A Big Meal and a Bigger Market at Tuckaway

At Tuckaway, a meal can begin with a look through marinated cuts at the butcher counter and end with a take-home bag of pasta salad, cured meats, snacks or something ready for the grill. The restaurant and its adjoining market are closely connected, turning dinner into a longer browse through a very well-stocked appetite.

The tavern is built for a generous outing. Steak tips arrive in serious portions, burgers have names such as the Whole Tuckin Farm burger, and comfort-food plates are not shy about taking up room on the table. This is a good address for birthday dinners, family meals, a night out with friends, or showing visiting relatives a memorable New England stop.

The house steak tips are the menu item to know. Deeply marinated, juicy and tender but still pleasantly chewy, they come in several flavor variations; the signature preparation has particular staying power. They are the sort of order that makes sense for a steak-minded table without requiring everyone to commit to the same cut.

For a more formal steakhouse-style plate, the 30-day dry-aged ribeye is a notable special-occasion choice. The broader menu also covers marinated steaks, burgers, sandwiches, seafood, salads, appetizers, sides and desserts, so a group can range widely without anyone being stranded with a token alternative.

Tuckaway does not confine itself to beef. Connecticut-style lobster rolls keep a coastal note in the lineup, while other lobster dishes include a lobster pie made with sherry and lobster paired with shrimp in garlic-lemon wine butter.

The Bammer Time sandwich takes fried chicken in a decidedly different direction, adding Alabama white sauce and a honey barbecue rub. It is a fitting example of the kitchen's playful, built-up approach to sandwiches.

Mussels with a Thai-coconut element offer another turn away from the expected tavern script. Even the steakhouse onion soup gets extra heft from chunks of steak in its French-onion-style broth.

Birria fries arrive in a family-sized portion, which gives the table an early clue about the pacing of the meal. They are better approached as a shared starter than a small prelude before a full steak dinner.

The side list has enough character to deserve attention. Baked beans, dill pickle potato salad, truffle spinach, Mexican street corn and macaroni and cheese can shift a plate from classic cookout territory to something more eclectic.

Then there are the Rooster Balls, one of the restaurant's enduring menu curiosities. They appear in both savory appetizer and dessert form, a detail that invites a little menu investigation before ordering. Grandma's pudding provides a more traditional landing spot for dessert.

Inside the older building, the dining room has a rustic, lively look, with tables, booths and a substantial bar anchoring the room. The social energy is a major part of a visit, especially once dinner service gets moving.

The bar is worth considering for its own sake. Cocktails, beer and seasonal drink selections run alongside local brewery offerings and harder-to-find beers, and the counter can become an appealing perch for watching the room work through a busy service.

A back-corner nook has a quieter, more private feel than the main dining area. Elsewhere, conversation is still possible, though the room and bar can get loud when they fill up. The interior may also run cool for some diners, making a light layer sensible.

The adjoining butchery and market have the appealing disorderly abundance of a country store organized by people who take dinner seriously. Wood beams, playful pig mascots and several rooms devoted to different food categories give the shopping side its own personality.

At the meat counter, marinated cuts and barbecue-ready foods make it easy to carry the Tuckaway idea home. The shop also has prepared salads, pasta salads, cured meats and other useful components for a low-effort meal after a drive home.

Shelves widen the possibilities with artisan cheeses, boutique wines, olives, honeys, spice blends, dry rubs, handmade pastas, gourmet chocolates and seasonal dips. A deli case with fresh salads and cured meats helps assemble a picnic-style spread or a casual entertaining board without much extra work.

The market's beer area extends the tavern's drink-minded side. Along with a broad beer selection, it has included custom brews made for the market, giving shoppers another reason not to rush straight from the host stand to the dining room.

This is also where the restaurant's generous scale becomes practical. A meal can yield leftovers, while the market supplies the next day's grilling meat, a side dish, a jar of something interesting, or a pantry item that caught your eye on the way through.

Tuckaway is primarily a walk-in, first-come operation rather than a standard reservation restaurant. At busy times, a line can form before or soon after opening, and waits may stretch from about 30 minutes to more than an hour.

The market gives that waiting time a useful purpose. Browsing the butcher counter and shelves is easy enough to fold into the outing, though anyone buying perishable meat or prepared food for a longer drive will appreciate having a cooler in the car.

There is a free parking lot, although it can be harder to secure a spot during a busy rush. Very large parties may need to be split among tables. Once seated, the rhythm is simple: drinks, a shared appetizer or two, a substantial entrée, and a decision about how much room remains for dessert.