visitors strolling through the bordering parklands or sweeping trails of bread crumbs in nearby forests.

At 36 deLux Restaurant, culinary moguls Chef Matt Provencher and Ita Isakov form a powerful duo bent on sourcing the freshest produce, seafood, and meats from local suppliers. Matt graduated from the New England Culinary Institute before honing his skills at eateries all over the country, and Ita heads up Carmel Produce, a distributor of just-plucked produce. Together, they mastermind a menu headlined by salmon and calamari from the raw bar, pecan-crusted pork tenderloin, and sole stuffed with lobster and spinach. Paired with house made breads and desserts, the sizzling dishes make for a hearty meal complemented by potent cocktails and martinis from a recently revamped drink menu.

In a gallery space, the eatery spotlights revolving masterpieces from local artists. Nearby, its private function room sets the stage for making small talk with imaginary friends among up to 35 seated guests or 60 standing party goers.

Christopher Palios, executive chef and owner of Sophia’s Tuscan Grille, inherited his cooking skills from his Sicilian grandmother, with whom he worked side-by-side as a child constructing traditional Italian dishes. Palios went on to refine his techniques by attending culinary school, traveling to the Caribbean and northern Italy, and working in the kitchens of celebrity chefs Emeril Lagasse and Todd English. Palios uses high-quality ingredients to create innovative dishes that reflect the Tuscan countryside.

Personal touches go into the savory entrees, as seen by the hand-stretched peasant-style grilled flatbreads and the handcrafted nuggets of spinach and ricotta gnocchi. Black n’ blue mussels—simmered with crisp pancetta, gorgonzola, and chives—and linguine with clams pair with diners’ libations toted from home under the restaurant's BYOB policy. House-made desserts round out meals with creamy bites of wild-strawberry spumoni as refreshing as a nap in the produce aisle. To bring the Tuscan experience to their own kitchens, diners may take a cooking class or purchase one of four spice rubs hand mixed and packaged by chef Christopher.

Leather sofas sit across from a large wooden bar, whose polished surface reflects the flashing lights of flat-screen TVs overhead. The casual, yet elegant, atmosphere of Corrine’s dining room mirrors the distinctively American sensibilities that inform the restaurant’s menu. Chefs pluck their culinary inspirations from regions as diverse as the North East and the Deep South, arriving at a selection that includes rotisserie chicken, bourbon-glazed rib tips, and seared fillets of Atlantic fish. Though far-flung in origin, these dishes have at least one thing in common: each pairs nicely with a beer or cocktail poured by the barkeeper.

Corrine’s isn’t just known for its food, though. Three banquet spaces, including a grand ballroom, host private events that range from casual cocktail parties to wedding receptions for up to 300 guests. Back in the dining room, live entertainment takes place nearly every night a week; the schedule features everything from DJ-hosted ladies’ dance parties to cover bands and Dad playing his favorite Grateful Dead songs with a borrowed guitar.

When they first opened Belly Rules, Chef Valter Monteiro and Melissa Gilmete didn't even bother to hang a sign. Instead, they chose to let their cooking speak for itself, whipping up a menu of meaty breakfasts, lunches, and dinners that have attracted the attention of local diners and reporters from the Johnston Insider. The chefs labor over their renowned country-fried steak and eggs, pig-roast platters, and custom burgers while supplementing the menu with Saturday-night specials such as firecracker shrimp or tequila-sunrise scallops. The restaurant hosts special fundraisers on Friday nights and welcomes guests to Monday Cruise Night, where clients can show off their new cars, classic automobiles, or Tonka trucks.

Featured by Paul Stern on Mansfield-StorrsPatch in 2011—just months after its opening—Coriander Cafe & Country Store has hatched quite the name for itself in Eastwood. According to Stern, brothers Scott and Brett Laffert run the show with Brett, a former chef and self-proclaimed “country person at heart,” transforming local ingredients into gourmet sandwiches, burgers, and straw hats. The shop makes all their breads—from ciabatta to whole wheat—in-house before stacking them with fresh-carved turkey and cranberry sauce or homemade black-bean patties. Yet the cooks don’t stop at handheld fare; the menu changes daily and can include anything from pan-seared haddock over corn-and-chive griddlecakes to braised pork belly with a side of chipotle grits.

Coriander Cafe also welcomes early risers into its country confines for a cup of fair-trade and organic coffee from Red Barn Coffee Roasters, a homemade bagel, or a decadent pastry such as a raspberry scone or cinnamon-sugar donut muffin, which guests can enjoy inside or amid fresh-picked oxygen molecules on the backyard deck. A fully stocked country store outfits fleeting customers with all the necessities, from homemade cookies and Red Barn coffee to gourmet jams and hot sauces.