• Bear Cieri
• Brie-and-bacon chicken breast with garlic mashed potatoes and French fries

In this tumultuous time for the service industry, what makes a restaurant last? A great location, a dedicated staff, a unique concept, a reliable menu, affordable prices, die-hard regulars or all of the above?

This month, the Seven Days food team is revisiting enduring local restaurants — our "forever faves" — one dish at a time. As we dine on Brie-and-bacon-topped chicken, eggs Benedict, and crab cakes, we'll share what keeps these community staples ticking, whether for 15 years or 60-plus.

When it comes to checking those boxes, Black Sheep Bistro in Vergennes gets pretty close to "all of the above." It doesn't really matter which dish you choose at the cozy, 40-seat restaurant: Every entrée, from Thai broiled haddock to duck breast, costs $25. (Starters are $10 each.)

But the Brie-and-bacon chicken breast has been on the menu since the late Michel Mahe opened the bistro in 2002 — "more or less," said Andrea Cousineau, now executive chef and general manager of the Black Sheep and its sister restaurant up Main Street, Park Squeeze. "We tried to swap it out 15-ish years ago but immediately brought it back due to popular demand."

The hefty chicken breast is topped with melty Brie and crispy bacon, then slathered in a tangy balsamic cream sauce. It comes with garlicky green beans and a pop of pickled onions and arugula for garnish. The rich, comforting result is ideal for a chilly winter night.

Originally, the chicken was pounded, stuffed, rolled, seared, baked whole and then sliced. It was "a prep monster," Cousineau said. The current version cooks faster in a way that ensures none of the good stuff bakes out.

The Black Sheep serves up to 30 orders of chicken on big nights — even in the summer, when the restaurant's patio is popular. It wasn't quite that busy during my recent Tuesday evening visit, but food flew out of acting chef Gary Cauchon's kitchen with remarkable speed.

Seven Days culture coeditor Dan Bolles had given me a good tip: Start with the pork dumplings, but get them fried instead of steamed.

"That's called 'Lady style,'" front-of-house manager Andrea Brien said when I made the request. "I'm Lady."

Everyone else in the room seemed already to know that. Between taking orders and shaking martinis, Brien and server Laura Delaney chatted with regulars about the day's news — a tiny lost dog that had wandered into city hall.

Mahe gave Brien her nickname, Cousineau recalled, to differentiate the two Andreas on staff. "Michel didn't pronounce either of our names right," she said with a laugh.

Since Mahe died unexpectedly in 2015, co-operators Cousineau and Dickie Austin have carried on their mentor's legacy. They closed the Bearded Frog in Shelburne, another Mahe-founded restaurant, in 2022 due to staffing problems, but otherwise they haven't changed much.

The Black Sheep's unique pricing model was Mahe's way of keeping things simple and predictable, Cousineau said. Another trademark is the restaurant's delightful starch-on-starch approach to sides. All entrées include a family-style bowl of garlic mashed potatoes and a big cone of French fries.

"Michel came from the brigade system, and he was always looking for ways to streamline," Cousineau said. "Instead of dealing with substitutions, everybody just gets both."

The move made sense to me as I ladled scoops of the silky mashed potatoes onto my plate of chicken and dipped fries into a tangy basil aioli. The restaurant could last another 20 years on potatoes alone, and there'd be a serious revolt if they ever went away.

"It just wouldn't be the Black Sheep," Cousineau said.

"One Dish" is a series that samples a single menu item — new, classic or fleeting — at a Vermont restaurant or other food venue. Know of a great plate we should feature? Drop us a line: [email protected].