Deer Mountain Inn — Restaurant in Town of Hunter

We stayed overnight in the wheeler room. The place is beautiful, the room was gorgeous and comfortable. Logan, who was at the front desk, was exceptional. Kind, friendly, helpful, knowledgeable. He made us feel right at home. The bed was extremely cozy and comfortable. The linens were so nice and I felt like I was sleeping on a cloud. There was an espresso coffee station set up in the hallway next to our room which was super convenient-and the coffee was delicious. Also, our room was stocked with liquors, snacks, and other beverages that you could add to your tab. We had the most delicious local chocolate bar! Dinner was a different story. I had REALLY high expectations after reading the reviews, but unfortunately-everything fell short. The dining room is stunning!! The service was impeccable. The cocktails were delicious, but tasted much different than what we'd ordered. We'd ordered an apple pie cocktail-and what we received was a very orange forward bourbon cocktail-with not a hint of walnut or apples. It was delicious though-just not what was described. The focaccia came to our table totally blackened. I understand a bit of char can taste nice and add some character to a rustic bread-but it was really burned.the top surface off the bread was solid black. We should have returned it to the kitchen. I’ve seen pictures of the focaccia in others reviews and ours was clearly burnt. Not sure how any chef would allow that to leave their kitchen. Each piece was bitter, because of the excessive char. My celery root soup was not bad, but it was not delicious. It lacked balance. It was sour, and could have used some salt, or fat to round out or balance the flavor. I was not impressed with it, and felt it really could have been elevated. My trout was very nice-red rice came on the side in a bowl and was served cool/room temp. The trout was supposed to have a "sunflower curry" sauce-and the sauce was nice, but it didn't seem to have any type of spicing that would indicate a curry. It was a white sauce with a very mild flavor. The fish was delicate and mild in flavor, but I did have a couple of bites that tasted very fishy. My boyfriend played it safe with a burger which he enjoyed. His fries were over salted. We both love salt-so it would have to be pretty salty for either of us to find them salty. The dessert was delicious, but it was TINY. I don't mind having a dessert that leaves you wanting more-but the portion was ridiculously small. The brown butter cookie was to die for. The whip was nice and light. There was just not enough of it. Our experience was still a pleasant one. We were not blown away by the food, but the restaurant was so beautiful, and service was very pleasant. Our breakfast the following morning was nicer than I'd expected. Croissants, nice bagels with some flavored cream cheeses. Yogurts with various toppings and honey. Fresh coffee and juice were available as well. A nice ending...

We stumbled upon this inn during our search for an intimate wedding location. We thought we found the perfect place... The food was delicious, our stay was warm and welcoming, and the owner seemed great! We were ready to begin planning right away and wanted to place a deposit down and get going! However, much to our dismay, after our departure from the inn, we were met with radio silence. We attempted reaching out several times to the manager/owner. I continued to steadily pursue him despite no replies because I loved the place... but was only met with vague replies (Each taking about 2-3 days in between responses). My pursuit was finally met with a promise to setup a phone call to go over availability. The initial setting of this appointment also took a while but Brian finally set an appointment date! Buttttt he never confirmed (I emailed quite a few times in an attempt to do just that...confirm) I awaited the phone call despite not having confirmation because I was extremely excited (I already filled out paperwork which was sent to me) and the call never came. I sent two additional emails and still have had no response. It has now been over a month... and I still have literally no idea what transpired or what went wrong. I almost emailed and reached out again, but I feel three unanswered messages was more than enough.

I should also mention that we specifically drove upstate to stay the weekend to sit and have a meeting regarding our wedding. We were not given any information (printouts, pricing, availability, etc.) during our “meeting” I just figured it was a part of the sell... selling the cozy ambiance and slower vibe of the deer mountain inn... just figured it was a pitch, especially since we were more used to the hustle and nonstop energy of the city. Now I realize it was and is just poor management and a lack of care or consideration for potential clients. I felt as if we weren’t good enough for them, and was being intentionally pushed aside.

I was, and am now, exceptionally disheartened with the entire experience and felt extremely insecure as a result of this process. I just thought I would share my experience in case another bride assumes she found the perfect venue... only to be blown off, snubbed, and downright rejected by the...

My wife and I went to Deer Run Mountain Inn for a birthday celebration. The cocktails were expertly mixed. The wine was delicious. The service was well tended. The risotto starter was wonderful though a tad salty. That said, both of our dinners were too salty. Salty enough to detract from the flavor and enjoyment of the dish. I ordered short ribs with smoked potato puree, charred leek, and ramp for $29. The flavor was excessively smoky and salty and the potato puree was invisible. The waitress even suggested we order a side of asparagus to round out the meal with a vegetable. For $29 I think one should get a vegetable. My wife ordered duck. The saltiness of her meal hampered her enjoyment. THEN WE HAD DESSERT. Almond cake with smoked pineapple, coconut sorbet and almond crunch. I did not even realize what the fruit was until my wife told me because all I could taste was smoke! It was SO SMOKY that it cancelled all other tastes on our tongues. SO SMOKY it literally tasted like I smoked an after dinner cigarette or two. SO SMOKY that we stopped to get soft serve ice cream on the way home in an attempt to cleanse our palates. Someone at Deer Run has a smoky gimmick and a heavy hand with the salt, and does not understand nuance. When we told the staff about the overpowering smoke, they thanked us for our input. The table next to us had smoked trout and also talked about the excessive use of smoke. Even the smoky smell of their dish permeated our table. All in all we wish this experience had gone better. We would love to have this place to enjoy. It's such a beautiful setting and has so much going for it, but we cannot see ourselves dining here again. After an expensive meal you should not walk away feeling dissatisfied and need to go to the local ice cream stand to get...