The Griswold Inn | Local Flavor

Essex, Connecticut, has the onerous distinction of being one of the few American towns or cities (New York, Pearl Harbor, and a handful of others) to have been attacked by a foreign power. It was the War of 1812, specifically April 8, 1814, when six British rowboats made their way up the Connecticut River from Long Island Sound, landing where Main Street ends at the river and a town dock still stands. Their quarry: 28 newly-built privateers designed to bypass the British blockade that was choking the town’s economy.

The British forces easily overwhelmed the town’s militia and marched up Main Street to the Bushnell Tavern, est. 1776, where, as the story goes, they demanded breakfast before seizing some portion of the inn’s rum stores. They then took control of the town’s rope supply and burned most of the privateers to cinders.

Despite its lost stores, the Bushnell Tavern survived, operating continuously to this day (it was renamed the Griswold House, or “The Gris,” as it’s popularly known, in the mid-19^th century, and later The Griswold Inn), which makes it the oldest such institution in the nation. And you’ll sense it the moment you enter the dining rooms and central Tap Room, which are burnished with so much history and such varied collections of lithographs, period weapons, and maritime memorabilia that it’s difficult to simply sit down and eat. Over here are steamboat prints by Currier & Ives, over there, an original Norman Rockwell sketch, and in a wall-mounted case, a collection of firearms dating as far back as the 15^th century. The main dining room is constructed from a dismantled New Hampshire covered bridge. And the potbellied stove in the Tap Room came from the Goodspeed Opera House just upriver. Once a month, owner Geoffrey Paul puts on his docent cap and leads a tour through the collection. (Book your spot early; the tours usually sell out.)

But this is not a museum. It’s an inn, a tavern, a restaurant. For the richest experience, spend a night in the Tap Room, whose domed ceiling, plastered with a combination of horsehair and crushed clamshells, is browned from centuries of wood fires and residue from the vintage popcorn popper. If you can, plan your visit for a Monday, when The Jovial Crew leads the crowd in sea shanties and the barkeep pours pints of the inn’s own Revolutionary Ale. The food is classic pub fare and may not constitute your year’s most memorable meal, but it is as solid as the building’s foundation: a tasty burger; thick, creamy chowder (for those who enjoy that style); and delicious fish-and-chips. (The batter is made with potato flakes—a ‘why-didn’t-I-think-of-that?’ innovation that keeps them crisp long after they’ve left the fry basket.) For dessert, don’t miss the classic sticky toffee pudding or the Gris mud pie.

And after such hearty fare, a stroll is in order, and throughout the town’s compact center, you’ll find one of New England’s best and best-kept collections of Federal homes. It’s almost dizzying—in any other town each property could stand out as the prettiest of its kind, and here, it’s just one of many. Then head down to the town dock and imagine the souls who walked this path before you, in peace and tumult.

Griswold Inn. 36 Main St., Essex. CT. 860-767-1776; griswoldinn.com. Tap Room entrees from $15.50