May, 2012
When most people think Niagara, they think Niagara Falls and yes, it is worth seeing if you haven’t been before. Niagara-on-the-Lake has a completely different vibe than the Vegas style of Niagara Falls though. NOTL is a small town packed with character, history and charm. It is quaint, relaxing and has that small town, peaceful vibe.
The Vintage Inns are a collection of Ontario’s Finest Hotels, Restaurants and Spas. Each inn is unique based on the area, and has attention to the finest details where you will be guaranteed an extraordinary experience. In NOTL you have 4 inns to choose from including Prince of Wales, Queens Landing, Pillar & Post or the Moffat Inn. For this weekend getaway, we opted for the Pillar & Post, but we have also stayed at Queens Landing, with a package for the Niagara’s Icewine Festival in January, 2018.
Pillar & Post offers a 13,000-square foot indoor and outdoor spa, an onsite fine dining restaurant, a wine bar and is within walking distance to parks and trails along the Niagara River. Nestled further out of town, it is a perfect little retreat to decompress. Each Inn offers weekend indulgent packages and we chose the two-night stay including breakfast each morning, dinner at any of the 4 inns, so you can pick the restaurant with the menu that appeals best to you, and some winery tours.
We checked into our room and headed over to the wine bar for some cocktails to begin our weekend of relaxation. After sipping and chatting, we headed to freshen up before dinner. I choose the Tiara Restaurant at Queens Landing, with a little surprise. We head to the front of the Inn where a horse and carriage awaited us, a surprise for D and he was like ‘oh no you didn’t!’. Part of the reason, I picked dinner at another Inn was so we could enjoy a romantic horse and carriage ride through town, intertwined with the history of the NOTL. It was honestly like living in your own fairytale for part of the evening. Settling in for 5 star dining, overlooking the Niagara river while sipping and savouring local wines. Of course, I will offer my opinion on what to order – start with the tasting of sustainable seafood; Algonquin Corn Polenta, fried pork belly with bouillabaisse sauce along with the Inniskillin Pinot Grigio. Of course, I choose the Ontario Lamb Chop with wild rice and winter squash and chose a glass of the Malivoire Meritage to bring out all the flavour. Since life is short and about treating yourself, I indulged in the scallops as an add-on and shared some with D. The night ended with the chocolate tasting plate; salted caramel chocolate pecan tart, hazelnut mousse, white chocolate truffle, espresso macaron, chocolate dipped molasses caramel with a white chocolate sauce. It was like Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory presented to you on a single plate; chocolate lover’s heaven. I paused and thought since it is a sampling plate it would go seamlessly with a flight of dessert wine; three 1 oz wines to sip while savouring this.
What was on the agenda for the next day? After a farm to table breakfast at the Inn, we headed to the spa to unwind with some pampering. We had a couples massage and lounged around for most of the morning – a nice slow start to the day. For the afternoon, I had another surprise planned which was a California Inspired Wine Tour with a Wine Pairing Dinner Experience. I hadn’t been to Napa yet, so I was thinking this might be the next best thing. We booked with Vintage Wine Tours which is a 6 hour, fully guided tour of three award winning, family owned wineries from hidden gems to large establishments and transportation so you can sip safely. The night ends with dinner at a 4 star heritage designated restaurant in the heart of the old town. You have a private table with a selection of exceptional local cuisine that follows the farm to table philosophy. In addition, a sommelier will include three local wines to match your dinner choices, including of course, a featured icewine for the final course. It’s Niagara after all – the home country of well-crafted icewine.
After breakfast the next morning, we lounged around the outdoor spa before we had to pack up and check out. Not quite ready to call the weekend to an end, we headed to the old downtown area. We walked around, wandering in and out of boutique shops, grabbed some ice cream and finished off with a late lunch/early dinner before heading back home to the city. Another great escape in the books.
