The dining room itself is very country atmosphere with lots of pine, sturdy tables and chairs, and country style lamps. I believe the ceiling had exposed beams. Also the tables were large so we weren’t hitting elbows with each other and even if all the tables were occupied, there was enough spacing between tables so you had some privacy.

As for the food, everything was WONDERFUL. I had a lobster and salmon terrine appetizer that tasted delicious. There was plenty to share with my wife. I had steak Diane and my wife had lamb steaks. Very delicious! The chef did a great job with the presentation. We also had a great bottle of wine (but skipped on the $400 bottle!). My wife finished her dinner with the Chocolate Decadence dessert.

Even though there was only one other couple dining while we were there, I never felt that there were any regrets that the restaurant was opened (many Stowe restaurants did not open till the following weekend). And the waiter was wonderful. He was always attentive but not intrusive. He gave us some background information about the restaurant. And he told a great joke at the beginning of the evening. By the way, the other couple was "local" and they dine at the restaurant quite often.

Click here for the restaurant’s webpage.

We had reservations and since we didn't know the exact time to drive (the restaurant is a little off the beaten path), we arrived early. That gave us plenty of time to view the property and I was impressed even before sitting down to dinner. The landscaped property is beautiful and we enjoyed our time walking around. If I was staying at the hotel, I could imagine that it would be a very relaxing place to sit on the "swings" and breathe in the fresh air. We then went to dinner. We had a choice of sitting indoors in one of the main dining rooms or outdoors around the pool. Since it was extremely hot, we opted for indoors. Our table was excellent - roomy and it overlooked the outdoor eating area.

We were presented with a wine list and even though I knew the restaurant was supposed to have a great wine cellar, we chose a moderately priced bottle of wine. I can't remember the brand of merlot but it was excellent. As far as the main course, I ordered rack of lamb (which is why the price of our dinner is higher than the average). The lamb was cooked to perfection for me and was delicious. All during the meal, the waiter was available but not intrusive. In addition to great food, great service, and fantastic environment, we were also able to use our enterntainment card to get a sizeable discount. I would highly recommend the restaurant. Our bill for two (dinner including wine and desert; tax and tip) was $108 (that is $15 less because we had a discount)