REDCAN: A Birthday Lunch
If there is a bao bun on the menu—any menu—I am likely to order it. And I did.
REDCAN in White River Junction is now open for lunch on Fridays and Saturdays and it was the perfect place for a birthday celebration for two.
Large, plump coconut shrimp as a shared starter (photo, above.) Wagyu burger with sweet onion bacon jam and cheddar, and truffle fries for the birthday man. Not a bad way to spend a cold, rain-drenched Saturday afternoon on White River Junction’s South Main Street, watching the world pass by those enormous windows.
“REDCAN’s story is almost half a century old. A childhood staple for Chef Jason was seeing his mom, Debbie, with her favorite drink—a red can Coke. A joke with his kid friends was never get caught taking the last can!”—REDCAN website.
If you haven’t been, REDCAN is a new-ish restaurant (opened in June 2024) that moved into the spot previously occupied by Trail Break Taps and Tacos. It is owned by Chef Jason Merrill and his wife Leslie. Jason is part-owner of the now famous Worthy Burger in South Royalton, VT and Worthy Kitchen in Woodstock, VT. REDCAN is named in memory of Jason’s mother (see above.) Small plates, large plates, oysters, speciality cocktails, mocktails, Hill Farmstead on tap, and a real speakeasy in the back.
Not cheap, but always interesting menu (both lunch and dinner), great food, and generous servings, which explains why one of the two bao buns traveled home with me. And though surely tempted, I have never had room for dessert.
Here’s the lunch menu.
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And in case you are wondering . . . Susan B. Apel shuttered a lifelong career as a law professor to continue an interest (since kindergarten) in writing. Her freelance business, The Next Word, includes literary and feature writing; her work has appeared in a variety of lit mags and other publications including Art New England, The Woven Tale Press, The Arts Fuse, and Persimmon Tree. She connects with her neighbors through Artful, her blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley. She’s in love with the written word.