Max's, Western Avenue by Exit 2 - So far the top vote getter for a classy, sit-down dinner to remember. The parking is better there for cars than for bikes, but one man we know has gone to Max's by bike for years. Somebody please ask them to add bike parking!

TJ Buckley's Uptown Dining, Elliot Street - This is going to be hard to believe, but this is one of those places you go when you want a meal you'll think fondly back on for years to come. Elliot St. is a lousy place to park a bike, but if you are in town anyway or are staying at the Latchis, you make a reservation at this little, 5-table diner place where everything is prix fixe. It may be next to a laundromat, but we know a couple who were happy to have a romantic dinner there after they got married. Chef Mike rides a Litespeed, and we don't hold it against him that he didn't buy a bike from us. (Hi, Mike, just kidding).

Chelsea Royal Diner, the last thing on Rte. 9 in Brattleboro - We like diners, and the Chelsea Royal is Brattleboro's diner. We have never had a bad meal there in 19 years. Bike parking there is just locking your bike to the railings, but they sell soft-serve ice cream around the side in the summer months.

There are interesting specials every day ($5-$12) in addition to a rotating, blue-plate special (funny, the plates are white). A very nice expatriate Mexican guy named Daniel cooks up Mexican specials a couple of days a week, and breakfast is served all day. Lots of food, reasonable prices.

Fireworks Restaurant is the newcomer in town. This place has really good food at modest prices (unless you order alcohol, obviously). Every town needs a place where you can get a burger and not feel like it's just the same old thing. Fireworks keeps it interesting.

You can also get a decent pizza here, but they have so much more on the menu that we didn't list them there.

You'll have to lock your bike to a parking meter out front.

The Marina is set back off Putney Road immediately north of the West River bridge. Lots of people will ride the old rail bed, aka the Marina trail, after work and then end up here for food and drinks [note: this trail is not a tame rail trail! It's flat, but definitely mountain biking]. The mussels have always been good, and the shrimp basket is a really good deal. Be prepared for a big crowd and slow service on any fine night.

Bikes can get locked up here, but you have to think about what you're doing.

Top o' the Hill Grill, al fresco barbecue on Putney Rd. just up the hill from the Marina. We honestly can't remember any other place in the area quite like this. It's a barbecue shack with a really nice deck and attached alpine chalet, all perched (literally) overlooking the West River and Retreat Meadows. The food is quite good, and they have a mobile unit if you want a catering job done.

Even though we have known Jonathan, the proprietor, for years, we hadn't made it to this, his latest venture until one of our customers insisted we go and offered to buy us a meal. We're really glad he did, because Heidi's Favorite is a tempeh & veggie burrito-style sandwich in a flavored flour tortilla, and it's definitely worth the trip.

There is ample space to keep an eye on your bike here.

Disclaimer: Brattleboro does not have a pizza that we would remember fondly for years. We don't know why. We are regular customers at pizza shops here, and gladly spend lots of money on local offerings, but classic pizza comes from other places. New York. Atlantic City. Bay and Goodman's in Rochester, NY. King of Pizza in Philadelphia, before the INS cracked down on them. And New Haven, certainly, New Haven. Just not Brattleboro (sigh).

Frankie's Pizza , Harmony parking lot downtown (you can see the sign from our front window) - Frankie and Linda make pizza, sandwiches, spaghetti, and salads, and sell ice cream out the window onto their new patio in the warm months. There is only one video game. When we asked Frankie to give us prizes for the Brattleboro Criterium some years ago, he didn't hesitate to support it.

Frankie says he can make different kinds of pizza, but he tried this thick and chewy style and people liked it, so he stays with it. We often get subs here, especially meatball subs with cheese and chicken parmigiana ones and hot turkey and bacon ones (not, repeat, not light fat). What we really like about this place is that two people can get an antipasto and spaghetti for pretty cheap.