Windsor Dining Room — Restaurant in Barrett Township

We visited the Windsor Restaurant on a Friday evening right after work, and only made reservations an hour prior to our arrival. We were very pleased to learn that every entrée on the main menu, except for the pasta, can be prepared as a gluten free meal. This is a huge bonus if you have dietary restrictions. The dessert menu, on the other hand, had very limited gluten free options (the lemon lime meringue pie, ice cream, and sorbets). We were very disappointed that the dessert menu didn't have more options for individuals with dietary restrictions.

This is the high-end restaurant at Skytop Lodge with expensive wine, three or four servers at your table, and a bit of pretentiousness. We learned after the fact that the dress is resort casual with collared shirts, dark denim, jackets and ties optional. We were in a very casual dress, and we were still welcomed to the restaurant. There are other restaurants at the Lodge that we also want to visit in the future.

We asked one of our servers what a particular sauce was on the plate. She admitted that she did not know and would investigate for us. She never returned with an answer. Granted, she was in training.

My husband and I love food, and love to try everything on the menu. Therefore, we share all of our plates. We even do this at Michelin-starred restaurants without an issue. The waiter told us there would be a fee, but he never told us the amount. Needless to say, we were shocked to find out they charge a plate sharing fee, and it is not printed anywhere on the menu! After a little bit of a fuss, the waiter said not to worry about the fee. This is an old and outdated practice which should not be included in the modern day of dining at restaurants. We were especially upset by this after just returning from Spain where you are encouraged to share all of your plates.

The food was good, and seems like most of the people eating there are actually staying at the hotel. We were just passing through.

Be sure you read your bill before paying. They automatically add an 18% gratuity to the bill, and it is very easy to to add an additional tip when it may, or may not, be necessary. When we gave our payment of cash to our waiter, we told him we needed change. He shook our hand and thanked us for visiting. It appeared as though he forgot that we said we needed change, and we had to ask the server-in-training for our change. Hopefully, this was just an oversight on his part and not intentional so that he would receive a higher tip.

Overall, we enjoyed our experience, and the setting...

It had been many years since I was last at Skytop, but we decided to drive there for dinner one cold winter's night. The dining room had been renovated with new comfortable chairs, but the lights were too bring and the renovation choices made the setting, which used to feel like the first class dining room on the Titanic, feel more like being on a modern cruise ship. The real problem was when the alt rock cover band started playing in the lobby and overwhelmed the classical/light jazz that was still playing in the dining room. They finally closed the doors (though we got up twice to do so that night despite being 30-40 feet from the main door). Every time the door did open it was like a wave until the doors closed and it reseeded back to a strong undertow. Don't get me wrong I like Coldplay as much as I like Coltrane I just don't want hear both at the same time.

The menu was not that extensive especially considering a few ingredients seem to dominate multiple dishes. The salads were good with large portions served in even larger bowls. The risotto was gluey and comprised of inconsistently cooked arborio overall lacking in depth of flavor. At $100+ per person (we didnt drink much since we were not staying over and they didnt give us an opportunity to order more) we were expecting a better experience and meal.

The staff were very friendly and attentive, but glasses (including water) were left empty on the table for a long time. It's hard to have to write a poor review because it is clear they are trying; though it seems like they don't know if they are trying to be an elegant dining setting or something trendy. Unfortunately trying to be both 1930s and 2020s results in it feeling more like the mid 1990s.

Where they have succeeded, is the lobby and bar which were renovated since the last visit as well, but retained the old elegance and charm with restored fireplaces, and comfortable seating. Next time I think we would just...

– The service was outstanding, the staff were helpful, knowledgeable, and relatively prompt. Several parties arrived half an hour after us and our server disappeared for 20 minutes but upon his return all was well. They just need more staff is my guess. This was another case of everyone loved their meal except for the one picky eater whos opinion doesn’t count. His steak had “too much flavor”, but I think it tasted great. I had the Chilean seabass which was divine; foraged mushrooms were bland and a tiny serving for the price, but I threw them into the sea bass bowl and they soaked up the tasty liquids down there. The creamed spinach, while very tasty, needs to dial back the salt by a lot. Like, try half the salt. No one at our table could eat more than 2 bites. I would definitely dine here again. However their breakfast buffet is another story all together; the egg trough was overcooked and flavorless and the potatoes were undercooked every single day. Like seriously! Stop serving raw potatoes! They taste like they need another 10-15 minutes in an oven at 400F, or at least microwave them so they are cooked through cus they were just gross. The omelette station was pretty good, despite having one guy cooking he did so rather quickly with 4 pans going at once. The omelette makers need a raise. The servers were hit of miss getting coffee, water, etc i.e. 2 mornings the service was spectacular while two other mornings I got up and got water and coffee myself and was given side eye from the server. Well don’t make me wait 20 minutes for coffee which I asked for twice and he said right away and never came back. ...