Chef’s Hat

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905 Simonds Road, Williamstown, Mass.; 413- 458-5120. 

Have a taste for turnip? The popular, seasonal Berkshire County dish is rarely seen on menus and often only served around the Thanksgiving holiday. But Dave Rock, chef and owner, says “we usually have it available and people come from all over the county to order it.”

That kind of down-home cooking is what the Chef’s Hat prides itself on, along with “service and smiles.” The diner boasts a warm atmosphere with plenty of open seating; grab a stool at the classic diner counter or take one of the cozy booths.  

The breakfast menu has regulars and visitors alike lining up to be seated for favorites like homemade corned beef hash and farm-fresh eggs; old-fashioned waffles loaded with strawberries, blueberry sauce, peach and walnut or cinnamon apple. Don’t forget to request real Vermont maple syrup. <L2>

Rock says he’ll make you a breakfast that you won’t find anywhere else - over-stuffed omelets, melt-in-your-mouth pancakes or the diner’s famous cinnamon swirl French toast. The best part, breakfast is served all day so you don’t have to get up early.

The lunch menu is available beginning at 11 a.m. Order a cup of homemade soup of the day and half a deli sandwich. Love burgers? The Chef’s Hat has seven choices to choose from on its menu.

The grill is hot and ready to cook a classic Rueben of corned beef with melted Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Russian dressing on a grilled rye bread. Prefer seafood? Try the fried clams or scallop dinner. Whatever your lunch choice, don’t forget to order a side of turnip! <R3>

Rock and his sons Devin and Eric invite all to come and try the fare at the Chef’s Hat. If you don’t have time to stay, they offer full takeout service.

Open six days a week for breakfast and lunch until 2 p.m. on weekdays and 3 p.m. on the weekends; closed on Monday.

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Williamstown Planning Board Narrowing in on Subdivision Bylaw Changes

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Planning Board late last month discussed specific features of what it plans to pass as a new subdivision control bylaw this year.
 
The board long has discussed the complex set of regulations as being out of date and cumbersome to both potential developers and the board itself, which has needed to hear requests for waivers of outdated rules for the handful of residential subdivisions that have been proposed in town in recent years.
 
This spring, the town engaged consultants from Northampton's Dodson and Flinker Landscape Architecture and Planning to go through the existing bylaw, compare it to more contemporary regulations in other communities and help craft a revised bylaw.
 
Unlike the zoning bylaw, where amendments require approval of town meeting, the subdivision control bylaw is a creation of the Planning Board, which can make changes on its own after a public hearing process it hopes to complete this year.
 
At a special Planning Board meeting on May 26, Dillon Sussman of Dodson and Flinker and his colleagues walked the board through a dozen different decision points that the board must resolve — either by leaving the bylaw as is or making a change — and offered suggestions based on best practices.
 
All of the issues are technical and ranged from the fundamental, like how the bylaw will define types of subdivisions, to the highly specific, like what turning radii will be required in new streets that are constructed to serve planned developments.
 
One example of a topic that came up in the recent approval of a four-home subdivision off Summer Street is stormwater management.
 
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