Winvian — Hotel in Morris

I wanted to go to Winvian for YEARS so I was thrilled when my boyfriend took me there for my 40th birthday. I couldn't have been more excited. But once we were there, things immediately started going wrong. First, half the Log Cabin cottage we spent $1k night on was blocked off, so really it was just in a a glorified hotel room. There was an entire upper loft that they explained used to be accessible, but was no longer. Online it had said we were getting a 950 sq. ft. room, but being from NYC, I am very aware of square footage, and without that loft, this was not 950. After spending the entire day and night festering, I finally called in the morning to see if they would switch our room. They were very nice about it and upgraded us to Woodlands, which was definitely nicer, although they could stand to do something about the cobwebs that were everywhere.

We had booked two dinners during our stay. The first night we were supposed to do the chef's tasting menu, and the second night just the regular dinner menu. The day before we arrived, the hotel called to see if we could switch the two around, saying that we would end up having to wait a long time if we wanted the chef's tasting on the first night because they were going to be very busy. That was strange since we had made the reservations months in advance. Why would WE have to be the ones to wait? But ok, we were going to be there both nights anyway, so no big deal.

The first night, we went to have our regular dinner, which was delicious. We were full and decided we wanted to take the dessert back to our room. The server said they could deliver it to the cottage. We said no, we were there anyway so we could just take it. He insisted, so we said ok. The dessert came, and we were charged for the delivery!!

The dessert came with a note saying to dial 0 to get our plates picked up, which we did. We waited for more than an hour, but no one ever came to pick up the plates. When i went outside the next morning, they were still there. And they were still there when we left for our new cottage at 1pm.

At dinner the first night i had asked another server if we come to the same dining room for the chef's tasting menu the following night. She looked completely confused and said the chef does a tasting class on Mondays, but not a chef's tasting dinner on Sundays, which is when we were coming. We let it go and figured that she was confused. This would be a good time to mention that the "chef's tasting" is $100/per person more than the regular dinner.

The next night we showed up for our chef's tasting, and they handed us the regular menu. We were confused, but at that point, so much of the weekend was already ruined, so we decided to just go with the regular menu. All of a sudden, our server rushes out and snatches the menus away and apologizes, saying the chef has prepared a special meal for us. Great! We can't wait to see what it is. It was the same exact menu as the one he had handed us. Only smaller portions.

Each night there is a prix fixe dinner and you choose a dish from each section. The night before we each chose different dishes so we could taste more. That is exactly what happened - they gave us each a half portion of two dishes from each section - which is what we would have done ourselves anyway. And then charged double for it. It was absolutely ridiculous.

I will say the food was delicious again. And, Lindsay who upgraded our room was sweet and very helpful. But both my boyfriend and i left super disappointed and felt it like we had been duped several times during our stay. If this weekend had cost 50% of what it did, i would say it was a good weekend. But the money they charge at Winvian is absolutely not in line with the service, professionalism or attention to detail that even a 4 star hotel should have, and they are charging 5 star prices. I am happy to spend on extraordinary experiences, but that is just not...

I decided to book Winvian at the last minute as a staycation- I had been working very long hours recently, and found myself with 3 days off in a row, so I decided to treat myself. ||I am so glad that I chose Winvian Farm. My dog and I received the most warm welcome from Ilaria, who escorted us to the tavern terrace for the most delicious piece of sea trout I’ve had in years. I had dinner reserved in the dining room later that night, and if this was any indication of what I had in store ahead, I knew I would be in for a real treat. ||After lunch, Erin assisted with my check-in and confirmed my itinerary, and it is so nice to be able to reconfirm all of those details with the person who planned them for you- she remembered every detail of information we discussed. ||Ilaria escorted me to the Greenhouse Cottage, which was somehow simultaneously bathed with natural light and extremely private, with walls of windows opening onto a terrace facing directly into the dense greenery of the forest. I enjoyed my coffee on this terrace every morning while my dog sniffed around the underbrush. ||The cottage itself was spotlessly clean and all furniture, fixtures appliances and amenities were in extremely good condition. As a hotelier myself, I know how difficult it is to maintain a high-end property and I am unbelievably impressed with both the housekeeping and engineering/maintenance teams. Kudos!||Dinner in the main dining room continued to impress- the food was EXCEPTIONAL. I opted for wine pairings, and Stefano guided me through the experience, taking care to describe each wine and how it complemented the dish. I cannot do this dinner justice with words- it was simply perfect at every step- timing, execution, and hospitality- balancing |fine service with natural warmth. ||My experience at the spa matched the high standards I had grown accustomed to. Cheryle gave me a warm welcome and full tour and orientation of the space before introducing me to Lisa, who is an absolute master of her craft. All of the stress of those long hours and days leading out to the trip melted away instantly. ||The pool area was surprisingly quiet during my stay (mid-week) so I took advantage of the solitude with a book and a bottle of wine - again, the area was spotlessly clean and in perfect condition. I especially loved that it was surrounded with high hedges, making it feel especially private and secluded. ||Absolutely everything about my stay was just what I had hoped for. The team at Winvian Farm clearly takes pride in their work and it shows through excellence in service and a superior product. I sincerely look forward to a return to this magnificent property again soon.||Many...

A most amazingly decadent and pristine resort. The cottages are uniquely decorated, one of a kind and luxurious. If you have kids, stay in the Helicopter cottage, they will never forget it. If your planning a romantic getaway, Charter Oak cottage or Stable cottage are perfect. There is lots to do in the area, from walking/hiking trails to amysement & wildlife parks, museums, the most antique shops in the country and plenty of excellent restaurants if you want to switch things up during an extended stay. Food is very good, service- not so much. They seem to hire mostly kids, while 2 waiters are over 22 years old (and are excellent at what they do, knowledgable, pleasant, they do their job superbly). However, if you are not lucky enough to have Ben or Walter as your waiter, don't keep your expectations high. Most of them are sloppy, unsophisticated, slow and forgetful. I've talked with several wait staff members and Sadly, the Winvian wait staff average employment is about 2 months. The reason for this is the way they pay gratuities, monthly/pooled. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, however, the management decided to have a point system for tips, basically the wait staff (when starting) makes about 25 dollars a day in tips instead of 2-300 @ 18%. Need I say more? It is sad that a AAA ~ 5 Diamond Resort, withholds about 90% of tips from wait staff. You would think, especially a place of this caliber, they would want to get 110% out of its employees, and long term employment, So guests are nothing short of ecstatic. It seems like common sense, give your wait staff 100% of tips so you get 110% out of them. Some brilliant person ( I assume the General Manager) decided to skim money from tips, which I don't understand. As a customer, I would like to see the same faces every time We go, instead, every time we go its like training day at a diner. When you do stay at Winvian, keep this in mind, Breakfast is included, however the breakfast servers do not get tipped, so if you do get good service, slip your server a tip. Head Chef Chris Eddy, an amazing talent, however, I have seen him interact with wait staff, luckily his skills in the kitchen out weigh his belligerent disrespectful attitude toward wait staff members, he is also known to have had people fired because he had a personal issue with them. This is an honest and truthful review with both positive and negative aspects. All in all, I give them an 8 out of 10. Check my other reviews for an honest opinion. I have 25 years experience in the business and a culinary arts graduate, with minor in...