Hops on the Hill

This was our first time visiting this place and we loved it. Glad that it’s dog friendly. They provided a huge bucket of water for our dog and he had enough space to lie down. The food was excellent and the Bloody Mary I had was one of the best ones.

Absolutely fantastic Gem hidden at the base of Killington. The food is excellent. Chef Abby is super creative and blends simple ingredients into mouthfuls of enjoyment. The beer selection is on point, better than alot of other restaurants in the area. A MUST STOP WHILE HERE! The food is only second to the wonderful service provided by the staff. With excellent summer views, I can only imagine how great this is in the winter. Can't wait to return!

TLDR. 100/5 stars. Absolutely delicious. Absolutely best staff, best service. Visited on the last day of mid-winter break in February on a Friday. Make reservations, especially during blackout dates/weekends.

When we arrived, the restaurant was fully reserved for the night and they had no availabilities. We decided we could go somewhere else, and we were halfway out the door when the hostess shouted to us and we turned around to see her running towards us to tell us that, in fact, a reservation had been canceled! We happily walked into the restaurant and sat upstairs on the second floor balcony next to a large beer storage container. Immediately, we were told that they had touch-free menus, accessible through a QR Code on the table. Then, an older gentleman, of whom we presumed was the owner, approached us, greeted us warmly, and asked us if we were visiting for the first time. We replied yes, and he introduced himself and the restaurant.

We then placed our orders. Here's what we ordered. For drinks, I had a water. We were having a hard time picking a beer off the menu, so the gentleman gladly introduced the draft beers and then proceeded to bring us three half-filled beer cups with three different types of beer in each cup for us to try, for free. Unfortunately, I don't remember exactly what beer we ended up choosing, but I do remember one of them was "Fiddlehead" and another was "Switchback [Ale].” All three beers were all awesome, but we eventually settled on one. Appetizers: we had the "Peppercorn Encrusted Tuna" and "Bone-In Wings.” The tuna was definitely peppery, a little much for me, but nothing too bad. The bone-in wings. MAN. Tender, juicy. We got the Maple Sriracha sauce. ABSOLUTELY delicious; not too sweet, not too spicy. Came with celery and upon request both ranch and blue cheese dip. For entrées, I had to choose between the "Buildable Tri-Blend Burger" and the "Hops Burger.” I ended up going with "Hops Burger,” and I had no regrets whatsoever. The burger was big, juicy, flavorful, a perfect medium-rare temperature as I requested, and delicious. We also got the "Fish Tacos,” which were delicious, and the "Mad Tom" Flatbread. The latter was quite sweet, more like a dessert, but delicious nonetheless. The tacos and the burger each came with a huge heaping of tater tots and a pickle. The entire time, the staff attended to us and were cheerful and bright. I felt very welcome, cared for, and of course well-fed.

Overall? We will return to this charm of a restaurant every time we visit Killington in the future, for as long as it exists, and for as long as we exist. Will definitely recommend this restaurant to my friends and relatives. Thank you for the delicious food and absolutely wonderful staff. Thank you for raising my expectations bar so high, in the best way possible.

There is just NO way I can explain what an amazing time I had at this restaurant tonight. First, let me say..: we were greeted with the happiest faces. One right after another the moment we stepped inside. We were a pain and changed tables 3 times. Once at a booth, then by a window and finally at the bar. I was a little obsessed with catching the sunset, which was PERFECT (see photo) no one seemed annoyed or upset but rather accommodating. I so appreciate this. I had my heart set on seeing that sunset. We started with drinks. Amazing selection! They have it all. We even got a delicious dark beer with doughnuts! What a fun treat! (See photo) food. OUTSTANDING! I can’t even explain how excited I am we finally got to try this place. We are so used to the normal food in rutland (which is great but I suck at cooking so we eat out a lot) and this was such a beautiful change of pace. The duck Bao was out of this world and perfectly done. We also had the grilled flank sandwich and general tsos chicken sandwich. AMAZING. Honestly, some of the best food I’ve had in this area EVER!!! Please don’t hesitate to come and order several things to try. We ordered and shared bc we couldn’t wait to try everything! My final review.. easily the BEST service we’ve had in months. We felt like family. Invited and wanted. In this current time I feel like employees are stressed and overworked but you couldn’t tell here. Everyone made us feel so welcomed. The food and drinks were just such a huge bonus. I don’t write a lot of reviews but this place deserved 5 stars and much more! Bravo to everyone. We can’t wait to come back! What a gem!

We had a great time eating here. The staff was so friendly and helpful. Great place to sit and grab something to drink or eat. Recommend !

