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| Spring water pool, Gentleman's Spring, and Old Roman Bath |
Yesterday I ventured to West Virginia with one goal in mind: be a dirty hippie. With promises of a natural hot spring and a restaurant specializing in local, organic, humane foods, I was ready to get on down. It was originally intended to be an extended hike/camp situation, but with a threatening thunderstorm forecast, a day trip it was. So myself and my fella headed to
Berkeley Springs, famed for its historic healing mineral hot springs. Apparently, it's been a
hot spot (!) since the days of George Washington, and for the Native Americans before him. Dirty historic bathwater it wasn't, however. We were welcomed by a friendly little town and Roman style baths, private and tiled, ready for your 30 minute soaking pleasure. The water consists of heat from a suspected underground volcanic source and various minerals that somehow cause you to bob up in the water more than your average jacuzzi. Provided on the side of the tub was a chilled pitcher of cold spring water - silently sweating - cups, and fluffy white towels. I stayed in until my toes and fingers were all wrinkled and I felt suitably relaxed. When the door opened back out to the 80ish degree weather, it felt amazingly cool. Walking around and taking in the various small bookstores, posters for Rockabilly concerts, and health food groceries, I felt noticeably refreshed. We even came upon a small candy store where they sold fresh hot doughnuts with homemade ganache. Dessert before dinner, anyone? I think so.
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| A little oddity from the trip |
Soon enough it was off to our dinner reservation at
Panorama at the Peak. A mere 4 miles away, we somehow managed to pass by a castle on the way there. It's appropriately called Berkeley Springs Castle, built as a pledge of love from a Civil War colonel to his 22-year-old fiance. The Taj Mahal, West Virginia style. We wound our way through wooded roads, climbing the hills that would give us our fantastic view from the restaurant. It was just before sunset, and all of the tree-filled mountains were brightly lit as we stared into the valley below.
When we arrived, it appeared to be like any other overlook - a clearing at the edge of a drop off - but the difference here was that it served as a parking lot for the restaurant just across the road. We scrambled across before any cars cruising along that mountainous curve could advance, and made our way into Panorama at the Peak. A little table by the window was reserved with our name written in a simple calligraphy style, and the view was spectacular as promised. The picture doesn't even really do it justice.
Even more exciting, however, was the menu. 80% of the food served is local, so this gives a little wiggle room for things like imported coffee, certain fruits, seafood etc. The menu names the specific farms that provide the meats, and it indicates when they are organic certified, humane certified, and what all of that means. They even provided pamphlets that explain what goes into the certified label, including providing animals with the opportunity to engage in actions that come naturally when they are free range. Basically,
this is who I've become. And I'm ok with that. I laugh at it. But mostly I'm serious about it.
While we were deciding, we enjoyed warm slices of bread with sweet and tangy honey basil butter. Uh, yum. After hearing a mouthwatering selection of specials in addition to the regular menu, my fella settled on an oven roasted romaine salad with charred red onion, tomatoes, and bacon. There was also some sort of amazing soft cheese sprinkled throughout. He went with a cordon bleu burger wrapped in ham and a puff pastry, served on a bed of wild rice. He was so excited by it that we forgot to get a picture until his plate was nothing but crumbs. For me, I wanted to try the spinach salad that was served with edible flowers, celery, pecans, cheese, and a vanilla dressing. The flowers tasted like freshly ground pepper and I could see actual vanilla beans on the plate. It was culinary artistry and it was delicious. Then of course I had to take advantage of being able to eat meat in a restaurant, so I had the chicken marsala with mushrooms, ginger carrots, and baked rosemary potatoes. As a side note, I wound up eating four different flowers during this dinner. It was one of those meals that silences you of all conversation outside of "This is so good. This is sooooooo gooooood." Even the restrooms were environmentally conscious as they provided rolled up washcloths as alternatives to paper towels. We stuffed ourselves with goodness, then headed homeward taking the scenic byway and digested the day.
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| Bread with honey basil butter |
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| Roasted romaine salad |
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| Flower and spinach salad |
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| The remains of the cordon bleu burger |
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| Chicken marsala, garnished with an edible pansy |
Even more exciting, however, was the menu. 80% of the food served is local, so this gives a little wiggle room for things like imported coffee, certain fruits, seafood etc. The menu names the specific farms that provide the meats, and it indicates when they are organic certified, humane certified, and what all of that means. They even provided pamphlets that explain what goes into the certified label, including providing animals with the opportunity to engage in actions that come naturally when they are free range. Basically, this is who I've become. And I'm ok with that. I laugh at it. But mostly I'm serious about it.
While we were deciding, we enjoyed warm slices of bread with sweet and tangy honey basil butter. Uh, yum. After hearing a mouthwatering selection of specials in addition to the regular menu, my fella settled on an oven roasted romaine salad with charred red onion, tomatoes, and bacon. There was also some sort of amazing soft cheese sprinkled throughout. He went with a cordon bleu burger wrapped in ham and a puff pastry, served on a bed of wild rice. He was so excited by it that we forgot to get a picture until his plate was nothing but crumbs. For me, I wanted to try the spinach salad that was served with edible flowers, celery, pecans, cheese, and a vanilla dressing. The flowers tasted like freshly ground pepper and I could see actual vanilla beans on the plate. It was culinary artistry and it was delicious. Then of course I had to take advantage of being able to eat meat in a restaurant, so I had the chicken marsala with mushrooms, ginger carrots, and baked rosemary potatoes. As a side note, I wound up eating four different flowers during this dinner. It was one of those meals that silences you of all conversation outside of "This is so good. This is sooooooo gooooood." Even the restrooms were environmentally conscious as they provided rolled up washcloths as alternatives to paper towels. We stuffed ourselves with goodness, then headed homeward taking the scenic byway and digested the day.
Wow...I want to go there! Looks beautiful! Maybe this is the weekend getaway we've been looking for. Gorgeous pics... - Chort
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