Emily G.
Yelp
I've been sitting on this review for a few months, but recently stopped by the Mount Vernon gift shop to pick up a Christmas gift and gagged at the sight of the restaurant. I knew then that I needed to voice my honest concerns.
A few caveats:
1. I am generally very kind in my reviews because I'm pretty easy to please and have worked in many service jobs, so I know it's not easy out there grinding. I award a bad review to a place that's let me down in a big way or repeatedly over time.
2. This is not a review of the Mount Vernon historical site, as everything I've ever been to there has been wonderful, including appetizers at receptions. I'm not sure how connected the Mount Vernon Inn restaurant is to the actual historical site, but since they're right next to each other, I would suggest that the good people at the historical site think twice about the types of complaints I'm about to register below. It's not a good look juxtaposed against the great stuff ya'll do!
3. My husband said he had a wonderful time and that the meal was very good. That is why there are two stars and not one. I didn't mention my complaints to him as I did not want to spoil his good time, and hopefully he doesn't read this review.
Let's dig 'inn'...
When I cut my teeth waiting tables at a fine dining establishment (RIP Umbra's Cafe in Crozet, VA), the owner always told us to keep a close eye on the cleanliness of the bathrooms as people equate their cleanliness to that of the kitchen. Now, I don't go into restaurants and look at their bathrooms before I order off the menu unless I really need to use it - but 20 years later, I still think about Marazad's life lesson. There are even some favorite restaurants of mine where I am pretty sure I never want to look in the kitchen, but that said, if I'm grossed out before I even order my food something is woefully wrong.
The day we visited the MV Inn, as soon as we stepped in the front door and approached the hostess kiosk, there was a nasty smell of human gas. Things happen, so I didn't raise my eyebrows yet. Once we were seated several rooms away from the entrance, I continued to smell a sewery smell. As we perused the menu, I also took in the decor. I liked the time period pieces and the wall murals, but the amount of filth - scuffs, visible layers of greasy dust, dirt all over the baseboards, and marks on the walls - made me wonder how they could get away without ever cleaning their restaurant? I am not a clean freak! If you come to my house you will see a bit of dust and fingerprints on the windows. But this was abhorrent. I think it was probably historical preservation and it was the original dust from George Washington's time. That's the only explanation I could come up with.
Now on to the food. We ordered the hoecake, my husband got the peanut soup, and we shared the fried green tomatoes for appetizers. Peanut soup was interesting, and the hoecake was very good. The fried green tomatoes had marinara sauce on top which made the whole thing taste like a basic Italian appetizer. Not really what I expected, but okay.
Mains: I ordered the crab cake because that's what I do. I love crab cakes! This one was fairly decent, though I thought it was a little mushy. For the price, the sides were completely unimaginative. Plain old bland, watery sauteed spinach with mashed potatoes that were fine, but could easily have come out of a box. It was not a plate that looked like it was trying to impress anyone. My husband's Club on the other hand, looked very nice. He said it tasted great. The chips with it were what I would consider overdone. My son's hamburger and fries was standard and greasy.
We finished up with a cheesecake slice. It was very good, but I was glad to get out of the establishment. I am happy to report we did not get sick. That said, I think the Mount Vernon Inn restaurant should be a top contender for a Gordon Ramsay visit.
PS - Service was fine, though I had to wonder what their boss tells them about the bathrooms?
PPS - Since our visit was two months ago, I'm hoping they've completed a once-yearly deep clean. If my hubby takes me back in the new year and there's a marked improvement, I'll eagerly update my review.
PPPS - This post is reminding me of a few other fun tidbits I learned while working at Umbra's. Marazad's tip for cleaning the indoor plants? Put a little milk in a glass and use a soft cloth dipped in the milk to wipe down the leaves. They'll be glossy and clean. That's the level of cleaning he expected in his restaurant! Clearly I respected it, though cleaning those leaves was very tedious...