So I am editing this review since the owner really took our initial feedback seriously and we gave them another chance (no incentive); with positive outcome. In these post-covid times many businesses don't care about customer service but here it's not the case.
The food was extremely good (both times) and tasty/spicy (if you like bland don't go there). The beer selection is great and not the usual boring standard choices. I'm positive our feedback improved the customer experience.

Great new addition to Killington. My boyfriend and I have been here multiple times in the past few weeks and have had a great experience each time. Beer is great, food is great, but what really makes this place is the staff. They make you feel so welcomed from the minute you walk in the door. Definitely a place worth checking out.

Highly recommend! We had a great time here, the staff is amazing and a wealth of local knowledge! The food and drinks are great, pro tip for the summer the maple lemonade hits the spot!

I cannot recommend this place enough. The energy and vibe is incredible with the nicest staff and delicious food. Easily my favorite place for a true Killington experience that’s laid back and cozy. Could not have had a better time and will be going back often.

I can't say enough great things about this place! The food is fantastic and the beer selection is top notch. They have an amazing selection of the best local beers. I highly recommend the fried pickle spears, pretzel and the brunch burger.

Five stars isn’t enough. This place completely blew away my expectations. Be prepared for some of the finest IPAs Vermont has to offer, the best maple syrup and some of the best food on the mountain. I started with the peppercorn encrusted tuna, I was blown away. Their meat for their burgers on top of their cheese is just out of this world. Reasonably priced and everything is worth every penny. If you want one the BEST pub experiences in your life, I highly recommend this place. Sat by the window which offered an Incredible view of the mountain. If distance wasn’t in the way, I’d be coming back time and time again.

We were staying at an Airbnb at the Mountain Green while skiing at Killington and we discovered this excellent place. We checked it out due to its proximity and we were not disappointed! Everything we had was great! We ate there several times. The Vermont Grilled Cheese was out of this world, as were the Pulled Chicken Tacos. The Tomato Basil Soup was excellent. The Kale Salad and Chicken Wings are an outstanding choice as well. The beer selection was great and they have a good variety. In addition, the service was fast and friendly, we enjoyed chatting with the owner. In short, this place is a winner and there was nothing about it that came up short. Would visit again without hesitation!

Great beers, incredible hospitality. Hops employee came out in full regalia and a drum for our friend having a bachelor party.
That plus good beer recommendations, half priced wings this spot couldn’t have been more perfect.
Outdoor space for cornhole on good weather days.

Awesome apres spot with great food...the pretzel is bigger than my head. Good beer on tap and in cans. The also have some great dirt bag beers as well. Super friendly staff. Definitely one of my new go-to spots.

Stopped in for a beer and some wings on Friday. Super friendly and attentive staff, plump well-cooked wings with a great sauce and a very nice beer selection. A couple of beers even get delivered with a maple-glazed donut! We may be back for dinner tonight.

Super friendly, accommodating staff. Dog friendly. We had a great brunch and sampled a new favorite beer (Pineapple Haze) by recommendation of the staff. Highly recommend.

Hands down best place to eat in Killington! This restaurant has the best food/beer, amazing service, and the coolest atmosphere inside and out. Thank you Buddy + staff for a great lunch and experience following our hike this afternoon! To anybody visiting the Killington area, this is the best place for a fantastic brunch, lunch, or dinner.

So glad we found this place. We got four dishes, and usually there's at least one dud when ordering that many, but not from this place! The portion sizes were also excellent, allowing us not just to enjoy dinner with this excellent food, but also the next day's lunch. Our favorite was the fried chicken wings because they were perfectly done and came with a sauce that made them taste like a gourmet chicken and waffles (which we haven't experienced in about 8 years). Our second favorite was the pesto chicken sandwich, which was amazingly moist and expertly spiced. 3rd favorite was the fish, which was just the right level of crispy and had an amazing fresh flavor. Wow! I wish we had a place like this around where we live so we can enjoy it on more than just vacations around Killington.

Tom and his staff run a fantastic bar with a distinctly "local" vibe. After one visit they knew our names, knew what we drank, and were always ready to welcome us by name at the door. The food & drinks are great, too!

Wow! What can we say about this restaurant find! From the very start, Elmer, our phenomenal waiter was knowledgeable and courteous. The food was fresh, and perhaps the best bleu burger I have ever had! The sweet potato fries were prepared to perfection as was the fried fish dinner which was truly excellent! We didn’t intend to go here on our road trip but the hours were very accommodating and exceeded our expectations. This will be our new destination restaurant!