Freelance Writing Jobs | Today's Articles | Sign In

Jackson House Inn & Restaurant

Vermont Inn Offers Fine Dining and Superb Rooms

Aug 19, 2009 Maureen Littlejohn

Nestled in the tiny village of Woodstock, Vermont, the Jackson House Inn & Restaurant gives guests gourmet cuisine, historic surroundings and a delicious way to relax.

Driving into Woodstock, Vermont is like entering The American Dream at the turn of the last century. White-steepled churches, a lush village green, and proud Federal mansions give the town of 3,000 a dreamy, Currier & Ives look. No wonder Ladies Home Journal called it “the prettiest small town in America.”

An 1890 Queen Anne Victorian Inn

The Jackson House Inn & Restaurant, an AAA four-diamond property, fits right into the dream. The 1890 Queen Anne Victorian inn is on the National Register of Historic Places and in 2004 it made Conde Nast’s Gold List of World’s Best Places to Stay. Snuggled under the Green Mountains, the house is surrounded by landscaped lawns overflowing with perennial plantings and evergreens. The Appalachian Trail is almost in its backyard and attracts serious hikers and strollers alike.

Originally built as a home for a local sawmill owner, the house was converted into an inn in 1940 and in 2006 the current owners Bernard and Jennifer purchased the inn.

There are nine guestrooms and six one-room suites, which have fireplaces and Jacuzzis. Each room has a themed decor including French Provencal, Victorian and Vermont country. Gloria Swanson stayed at the inn when it first opened in 1940 and a room is named in her honor.

Fine Dining in Vermont

The inn’s stunning dining room is known up and down the Eastern Seaboard and Food & Wine magazine noted it served “some of the country’s most creative food.” Dinner often starts in the toasty, wood-paneled bar with the amusé of the day. Locally produced food is sourced as much as possible and an amusé could consist of pureed cauliflower, a button of beef tenderloin drizzled with Dijon and a slice of Vermont-raised pork tenderloin on soba noodles. In the dining room, guests can cozy up near the double-sided granite fireplace in winter and cathedral windows offer spectacular views of the garden in summer.

Depending on the time of year, the menu could offer North Point Maine oysters, buttery poached Maine lobster, Atlantic tuna Carpaccio, Vermont quail, rack of lamb, or Black Canyon Ranch beef tenderloin served with a dollop of béarnaise. Desserts include decadent molten lava chocolate cake topped with rich vanilla ice cream. After a meal, diners often linger to enjoy the hearth and the moonbeams that fall through the huge windows.

The Perfect Getaway

At Jackson House Inn, www.jacksonhouse.com, the fine dining and luxury accommodations make it very difficult to go home.

The copyright of the article Jackson House Inn & Restaurant in NE U.S. Travel is owned by Maureen Littlejohn. Permission to republish Jackson House Inn & Restaurant in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Jackson House Inn & Restaurant