Nosh Vermont

Jack’s Mountain View A&W: Retro Drive-In Goodness

The A&W in Middlebury, Vermont is unlike the majority of A&W’s across the country. Most A&W’s are franchises of Yum! Brands, the same people who own Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Long John Silver’s, but the Middlebury A&W is independently owned, and, per the menu, is actually called “Jack’s Mountain View A&W.”

You won’t find the same items on the menu on the corporate website as you do on the menu at the Middlebury A&W either, but you will find delicious food, and friendly service at the window of your vehicle.

That’s one of the charms of this A&W. They don’t have a dining room; they have car service, complete with the tray attached to your window and everything. Park your car, and soon one of the friendly employees will skate on over to give you a menu. The menu is classic A&W, with a few add ons. There are numerous burger options, including the renown Papa Burger (with A&W Papa Sauce!) and veggie or black bean burgers. Hot dogs are also a tasty staple. They have the standard hot dogs, as well as a “Big Cheese Dog”, coneys, and corn dogs, as well as quarter pound hot dogs including Michigans, a Chicago dog (with lettuce, tomato, and banana peppers), a Santa Cruz dog (salsa, lettuce, tomato, and onions). Dinner baskets include chicken wings, breaded shrimp, and fried clams. There are a variety of chicken sandwiches (and tenders), a fish sandwich, and even a BBQ pulled pork sandwich. Sandwiches and dogs are available on their own, or as baskets served with coleslaw and fries (onion rings for only .50 more!). Ice cream and milkshakes are available, as well as A&W draft root beer, alone or as a float. Pretty much all your retro drive-in fast food joint bases are covered at A&W. But is it any good?

Yes. Mr. Schefer and Yva stopped in for a snack while on a drive one afternoon. They ordered root beer floats, a large onion ring to share, and Yva had to have a corn dog. Our server was very pleasant, and we were in awe at her ability to skate around on roller blades with a tray full of food, and not spill it. That’s a talent that certainly sets the employees of this A&W apart. She was nice and helpful in explaining to us what to do and what not to do when it came to the tray attached to our car window (do keep the window slightly up, don’t put the window down and certainly don’t try to put an empty mug on the tray while rolling down the window as one past customer had, resulting in a sad pile of glass in the parking lot). Our root beer floats were served in frosty glass, and contained the perfect amount of hard ice cream covered with a cool and yummy layer of A&W root beer. They are kind enough to provide both a spoon and a straw to accommodate the various styles of consuming a root beer float. Mr. Schefer likes to scoop his out with the spoon, while Yva likes to stir the ice cream up a bit with the straw so it melts into the root beer and can then be sucked through the straw, a creamy mouthful of bliss. A&W got their ice cream to root beer ratios dead on right. The onion rings were lightly breaded with a sprinkle of salt. They weren’t greasy and the onion passed the test of not complete coming out of the breading on the first bite. They were delicious and the onion taste came through beautifully, without being overwhelmed by the breading. Yva’s corn dog was enormous. The batter was flavorful, and neither too greasy or too heavy. The hot dog inside was enormous, juicy, and not a cheap little hot dog as many a corn dog contains. It was beefy tasting and very satisfying, right down to the crunchy little bits on the stick at the base of the corn dog.

(Onion rings and root beer float)

Okay, so maybe it was more than a snack, but the atmosphere and menu commanded more than just a float or onion rings, and we were glad we went a little further than we originally intended. Would we return? Absolutely. Next time, there will be no fooling ourselves with the “snack” lie and we just admit that we’re there to eat, because with a menu like that and the small sample of it we got to try, there’s every reason in the world to go back multiple times.

One little trick about this place; if you are coming from the north on route 7 you will feel like you have gone through all of Middlebury and missed it. You haven’t. A&W is just south of town, so if you’ve gone through town and haven’t seen it yet, don’t despair. It will be on the left side and you’ll see the orange roof first, then the sign with Papa Bear. Take the left at the bear. You won’t regret it.

Oh, be sure to tip your skater.

Two medium root beer floats, large onion ring, corn dog $12.26 They accept cash and personal checks, but no credit cards. Jack’s Mountain View A&W, Route 7, Middlebury, Vermont (802) 388-2876.