Hilltown Hideaway Guidebook
Local Restaurants and More
While we are deep in the woods of Western Mass, there’s a lot to offer in terms of food and more here!
Perfect place to grab lunch or dinner, and a six pack of good beer or a nice bottle of wine. Greg makes fantastic wood fired pizza, along with outstanding breakfast sandwiches, superb breads, delicious baked goods, and tasty soups and salads. Highly recommend sitting in the sun outside at the cafe tables, enjoying a fresh pizza and local craft beer!
Chesterfield General Store
432 Main RdPerfect place to grab lunch or dinner, and a six pack of good beer or a nice bottle of wine. Greg makes fantastic wood fired pizza, along with outstanding breakfast sandwiches, superb breads, delicious baked goods, and tasty soups and salads. Highly recommend sitting in the sun outside at the cafe tables, enjoying a fresh pizza and local craft beer!
Our local little cooperative market and general store, about 10 minutes from the cabin, it has an excellent bakery and prepared foods section, plus surprisingly good wines, artisanal brews, and more. Produce is generally local. Great place to pick up good olive oil, fine cheeses, organic groceries, and more. Recommend ordering ahead if you want to get a sandwich - they can be slow with prep, but the sandwiches are usually worth the wait! Closest place to get an ice cream cone, too! Try their strawberry basil ice cream in the summer!
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Old Creamery Co-op
445 Berkshire TrailOur local little cooperative market and general store, about 10 minutes from the cabin, it has an excellent bakery and prepared foods section, plus surprisingly good wines, artisanal brews, and more. Produce is generally local. Great place to pick up good olive oil, fine cheeses, organic groceries, and more. Recommend ordering ahead if you want to get a sandwich - they can be slow with prep, but the sandwiches are usually worth the wait! Closest place to get an ice cream cone, too! Try their strawberry basil ice cream in the summer!
A truly historic bar and roadhouse, known as the highest bar in Massachusetts! Owned by a group of locals along with two lovely local women, Bri (our daughter) and her best friend Jessie, who also manage Liston’s day to day. Liston’s has been around since 1933, but was completely revamped, renovated and reopened in the Fall of 2022. No longer just a roadhouse, but a true restaurant with a big bar, beautiful indoor and outdoor seating, a pool room, and always the big game on the TV. It is a perfect spot for lunch, but do know that it can get packed for dinner, so arrive early and expect a bit of a wait.! But, there’s a bunch of Adirondacks, fire pits, and picnic tables outside where you can enjoy a drink or play corn hole while you do. While Liston’s is a locals bar, a snowmobiler's bar, a biker's bar, a farmer's bar—and you’ll often see these folks taking up a barstool—don't let that intimidate you: Liston's is *super* friendly, with a warm and excellent staff, and really great pub fare: burgers, “adaptable” mac and cheese, an excellent Rueben, good home made soups, really good salads, always a vegetarian offering or two, and great dinner and drink specials. Bri is behind the bar or on the floor serving most nights; tell her we sent you! W-S 12-8 serving food, bar stays open later.
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Listons Bar & Grill
324 Old North RdA truly historic bar and roadhouse, known as the highest bar in Massachusetts! Owned by a group of locals along with two lovely local women, Bri (our daughter) and her best friend Jessie, who also manage Liston’s day to day. Liston’s has been around since 1933, but was completely revamped, renovated and reopened in the Fall of 2022. No longer just a roadhouse, but a true restaurant with a big bar, beautiful indoor and outdoor seating, a pool room, and always the big game on the TV. It is a perfect spot for lunch, but do know that it can get packed for dinner, so arrive early and expect a bit of a wait.! But, there’s a bunch of Adirondacks, fire pits, and picnic tables outside where you can enjoy a drink or play corn hole while you do. While Liston’s is a locals bar, a snowmobiler's bar, a biker's bar, a farmer's bar—and you’ll often see these folks taking up a barstool—don't let that intimidate you: Liston's is *super* friendly, with a warm and excellent staff, and really great pub fare: burgers, “adaptable” mac and cheese, an excellent Rueben, good home made soups, really good salads, always a vegetarian offering or two, and great dinner and drink specials. Bri is behind the bar or on the floor serving most nights; tell her we sent you! W-S 12-8 serving food, bar stays open later.
Some of the best beer in New England, hands down. The brewer, Jared Sena, has been creating outstanding beers and beverages for well over a decade (he brewed for Berkshire Brewing Co. before striking out on his own). We make a point to enjoy Sena’s with our friends at least once a week. Come for the excellent, heady brews—stay for the welcoming people and ambiance. Although they don’t offer food, you can pick up takeout at Liston’s, the Goldenrod, the Chesterfield General Store, or the Creamery, or simply make bring your own cheese/nosh platter to this warm and truly inviting place, where locals easily mix and hang with out of town visitors. Friendly and funky, with good vinyls on the turntable, sometimes live music, trivia nights and more. Highly recommended, but drink responsibly, as his beers are potent!
Sena Farm Brewery
Some of the best beer in New England, hands down. The brewer, Jared Sena, has been creating outstanding beers and beverages for well over a decade (he brewed for Berkshire Brewing Co. before striking out on his own). We make a point to enjoy Sena’s with our friends at least once a week. Come for the excellent, heady brews—stay for the welcoming people and ambiance. Although they don’t offer food, you can pick up takeout at Liston’s, the Goldenrod, the Chesterfield General Store, or the Creamery, or simply make bring your own cheese/nosh platter to this warm and truly inviting place, where locals easily mix and hang with out of town visitors. Friendly and funky, with good vinyls on the turntable, sometimes live music, trivia nights and more. Highly recommended, but drink responsibly, as his beers are potent!
