Andrew C.
Yelp
O McMenamin's, you continue to impress yet disappoint me, confound and bedazzle me. My latest trip to the sprawling Edgefield compound was not for a concert this time, but for a couple day trip to relax in the Columbia River Gorge. It's a great base camp for adventures into the Gorge and so yes, I stayed over in the hotel portion (part of the main lodge building) for the first time ever - but I'll get to that shortly.
First let's tackle the Black Rabbit restaurant or rather the bar area of said restaurant where I had breakfast one morning. It's also in the main building and as with all McMenamin's properties, the ambiance here is a total delight, with rustic old architecture paired to interesting, highly creative artwork....I felt like I could sit here for hours. The service, I gotta say, on my visit was 5 stars exceptional: I was left wanting for nothing, even though the staff was clearly slammed on a Friday. True pros, through and through, from the drink orders to the check ins to the serving, it was all spot on. The food, on the other hand, not so much; I had your basic 3 egg scramble with toast and sausage, and the eggs --sad to say -- were hard and flavorless, and the toast, like cardboard. Def not worth the $19, but I tipped well because the service was just so friggin good.
And the hotel part? Again, charming artwork in old rustic rooms, but as a place to sleep, it just sucks. The rooms, though fairly decently sized, aren't at all soundproof so you hear everything that happens outside your door and window at all hours, and the bathrooms are communal shared affairs where you have to walk down the hall with a key card every time. Even at 3am. No thanks - especially for the price they charge.
That said, the grounds here are delightful and the Rubys soaking pool in the building down the path is super cool.
Just temper your expectations, pick your experiences (I.e. stay in a different hotel) and you'll have a good time.