The Goose American Bistro and Bar

My fellow Fairfield County friends have constantly been asking me if I have tried the Goose? With all of that positive feed back and a plaque commemorating The Goose’s «2014 Best of…» greeting its guests as they enter the front door… my hopes were pretty high that The Goose’s burger would tickle my fancy.
The bar area had a good vibe with its high top tables in front of a long wood bar that spanned the entire length of the room, behind the bar a full wall displaying a wide array of liquors, and TV’s airing ESPN.
The menu included two beef burgers; the basic BLACK ANGUS BURGER, where you can build your own combination, and THE GOOSE BURGER, which included bacon, blue cheese, crispy onions and horseradish cream (definitely a pub-​creation). I decided on my traditional cheeseburger medium-​rare and added the crispy onions. I asked if fries were included and I was informed I could substitute fries for the chips for an additional $ 1. So the total for my creation was $ 19.00, high for a bar, but in line with its neighbors,
When the burger arrived, it sat on the plate open faced. The patty was topped with the melted cheese and crispy deep-​fried onion bits. The bun side was topped with iceberg lettuce and slices of tomato, red onion and a pickle. Included on the plate was a large mound of golden brown fries and a little plate of ketchup.
When I cut the patty in half it was overcooked, more medium to medium-​well than the requested medium-​rare. The thickness of the patty was about a half-​inch, firm in texture and flat on both sides, probably pressed while prepared. The flavor was good, with just a touch of richness, nothing special. It lacked any seasoning and I would have preferred a little salt and pepper (shakers on the table). It was very juicy with the bottom bun absorbing a fair amount of the juice. The generic cheese was well melted, and oozed down the sides of the burger. The crispy onions offered a crunchy textural difference and I liked the oniony flavor that they added. The basic potato bun was quickly grilled prior to assembly. Individually the items were non-​descript, but together they delivered a very good combination.
I only wish the fries were as good as they looked. Some were delicious but most were undercooked… the beautiful golden brown exterior was paired with less than fully cooked interior. The seasoning was also very erratic, some with zero salt, some perfect and others over-​salted.
Overall, the burger at The Goose was a good bar burger, but fell short of the tremendous hype I received prior to the visit, and the fries were disappointing.

The Goose American Bistro & Bar — Darien, CT — 6÷13÷2016
Loooove the setting… You walk thru a small alley and brick archway before entering the restaurant. A long beautiful wooden bar sits directly to the left as you walk in… Wooden high tops in the bar area and beautiful glass windows… I prefer a dining room setting… As you walk thru their hallway you enter a nice size dining room… Brown wooden tables and chairs… A few booths and half booths… Beautiful Trey ceiling… Ornate lamps… A stone wall on one side with photos and a large faux clock purposely hung… Real charm! I think the servers here are all kids this time of year…
My first course this evening the Crab & Corn Chowder… More of a creamy broth based soup with chunks of Crab Meat, Corn, Potatoes and Crispy Bacon… I think they drop the Bacon in just before serving as it was still crunchy… I would say very good…
Next up the Mixed Greens… Baby Bib Lettuce, Carrots, tomatoes and I opted to add in Crumbled Gorgonzola with their House Vinaigrette Dressing… my server brought out an extra serving of Gorgonzola, a nice touch soaring me having to ask… Nicely plated and overall good…
Unfortunately I had to ask for the bread as my server forgot to bring it out… Nicely served in a woven basket, wrapped in a linen cloth with hardened, house whipped butter… Execution however did not meet my anticipation… An Italian Baguette that they bring in daily… After a couple of bites, the bread was not for me… They may want to re-​evaluate where they get their bread…
And for the main tonight… The Grilled Halibut Special over Grilled Polenta, Grilled Asparagus served with a Mango Beurre Blanc Sauce Garnished with Sautéed strips of Red Pepper… Beurre Blanc??? Fancy name for Mango Butter Sauce… If they didn’t tell me it had Mango, I wouldn’t have known… Barely discernible in the flavor… And the fish was borderline dry… Beautifully plated but slightly off in the preparation…
They have a great selection of desserts! But in wanting to stick to my eating plan, I passed on dessert and finished the meal with my signature Cappuccino… The Cappuccino was absolutely perfect in every detail!
Overall a very nice setting and probably a great place to meet friends after work… I found easy parking and a very friendly staff and for those reasons would recommend this restaurant… For a gourmet meal, this is more of a pub style cuisine…

Very nice atmosphere and the service has always been very good for us. We have been going here for two+ years with our now four year old. She loves it.
Although not cheap, we had always thought it was worth the price. However, in the last 6 – 8 months the food isn’t as good as it used to be. I’ve returned steaks that weren’t cooked properly, multiple times. I don’t even attempt to get the steak frites anymore.
I recently ordered the sole francese. When it came out I couldn’t believe it. It was bright yellow like a hollandaise and thick like a hollandaise and had capers in it. I ate it and it was OK, but it was not a francese. They should call it «francese a la goose», or something to denote that it isn’t a traditional francese.
Three stars is probably too low. I would give it 3.5 if I could. It’s definitely not a 4 star right now. If my daughter didn’t love it so much, it would be off our list.

