Opening a restaurant in a train station was never part of the plan.
Melissa Hamilton and Christopher Hirsheimer had separately spent years working in restaurants. Both women thought the service industry portion of their careers was over, they had found their way into publishing. Hirsheimer co-founded food magazine Saveur and served as editor of Metropolitan Home, while Hamilton was pursuing food styling.
But when Hamilton and Hirsheimer met more than 30 years ago, a strong friendship was soon forged — along with a path back into the restaurant industry.
”From the minute I met Christopher," Hamilton told NJ Advance Media, “I had this incredibly strong feeling that we would be friends for a long time.”
In 2009, they opened Canal House — a culinary, photography and design studio in Lambertville — where they produced nine cookbooks for their “Canal House Cooking” series, including Canal House Cooks Every Day, which won a James Beard Award in 2013.
After outgrowing their Lambertville studio and briefly moving the operation to a location in Frenchtown, they began searching for a space that could house their studio while also being big enough to have pop-up events with the public.
“We felt too private,” Hirsheimer said. “We started looking for a building where we could still have our studio and consulting while also having a place to invite people in to have meals with us.”
That search led them to an abandoned train station in Milford. During its two-year restoration, they realized it was calling for a new purpose.
“It kept calling us to make it into a restaurant,” Hamilton said. “It was meant to be a restaurant.”
Canal House Station was born. The eatery opened in July 2019 and soon garnered the attention of locals, and national recognition as well for their well-loved Sunday dinners — set five-course menus modeled after old-fashioned family meals.
The duo was named a James Beard Award semifinalist for best chef in the mid-Atlantic region in 2020 and 2022. The restaurant was also featured on USA Today’s best restaurants list for 2025.
Guests continually admire the restaurant for its charming setting and traditional French and American dishes that remain delightfully unaffected by fleeting trends. No fusion, no twists, just classic food.
Years later, does the Hunterdon County restaurant still showcase the superb cuisine that has earned it multiple award nominations? Let’s dig in.
The good
Canal House Station began with breakfast and lunch before introducing its now-famous Sunday dinners. After a pandemic pause, they eventually expanded to include weekend dinner service a year ago.
On Fridays and Saturdays, they offer a prix fixe menu that includes an appetizer, choice of entrée, and dessert for $95 per person. Extra entrées are available for $15, and there are optional appetizer additions available as well.
The appetizer additions at our visit included deviled eggs topped with smoked salmon and chives ($10 for 2), Portuguese sardines on toast ($10) and zucchini and garlic poached in olive oil on toast ($10). Each felt like an amuse-bouche — small bites meant to awaken the palate — and succeeded deliciously. The smoky salmon over creamy, savory deviled eggs, the rich sardine plus the zesty garlic and zucchini on crusty bread had me eager for what was to come.
Popovers arrived alongside soup presumably as part of the bread service. The puffy, airy rolls were delightfully crisp and light, well-salted and paired nicely with a side of honey butter that added a sweet, creamy contrast to the crusty bread.
The butternut squash soup blended ginger and turmeric and was finished with a swirl of sour cream and a sprinkle of chives. Served piping hot, it was deeply comforting on a gloomy, windy day. The gentle warmth of the ginger and turmeric came through beautifully, cooled by the tangy sour cream while the crunch of chives added a fresh lift to the silky soup.
Duck confit is a classic French dish featuring cured duck legs slow-cooked in their own fat. At Canal House Station, they slowly roast it and serve the duck leg with a side of green beans. It was abundantly seasoned with a crispy chicharrón-like skin. Underneath was meat so juicy and tender that it practically fell off the bone with a slight flick of the fork.
A French classic, filet of sole meunière is simplicity at its best — golden, pan-fried fish in brown butter, lemon and parsley. Canal House Station’s version captured the spirit of the dish perfectly — tender, flaky sole bathed in a shimmering, buttery sauce that helped the fish shine even further.
The duck confit and sole meunière came with a massive side of pommes frites — yes, essentially the French version of French fries. The salty, starchy addition was standard but tasty nonetheless. They were thick, golden and crisp on the outside with a fluffy center — served with an aromatic garlic aioli.
Almond cake served as the dessert grand finale, accompanied by whipped cream and slices of roasted Honeycrisp apples from Phillips Farm Market just down the road in Milford.
The cake itself was dense but still moist and delivered a bold, satisfying almond flavor. The roasted Honeycrisp apples lent a subtle tartness that brightened the dessert and tempered the almond’s richness. Known for their crisp texture and balanced sweetness, the Honeycrisps held their shape beautifully while adding a refreshing edge that kept each bite from feeling too heavy.
The bad
The vegetable risotto was my least favorite dish of the night. As tasty as the preserved lemon, fresh zucchini and roasted tomato were, it was far too soupy — proper risotto is creamy and thick. Those bold flavors weren’t enough to overcome the peculiar texture.
The vibe
The restaurant is situated inside a train station from the late 1800s that was abandoned for quite some time before Hamilton and Hirsheimer bought it.
“We fell in love with the building and knew it needed a lot of work,” Hamilton said. “but it had great bones.”
Even so, the renovation took two years.
One side of the building houses a single dining room. The other contains an open kitchen with space for larger parties, including two communal tables near the cooking area.
The atmosphere feels like stepping into someone’s home — cozy and warm. Every detail reflects care and intention — the soft lighting, wooden seating, floral arrangements, and art-lined walls create a rustic, welcoming charm.
Service was also extremely attentive. The whole service staff made sure our table was always clean, waters were filled, utensils were changed and we were constantly checked on make sure everything was to our liking.
The bottom line
One meal at Canal House Station is enough to prove this is one of the best restaurants in New Jersey. The culmination of a homey atmosphere, meticulous attention to detail and a commitment to keeping dishes true to themselves — no tweaks, no unnecessary extravagance — set this place apart.
There is good reason reason this restaurant has been recognized time and again — backed by James Beard Award nominations. As much of the state tries to stand out with unorthodox fusion pairings and gimmicks, Canal House Station trusts the classics and lets the ingredients do the talking.
“We are not trying to reinvent food. Often chefs try to surprise you, they take something and rearrange it, turn it upside down. We’re doing the opposite,” Hirsheimer said. “We’re serving something that’s very true to its form and its original, authentic way of being — bringing back the memory of food, getting you to recognize the food.”
Canal House Station sources ingredients from nearby farms such as Philips Farm Market and Old Village Farm in Milford, as well as Roots to River Farm in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Farm-to-table dining may sound cliche in 2025, but it’s alive and well in Milford.
That local approach leads the menu to change constantly — based on what is in season and what they’re craving. It’s a deft move, one that keeps customers returning to try new things.
All of this — and it started with a simple friendship. What began as two friends cooking and dreaming together has grown into one of New Jersey’s most celebrated restaurants.
In a train station, of all places.