RHINEBECK, N.Y. — A new restaurant has sprouted up in the village, seeking to blend the flavors of the Mediterranean with fresh, local ingredients.
Little Goat, located at 6380 Mill St., the former Amsterdam location, opened its doors on May 28 with just dinner service, later expanding into lunch. Erin Winters and Taavo Somer opened the restaurant to fill what they saw as a need in the area.
Somer and Winters moved to the Hudson Valley in 2008, buying a house in Accord, before moving to Rhinebeck in 2018. Somer is also behind Accord resort Inness and Kingston restaurant Lola.
“Ever since, on my commute to Inness and Lola, through the village, I’ve been daydreaming of opening a place,” Somer said in an interview with the Freeman. “So when the Amsterdam space was going to become available, I knew I had to jump on the opportunity. It felt like the perfect spot to bring this vision to life.”
Somer describes Little Goat as a place where “you’d want to hang out all day.”
“You can grab a coffee or pastry in the morning, a glass of wine and a snack in the afternoon, and then meet friends for dinner,” Somer said. “I was craving a spot that celebrated simple things done well. Good food, good light, thoughtful design. Little Goat grew from that feeling.”
The menu has a Mediterranean flair, promising flavors of Italy, Greece, and North Africa, interspersed with ingredients sourced locally. Bread and baked goods come from Sparrowbush Bakery, based in Livingston in Columbia County. The menu will evolve with the seasons, Somer said.
“There’s always something that feels familiar but might show up in a way that surprises you,” Somer said.
Right now, the menu boasts an array of dishes spanning cultures and flavors. Off the lunch menu, Somer said some popular items have been the local farm egg sandwich, which comes with cheddar cheese and spelt focaccia, and the chicken banh mi, a take on the classic Vietnamese baguette sandwich that features pickled vegetables, garlic aioli, and cilantro.
Somer also recommended the dark chocolate tahini cookie.
Somer also highlighted an array of vegetable dishes off the lunch and dinner menus, including an heirloom tomato panzanella, a cucumber salad, braised romano beans, and the little gem wedge salad.
Taavo Somer and Erin Winters outside Little Goat, a new restaurant located at 6380 Mill St. in Rhinebeck, N.Y. (Kate Sears photo)
“As we are in peak summer, Chef Brian is really embracing the local produce, so all the vegetables are really amazing,” Somer said.
The dinner menu boasts some well-loved pasta dishes, as well as local meats and fish, including a roasted La Belle Farm chicken with salsa verde and celery, a grilled Hudson Valley steelhead trout with charred hakurei turnips, and a Veritas Farm pork chop with olives, fennel pollen, figs, and capers.
Looking ahead, Somer said he’d like to expand the restaurant’s offerings to include brunch and breakfast and online ordering. In the works right now is the upstairs private dining room for events, which will be finished to feature a new bar. For next spring, Somer and Winters plan on opening the restaurant’s backyard.
Somer said since opening, the response from locals has been consistently positive.
“It’s been really encouraging. We’ve had a steady flow of locals and visitors, and we’ve heard a lot of kind words,” Somer said. People coming back, sometimes multiple times a week, for dinner and lunch. There’s been a real sense of welcome, which means a lot.”
“It’s exactly what we were hoping to create,” Somer said.
Little Goat is open from Wednesday through Sunday, with coffee service and grab-and-go beginning at 10 a.m., lunch beginning at noon, and dinner service beginning at 5 p.m. The restaurant closes at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday, and at 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. For more information, visit littlegoatny.com or find Little Goat on Instagram at @littlegoatny.
A selection of dishes available at Little Goat, a new restaurant located at 6380 Mill St., in Rhinebeck, N.Y. (Kate Sears photo)
Originally Published: August 23, 2025 at 11:20 AM EDT
Dining and Cooking