Warm and friendly b&b and tavern, run beautifully by innkeepers Eric and Aaron! We love the Goldenrod for its refined pub menu, its amazing soups, vegetarian options, excellent apps, very good cocktails, and the lovely outdoor seating in the summer where you can watch the sun set. They also have a spacious, filtered/ventilated COVID19 safer indoor seating year round, too. The Goldenrod Tavern is more intimate than Liston’s, and is a good place for Sunday brunch—check their website for events, days and hours.
The Goldenrod Country Inn
Warm and friendly b&b and tavern, run beautifully by innkeepers Eric and Aaron! We love the Goldenrod for its refined pub menu, its amazing soups, vegetarian options, excellent apps, very good cocktails, and the lovely outdoor seating in the summer where you can watch the sun set. They also have a spacious, filtered/ventilated COVID19 safer indoor seating year round, too. The Goldenrod Tavern is more intimate than Liston’s, and is a good place for Sunday brunch—check their website for events, days and hours.
A really cute and tiny kiosk with a plethora of great gourmet items and essentials. Looking for good seafood? Oliver's has an entire frozen case with excellent seafood shipped direct from the coast only 90 minutes away. It also has seasonal and local produce, and many gourmet items, too. Located right in the center of Goshen, next to the Police Station, right off of Rte. 9. Highly recommended!
Oliver's Farm Stand
A really cute and tiny kiosk with a plethora of great gourmet items and essentials. Looking for good seafood? Oliver's has an entire frozen case with excellent seafood shipped direct from the coast only 90 minutes away. It also has seasonal and local produce, and many gourmet items, too. Located right in the center of Goshen, next to the Police Station, right off of Rte. 9. Highly recommended!
This little country store, open 7-7, is located in Worthington - not far from Liston's - where you can pick up great local eggs, dairy, cheeses, seasonal produce and frozen meats.
Sawyer Farm
This little country store, open 7-7, is located in Worthington - not far from Liston's - where you can pick up great local eggs, dairy, cheeses, seasonal produce and frozen meats.
Sightseeing
The Gorge is the gorgeous Wonder of Western Massachusetts! Perhaps of all of Massachusetts. Outstanding and easy to moderate hike, a there and back that extends for over 10 miles down the Westfield River. The Gorge itself is RIGHT NEXT to the main parking area, so if you have little ones, you don't have to walk far to see it. (Be sure to hold your little one's hands or hold them in your arms, though: the cliffs are really high, and although there are cable security fencing, better safe than sorry!)
This is a truly beautiful hike, and very popular on the weekends. Go early, especially on hotter days when the River can be populated with bathers and paddlers. While you cannot swim in the actual Gorge, there are lots of spots along the walk downstream where folks can take a dip. And, for the intrepid, walk downstream three+ miles to the Middle Gorge, where the water is almost 20' deep!
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Chesterfield Gorge Reservation
The Gorge is the gorgeous Wonder of Western Massachusetts! Perhaps of all of Massachusetts. Outstanding and easy to moderate hike, a there and back that extends for over 10 miles down the Westfield River. The Gorge itself is RIGHT NEXT to the main parking area, so if you have little ones, you don't have to walk far to see it. (Be sure to hold your little one's hands or hold them in your arms, though: the cliffs are really high, and although there are cable security fencing, better safe than sorry!)
This is a truly beautiful hike, and very popular on the weekends. Go early, especially on hotter days when the River can be populated with bathers and paddlers. While you cannot swim in the actual Gorge, there are lots of spots along the walk downstream where folks can take a dip. And, for the intrepid, walk downstream three+ miles to the Middle Gorge, where the water is almost 20' deep!
The home of Poet William Cullen Bryant, the Homestead features beautiful views and grounds, but the real reason to visit is to enjoy a local walk, the Rivulet Trail: this is one of the last Old Growth Forests in Massachusetts, and is right across the street from the Homestead. The Rivulet Trail is a mile+ easy to moderate hiking loop through mostly white pine, birch, and hemlock trees that have been untouched and uncut, and thus are much larger than you will see in most New England forests. Some are hundreds of years old, and it's worth a visit to see this unique old woods, any time of the year, but especially Late Spring, Summer and Early Fall.
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William Cullen Bryant Homestead
207 Bryant RdThe home of Poet William Cullen Bryant, the Homestead features beautiful views and grounds, but the real reason to visit is to enjoy a local walk, the Rivulet Trail: this is one of the last Old Growth Forests in Massachusetts, and is right across the street from the Homestead. The Rivulet Trail is a mile+ easy to moderate hiking loop through mostly white pine, birch, and hemlock trees that have been untouched and uncut, and thus are much larger than you will see in most New England forests. Some are hundreds of years old, and it's worth a visit to see this unique old woods, any time of the year, but especially Late Spring, Summer and Early Fall.
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What to Pack
The Hilltowns are always about 10F cooler than down in the Valley, so make sure you pack an extra outer layer (sweatshirt, hoodie, fleece vest) even in the summer, plus warm socks and long pants, too.
Check out our swimming holes and local hikes guide, and be sure to bring good shoes for hiking - AND a swim suit for impromptu dips!