The Inn at Willow Grove is a boutique hotel in the small town of Orange Virginia, the main building a restored 1770s plantation building with 40 acres of land.
Alongside the main house where you will find the four-star restaurant, vintage, a lounge with board games and a few boutique rooms, the 40-acre property also includes a wedding venue and multiple cottages that house both rooms and suites.
The hotel was refurbished for two years and opened in 2010 by its current owners Charlene and David Scibal and is the ideal weekend getaway for wine lovers as it's right in the centre of Virginia’s burgeoning wine country and only a 90-minute drive from both Richmond and DC.
Business is back on (slowly) following the pandemic. The hotel opened to half capacity in the Spring of 2020 and has gradually opened to full capacity - with strict social distancing rules in place.
The lowdown
The Inn at Willow Grove is perfectly placed to quickly access Virginia’s deep historic roots.
From visiting the 4th President of the United States, James Madison’s home in Montpelier to wine tasting or enjoying a barbeque BBQ Exchange, there’s a lot to be done in Orange County, Virginia.
If you’re looking for a less adventurous weekend break, the hotel’s property has plenty of gentle walks while the spa has some topnotch options if you just want to relax.
On the spa menu there are massages and salt scrubs as well as facials to help you recharge your skin - it's currently operating on limited appointments, so you will need to book ahead.
The hotel boasts twenty-five boutique rooms, each individually furnished and decorated in a classic style. Rooms range in size from boutique rooms, luxury suites and premier suites.
The Rooms
I stayed in the Smokehouse cottage luxury suite. The room once served as the original smokehouse and has the feel of a tiny home.
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Decor-wise think high ceilings with gorgeous old wooden beams and a cute seating area out front to enjoy a morning tea and fresh beignets delivered every day.
Every evening guests are brought a hot canister of fruity bed-time tea and a pastry made fresh from the hotel’s pastry chef.
Things to do
You’re truly spoilt for choice when it comes to exploring so I let the experts show me around the area by booking with Virginia Wine Tours.
Even if you’re not a history buff, taking the time out to get a tour at Montpelier is a must-do while you’re in Orange County. If you can, try and get Zeb as your tour guide, his passion for history made the tour all the more enjoyable.
For the perfect lunchbreak stopping at BBQ Exchange in Gordonsville was a treat. Owner Craig Hartman was a fine-dining chef before opening the BBQ hotspot in 2010. He built his own burners and everything at the restaurant is made from scratch - excluding ketchup.
Highlights from the menu include pumpkin bread, fall-off-the-bone tender ribs, pork belly and Hartman’s fried pickles.
As for wineries, there’s so many to choose from but trying Barboursville vineyards is your best bet at seeing what Virginia has to offer. Winemaker Luca Paschina has been at the helm of Barboursville for 30 years, moving from Italian wine country to Virginia for a new challenge.
Most of the vineyard’s wines sell for under $35, a range of whites and reds. The Vermentino Reserve 2017 was my personal favorite white wine, offering a perfect balance of sweet and dry. As for reds the Cabernet Franc Reserve 2017 was a very light red wine - ideal if you don't like a heavy red.
Eating and drinking
The Inn at Willow Grove’s dining option is Vintage restaurant and pub. While you can have lunch and gourmet pub fare at the pub section of Vintage, dinner in the main dining room is not to be missed.
The restaurant has an extensive wine list from the local vineyards and seasonal food sourced from local farms.
Hotel guests can get curbside pickup from Vintage or enjoy their food on the patio for a socially distanced meal taking in the lovely scenic views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
While the restaurant’s menu changes often, during my stay they had a pan sauteed lump crab cake as an appetizer - light but decadent. It was served with fennel and grapefruit, which were just the right mix of earthy and citrus tones to heighten the taste of the crab.
Another highlight was the seared jumbo scallops which came with jasmine rice, brussel sprouts, cauliflower and korma sauce.
If you’re looking for a more relaxed meal, on the main street in Orange, there’s Vintage’s sister restaurant Forked on Main, which offers more of a Southern comfort food style of cooking and also should not be missed.