Horizons has earned the Four Diamond rating for 15 years. Horizons, designed to accommodate 85 diners, creates a refined atmosphere with a gift of a single rose for ladies at evening's end.
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By Sarah Davis
(March 2009) Just 28 years after Asheville's Biltmore Estate was built, mountain grandeur continued with the AAA-rated Four Diamond Grove Park Inn. Inside the lodge-style accommodations is a fine-dining option at Horizons, the inn's Four Diamond restaurant.
Horizons has earned the Four Diamond rating for 15 years. Dining guests can expect treats throughout meal, certain to satiate an appetite made ravenous in the fresh Blue Ridge Mountain air.
The Restaurant
Guests are greeted by the host at a desk just outside the restaurant. Tall beveled glass doors framed in wood adhere to the Grove Park lodge feel, while inside hues of brown and burgundy dominate.
Horizons, designed to accommodate 85 diners, creates a refined atmosphere with a gift of a single rose for ladies at evening's end.
As patrons enter the restaurant, seven tables line the right wall and two line the far wall - all next to large windows overlooking the Grove Park Golf Course with downtown Asheville in the distance. These tables for two are prime real estate for a romantic evening; while the setting sun creates a palate of purples and pinks in the sky, Asheville's downtown lights begin to sparkle in the distance.
Between each of the seven tables are antique buffet tables topped with flowers or liquor displays. On one, a collection of Scotches, such as Laphroaic Single Islay Malt Scotch Whiskey, was on display. Another held a bottle Louis XIII Cognac and green Chartreuse.
The dining tables express simple elegance, donned with white linens topped with a glass calla lily vase holding a single rose and a matching calla lily candle holder. Platinum-lined chargers display the Horizons logo. Surrounding the table are burgundy leather studded chairs with armrests. Each bears the signature Horizons "H" on the upper back.
"We focus on the guest, we strive to provide legendary service to our guests" said General Manager Todd Phillips, who has been with the Grove Park Resort for 3 years.
Hungarian pianist Lajos Pagony enhances the experience with popular tunes. He's quick to give a smile to onlookers, and guests feel comfortable applauding after a song.
Recessed lighting in the ceiling provides a gently lit atmosphere, and is aided with the softly backlight tops of Asian style floor screens.
Wait Staff
Polite and professional wait staff pull out chairs for patrons and place napkins in laps before pouring ice-less chilled water. Fresh lemon slices are then dropped into the water. Black napkins are brought promptly without asking.
Salt and pepper shakers have been removed from the table, but the seasonings are available upon request. Wait staff have both a pepper mill and salt well, but there is very little need for either.
The average tenure for a server is seven years at Horizons, but there are a few who have been there for a dozen. Initial training can last from a few weeks to a few months and continues with weekly sessions pertaining to food, wine, service and liquor.
Food and wine tastings also are part of the training so servers are prepared to provide recommendations during a meal. Not only can they tell a patron how marbled the lamb is, but also what wine is suited to accompany the course.
The Menu and Wine List
Horizons serves an ala carte menu with entrees ranging in price from $18.00 for Sous-Vide breast of chicken to $74.00 for Filet of Kobe Beef.
Chef Duane Fernandes was recently added to the culinary team as chef de cuisine. Fernandes was trained at Johnson & Wales in Charleston, S.C. He has worked in some of the finest restaurants in America, including 2 Five Diamond restaurants in New York.
Also available are 1,001 wines, with 100 available in half bottles. About 20 wines can be ordered by the glass. With such a large inventory, Phillips said, wineries offer some half bottles especially bottled for Horizons.
Wines range from $1,750 for a bottle of 1990 Petrus to $20 a bottle. Most wines are in the $80 to $150 range.
Horizons, which specializes in Burgundy and Napa Valley Cabernet based wines, has been named "Best of award of excellence" by Wine Spectactor Magazine and received the Distinguished Restaurants of North America Award (DIRONA).
The Food
The meal begins with an amuse bouche - something to amuse the mouth - that is usually delicate and small. For example, the serving might be a pâte à choux, similar to a cream pastry.
Diners also will receive fresh baked French or cheese bread with Butter on the side.
The first course options range from braised rabbit; foie gras with plums, raisins and apple cinnamon syrup; or Kobe beef carpaccio with quail egg and cipollini onions.
Soups and salads are available for the next course, including lobster bisque accented with chive and lobster roe oil or Vidalia onion bisque with smoked bacon dumplings and charred thyme oil. The roasted baby beet salad is served with fresh Hawaiian heart of palm, which is corked and shipped over night to us. Chef Fernandes finishes it with a house made truffle syrup.
When the season is right, Horizons uses vegetables sold by local farmers for foods nourished by clean air and lots of mountain rain.
"We use local vendors as much as we can," said Phillips.
An intermezzo, typically a freshly infused juice crafted by Chef Fernandes, is brought out to cleanse the palate before the entrees are brought out.
Kobe Beef is served as a carpaccio and as an entree, which 25 percent to 30 percent of patrons order. Horizon's Kobe is delivered from Strube Ranch in Texas, where the cattle are fed a diet of grasses and beer and massaged daily. All that fuss is designed to reduce stress for prime marbling in the beef. The taste reflects the hard work with filet served with a Morbier cheese rosti and baby vegetables.
Slow grilled rack of south Texas Antelope is another grand slam. It is served with an herbed chick pea panisse, fava beans, and finished with a local stinging nettle puree.
For dessert, chocolate the choices are tuff. The temptations start with caramelized banana Brulee served with Tahitian vanilla bean ice cream. The most popular is the dark chocolate lava cake, this delight is served with a white chocolate ice cream and cherry compote.
Coffees include French press, Ethiopian Kirgacheffe and Jamaican Blue Mountain. (Updated March 2009) |