I absolutely LOVE the food here. The gnocchi pesto, Goose Burger, and wings are some of my favorite things on the menu. The restaurant is beautiful and clean and the servers are friendly and attentive. I wish the dessert menu had different options, but their bread pudding is incredible. I wish I could eat here more (it’s a little expensive) but it’s worth it every time!

Have been here a few times and love it!!! The best crab corn chowder! Yummm!!! Beautiful restaurant and extra friendly staff. Definitely a must visit!!! Love!!!

Love this place. We came one night because the restaurant next door had a long wait. Boy am I glad the restaurant next door was crowded or we may have never tried this restaurant. SO glad we did– it our new favorite and husband and I have been here a few time over the last couple of months. Excellent food!!! We have tried a few things and loved them all. Warm, cozy, friendly atmosphere and very good wait staff. I am a vegetarian and have found a few good options to choose from with the small plates. Husband loves the lobster sliders and the salads are wonderful. Highly recommend this restaurant.

Nice atmosphere but the food was average and the service slow. Lots of other good choices in town.

Tried out The Goose for the first time for dinner on a Friday night. The atmosphere was cozy and rich– high ceilings and stone walls. Nice bar area for pre-​dinner drinks. I had the Farmer’s Salad with added grilled calamari, and it was one of the best salads I’ve had. Calamari was perfectly cooked and the ricotta salata cheese that was atop complemented the favors perfectly. My fiancé had the turkey club and also enjoyed his meal. Would return to check out other offerings– menu is diverse and interesting, though minus one star because it’s slightly pricy for what it is.

Better for dinner than it is for lunch. The service is better at night and the Goose becomes a much more lively place. They serve ‘Not Your Father’s Root Beer (personal fav)’ and have decent sized portions (except for their lobster sliders).

Since I moved to Norwalk in April, The Goose has become a regular haunt for me and my girlfriend. The atmosphere is relaxing, the beer selection is outstanding (especially if you’re an IPA fanatic like me) and the menu has a lot of variety. Try the lobster tacos!

Food is okay (B-​), but overpriced and need to deal with Darien attitude — would not let us sit in a booth, though the restaurant was empty and said that we could not change a baby’s diaper in the restaurant, though there is nowhere to change him in either of the restrooms.

Big portions. It has a few dining areas. Try not to get placed in the back room, if you like to people watch. Food is above average. The kids like it, also. The staff is attentive. Good selection of booze.

Great food, awesome service. Pizza & sliders are #1. Very friendly & professional staff. Warm & friendly bar in Darien.

One of the old and well known Darien restaurants. We stopped over for lunch. Lobster and corn chowder was very good, well loaded with bacon. Flat bread was done just right, think and with well sized amount of toppings. Caesar salad with grilled salmon was one of the best I had in a while — love the cheese croûton on top, just excellent.
Recommended.

This place a joke. I’m 25 years old and they denied my passport for ID. Sorry I’m not Jason Borne. The people at the front couldn’t be more rude.

This was hands down the best meal I have had in a decade! Spring for the lobster and truffle Mac & Cheese… wow. no words.
Amazing sandwiches and dessert too, but the best part of the evening was the service. Ask for Nikki. She was so attentive, fun and anticipated our every need — one of the best servers I’ve had.
Enjoy!

a very solid three. The service was excellent. Our server was attentive without being pushy. Food arrived in a timely manner and drink orders were correct. No complaints on that score what so ever.
The food however was just OK. I had the Salmon Papillote and it was cooked appropriately but had little flavor. My wife’s fish tacos were also just OK. However my son said his burger was outstanding. Guess we will have to come back again…

We really enjoy coming to this restaurant. The lobster sliders are delicious they have the best fried calamari I ever had in my life… hmmmmmmm Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
We will definitely back

The atmosphere in the bar area is definitely a great place to unwind after a long day. The Goose is American bistro and tavern has great dining options. We came in for lunch yesterday and obviously I had to try their Bloody Mary– that was scrumptious! For my meal I had the Arugula, Endive & Radicchio Salad which had:
Apples, Cranberries, Almonds, Pistachios, Stilton Blue Cheese, Truffle Vinaigrette… It was the perfect amount of «stuff» in my salad. I loved it!
We also ordered the lobster sliders to share, which came with a side of butter. We each had one and they were incredible.
I will definitely return!

This restaurant was an utter disappointment. I ordered a few sides to pick up, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, asparagus, a house salad, just to name a few. The order was quite pricey, and unfortunately, the quality no where near matched the prices. The mac and cheese was shell pasta with hardly any cheese at all (I could have made this better at home, which says something because I am a terrible cook). The asparagus was very low quality, definitely GMO, which is absolutely horrid. The two orders of mashed potatoes somehow turned into baked potatoes, even after I had gone over my entire order twice with the person I spoke with over the phone. The salad, which was called «mixed greens» was just the poorest quality romaine lettuce with terrible quality tomatoes.
I won’t say much about the service because it speaks for itself, but the woman I placed my order with over the phone was very unfriendly and messed up a pretty simple order, and when I went to pick up the food, the person giving the bag to me asked in a condescending tone «Just sides huh? What’s that about?» I was actually pretty insulted by this. It was none of this man’s business why I had ordered certain items, but I nonetheless replied «I’m pregnant.»
I just moved to Darien and really wanted to like this place, but after such terrible quality and service, I cannot give it more than one star. Hugely disappointing.