Before I talk about the logistics, what it was like, etc... for tonight, I wanted to talk about my food experiences at the Inn and in town.
Part of why I chose this place, aside from its breathtaking location (in more ways than one), was for the Innkeepers' spin on breakfast. They serve a four course spread in the morning and you have a few options: For people on business, they make a to-go package for you with a travel mug of cocoa, tea, or their house blend (their coffee is earthy, nutty, and reminds me of Thanksgiving). For people who need to sleep in (like me the first morning), they will bring you a breakfast-in-bed tray. If you can get downstairs by nine, you sit in the glow of little oil lamps looking out on the grounds... immersed in the smell of reliable old wood and ancient leather from the sitting room.
The first course is cold juice and cereal. I didn't ask if it was homemade, but it has that taste to it. I tried a honey-cinnamon cereal that was pretty decent with milk from a local creamery (in the glass bottles and everything). The second course is either a fruit dish or a selection of biscuits. The first morning, I asked for biscuits on my tray. They were simple milk biscuits with mild shreds of cheese in the batter. The next morning, when I went downstairs, she made this fresh peach with tapioca pudding sort of... parfait? She delicately sprinkled sliced almonds on top of this creation glittering in a pretty glass bowl.
The main entreé and third course is the main attraction. The first morning, she made me blueberry stuffed pancakes with maple syrup and sausage. It was so cozy... I mean, I never would bother to make blueberry pancakes myself, but here's this woman who got up early to whip up a fresh batch just for me. There's something mothering and wonderful about getting warm, fruit stuffed pancakes late in the morning in a farm house in the mountains. She got a little more adventurous the next morning. She placed scrambled eggs in a tortilla bowl and added potatoes, red pepper slices, cheese, and "shrimp sausage" (or at least, I think that's what she said... tastes like most sausage).
The fourth course is always a dessert of some kind. The one I had the first morning was a perfect summer offering... puffed pastry filled with a lemon cream. Raspberry sauce was drizzled on top. The second morning, she made a dark chocolate mousse with which to fill tiny pastry bowls.
What makes this Bed and Breakfast stand out from all the rest, I think, is this philosophy behind the morning meal. While the Innkeepers have no culinary training whatsoever, they feel that breakfast should be treated like a great meal... especially in this setting. That's why they insist on the dessert course... to give an elegant night out feeling to the first meal of the day. They serve their offerings on fine china, so, all the bowls, plates, etc, are beautiful but moderately sized. Their portions are completely reasonable. You feel satisfied rather than bloated under coffee and bacon.
The rest of the mountain was slightly less accommodating.
If you ever plan on visiting that Floyd, Woolwine, Meadows of Dan area (you should... at least for the view and they have an interesting winery or two), remember this bit of wisdom I acquired from my sabbatical:
The Mountain Region of Virginia has got SOMETHING against Tuesdays.
Seriously... most restaurants are fine with Mondays and they take advantage of the church crowd on Wednesdays. But, I had a quite a difficult time finding food on the one full day I spent in the region. I wanted to visit this winery that appears to be run by immigrants or descendants of an Italian family. They have this GORGEOUS, looks like something out of Tuscany, sort of estate complete with an outdoor tasting area guarded by elaborately twisted wrought iron fences. The building was painted coral... they had a devastatingly beautiful garden...
...but, no matter... it was closed.
So, I settled for Château Morisette (You know? Their wine is everywhere... Blue dog, Black dog, etc.) since I had read that they have a great restaurant. What I didn't read was that they had this prejudice against Tuesday. Monday is fine, Wednesday is great, but no Tuesday. Still, the winery was open and I had a good, long tasting of about 13 different wines. Considering how far I had come to find the place, I ordered some cheese and crackers with a decent glass of Pinot Noir for lunch... Not smartest midday meal for the weary traveller.
I knew I have to find something more substantial than that, so the search began. I made a Point of Interests search on the GPS to led me to about three different restaurants... which is when the mountains shared their wisdom to me once more:
The Mountains and your GPS have it out for you.
The first place I found... Closed on Tuesdays. The second place I was led to... all that was there was half a wooden shack and a duck. The third place... Closed for good.
Finally, and probably 50 miles later, I just set the stupid thing for Floyd and found a little diner willing to make some takeout for me. I wanted something I could start eating in the car (The time was now about 7:20) since it would be another 18 miles back to Woolwine. I ordered a BLT with fries. I chewed on some (pretty good) fries in between the sharp turns going back around the mountain... hands a little shaky, headache starting to brew, getting tired... Finally I return to the Inn. I hear some voices, but I walk straight up to my room. I come out on the porch to tell the Innkeepers about my box of wine downstairs... they're sitting down to what looks like a family meal.
That's when they offered me some spaghetti.
Just thinking about it makes me a little tired again.
All in all though, the breakfast was amazing, comforting, and worth a day of getting turned around a dozen times on a Tuesday.
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