Blue Rock — Restaurant in Virginia

This might be a long post, but please read all of it as you need to know the full extent of how bad our trip was.

We were very excited about our trip as it was our 1st anniversary. We've traveled a TON and had really good experiences with inns and had heard that the chef was from Pineapple & Pearls, a DC favorite of ours and one that has 2 Michelin stars. So, we checked the reviews and decided to stay here. There were a few bad reviews, but nothing close to what we expected.

We get there and go up to the room. First off, when we tell someone that it's our Birthday/Anniversary/some event, we've generally gotten a bottle of wine, some chocolates, something. We got a note printed on a computer. While this isn't the end all be all, it's all about the experience. And in the end if this was it, we'd be ok.

The room was shorter than expected, while they have since put up a warning on their website (one that wasn't there when we booked), me being 6' tall couldn't raise my arms over my head. I'm guessing the height of the ceiling is about 6'4", and while the views of the estate are absolutely wonderful, the only view from that room is from the door to the outside, which was not a large opening (again, being a bigger guy my shoulders wouldn't allow me to go through this door and I had shuffle outside. While I withstood the limitations of the room, it's the next issue that I couldn't erase from my mind.

We had gotten a reservation to the restaurant and had a few minutes to wait till we got ready, my wife decided to get a drink and got a wine for her and a cider for me. It was at this point the bugs started showing up. We had both flies and gnats attack us at this point. While I expect flies and gnats attack us outside, inside, not so much. I had 3 bugs get into my drink to which I stopped drinking it and let the staff know about the bug infestation. We were told "since it's an older place, the bugs might come from the pipes so sorry there's nothing that can be done". And just to add to this, the staff saw the state of the room with the bugs. I actually managed to overhear the staff talk about this to the kitchen staff and I know a note was sent to the manager, as she indicated she saw the message the next day.

From here we went to dinner, if nothing else an "ok" experience. Both me and my wife were expecting a much more elevated dinner, but in the end it wasn't bad, just not memorable (and nowhere near the cost).

We went back to the bug infested room and tried to peacefully sleep. I have video that cannot be uploaded due to Google's limit, but this is the view when I woke up, 11 gnats on my lamp with much more around the room. At this point I spoke with the manager and she assured me that she did a room check before we checked in and that she'd check again with the cleaning staff to see what they could do when we went out for our lunch that day. She also mentioned that we would be comped due to the bugs. No mention of changing rooms, no mention of how much we would be comped, keep this in mind.

We came back that night (trying to stay away since it was bug ridden) and when we came back, we can at least say it was "better". My wife and I killed no less than 10 bugs (flies and gnats) that night "after they cleaned" and we also noticed that the sheets were not changed (again, after we asked them to do so as we noticed a stain on them due to killing a bug on them). We went to sleep and when checking out were told we were comped 10% of one night. We were floored but so tired we just wanted to leave.

I want to talk with the owner as this is the worst Inn I've ever been at. I'd rather stay at a $50 a night hotel than stay here even if the views are gorgeous. And as my wife put it, if you're paying these rates, do yourself a favor and go to the Inn at...

We unfortunately had a disappointing stay at Blue Rock based largely on the rooms. We stayed for two nights over the last weekend in two different rooms so sadly there were serious issues with both rooms. We booked the Blue Rock because we expected that for $300-$400 we would be relaxing in very comfortable rooms. If you don't plan to spend any time in the rooms during the day or evening maybe this wouldn't be an issue for you but for us we just wanted a weekend away to read and relax.

First I'll say the staff could not have been more accommodating and sweeter but we just expected better of the property for the price we paid.

The first room (Thorton) on the second floor:

1. The ceiling couldn't have been more than 6'5". That may be fine for many people (it was for me at 5'7") but at 6'2" my husband felt unbelievably claustrophobic and punched the ceiling every time he changed clothes or put on a jacket.
2. We stayed on a particularly windy day/night and the french doors/window to the balcony was broken and couldn't be closed completely with water damage beneath which led to the doors clanging all night and made it difficult to sleep.
3. The music and guests from the bar below were very clear in the room. I ended up sitting on a towel on the floor of the outdoor patio for some peace and quiet.

The second room (Castleton) on the first floor:

1. The room is in between the staff lounge and kitchen. There is no threshold under the door, just a 2 inch gap to the hallway and thin walls. All afternoon we heard the staff playing music on their phones, chatting, and the kitchen staff preparing for dinner. And not quietly.
2. The headboard of the bed shares the same wall as the kitchen. Which means that at 11pm you hear dishes being done, spoons being banged on various dishes, pots and pans clanging around, etc.
3. There is some industrial piece of equipment in the kitchen and against the wall of the room (my guess was either an ice maker or something similar) with an engine that never, ever stops. The sound was unbelievably draining. Like being on a plane and you don't realize how loud it is until you step into the bathroom or hallway.

Finally, and this is so nitpicky but you have to pay $15 per day to add protein to breakfast. Again, at $300+ a night it seems ridiculous to charge $15 to add chicken to breakfast. The free breakfast includes coffee, fruit, yogurt and granola and pastry all which were delicious, I just thought it was a little silly to have to charge for protein at this price point.

Again, if you plan on spending the whole day hiking or doing activities then maybe this won't apply to you but if you're looking for somewhere to sit and enjoy we had a better experience at a similar B&B...

I have no qualms about giving Blue Rock five stars. Not to say there's no room for improvement, but they're nailing so much of it already that it's well worth a trip.

FOR THE HOTEL: This was such a sweet stay. The view is truly spectacular, and it's fun to have some wine from the bar and just chill out. The robes are very comfortable, and it was great to take a bath after a long day. We loved having breakfast in bed, too. Seriously, do not skip breakfast. They must have changed up the granola and yogurt recipe since that one reviewer complained, because the granola and yogurt is INSANE. (Idea: maybe add eggs or a bacon sandwich to the breakfast menu? The fried chicken, while delicious, is 75% skin, and folks might appreciate a bit more protein. My husband also said that "I feel this place would be very good at pancakes.") Anyway, the hotel is at a great location for exploring central Virginia, and the rates are standard for a high-end stay.

FOR THE RESTAURANT: This was hands-down the best and most thoughtful wine pairings I've ever had with a meal, and I've eaten at Michelin staples including the French Laundry, Alinea, Minibar, and the Inn At Little Washington. I am accustomed to wine pairings that are pleasing rather than interesting, so this was an absolute delight, and I'm in the rare situation of actually recommending you get wine pairings as opposed to choosing from their excellent bottle menu. The wine program here is reason enough to make a reservation. (I've also been to Pineapple and Pearls, which has never impressed me as much as Rose's Luxury. P&P served me raw pasta! Seriously!)

The food is also exquisite. Unmissable: the hassleback potato, the double-cured caviar, the ciabatta. We housed an ungodly amount of ciabatta during our stay and won't apologize for it. The tonnato course had me practically singing. I am also a huge fan of the portions---we don't do tasting menus that often anymore, because we're old and hard to please and also there's nothing very fun about a four-hour dinner prison where you can't even appreciate the meal anymore because you're anticipating something else. This was a very thoughtfully designed meal and I delighted in it. That being said, there was a sashimi course that we both forgot about before we swallowed it, and there was a fruit element under the saffron pie that didn't make a ton of sense. In a meal with just five courses these are the kinds of things you want to avoid. Still, the strengths are SO strong, and the skill throughout the kitchen so evident, that I'll certainly be back for more. Thank...