Nemacolin offers the most extensive line-up of dining options in this group of Great Resorts. On the casual side, The Tavern is a popular English style pub serving lunch and dinner year round. Great beer selection, TV’s and pool tables and you can dine in the bar or an indoor sidewalk cafe around a free standing aquarium. Cut above the normal pub food. Try the double crunch homemade potato chips, the chili, the black and blue chicken or steak salad (blackened chicken or steak with sweet blu cheese dressing) and the grilled chicken fontina with proscuitto, tomato, lettuce, parsley caper aioli on ciabatta.
The Wildside is also open daily and year round and is part of the entertainment emporium featuring 8 lanes of bowling, an indoor climbing wall, 65+ arcade games, pool tables and more. Pizza, burgers, 20 variety of wings and 16 draft beers. Also the only custom blended ice cream shop in the region.
P.J.”s is a 1950’s style ice cream, pizza parlor and deli located next to Kidz Klub. Pizzas, salads, sandwiches and old-fashioned ice cream floats. Kids will love this.
Elements, located at the Spa, offers healthy fare like smoothies, wraps and salads and is open Wednesday-Sunday. Orville’s is located at the Shooting Academy and open depending on how busy the Academy is that particular day. The Hungry Moose Cafe, the Gazebo (Links Golf Course), Mulligan’s (Mystic Rock Golf Course), Amber (Mystic Rock lobby), and Paradise Pool are seasonal and all offer casual menus.
On the fine dining side, Autumn, located in the Lodge, offers delicious Italian fare in a rustic dining room with peach walls, a colorful patterned carpet, large gold framed artwork and tres ceilings. The feel is reminiscent of a Tuscan trattoria. Open year round and every day for breakfast and dinner. The menu changes seasonally, but the delicious Autumn’s meatballs are always available as an appetizer and shouldn’t be missed. We also enjoyed a baked mozzarella tart as an appetizer; an herb shell filled with fresh mozzarella, fresh arugula and served with a tomato sauce. Our pasta course was wild mushroom and ricotta ravioli with a fresh spinach pasta and a whole grain mustard sauce. Entrees were a wonderful veal osso bucco served with potato and herb gnocchi and a delicious polenta crusted salmon with wild mushrooms, fava beans and spring garlic. Dessert was a tasty vanilla panna cotta served with strawberry compote with a basil drizzle.Good wine list, although a little expensive. 28 by the glass at $9-$25. Only a sprinkling of reds under $90. Appetizers $8-$16, pastas, $12-$16, entrees, $26-$35. Dress is resort casual.
The seasonally (April-November) available Aqueous, a AAA Four Diamond award winner, is a marvelous steakhouse set in a room with comfortable booths and tables that take full advantage of the with spectacular views of the Mystic Rock golf course. This restaurant has everything you would expect from a good steakhouse but with some interesting twists to it. The shrimp “cocktail” is actually a spicy gazpacho with croutons and balsamic, lobster bisque is served in a puff pastry and the traditional iceberg lettuce salad is served with beets, pickled red onion and marinated tomatoes. Dry aged steaks are wonderful and served with choice of sauces; classic bernaise, brandy-green peppercorn, roasted hot pepper, bordelaise, bleu cheese butter or my favorite, a house made steak sauce. Sauteed mushrooms and caramelized sweet onions and creamed spinach were delicious sides. Dessert was a sampling of house made ice creams (4) and a wonderful creme brulee served with house made blueberry ice cream. Good wine list with some interesting choices. Appetizers-$9-$19, entrees-$26-$44. Dress is resort casual.
The shining star of the group, however, is the AAA Five Diamond, Lautrec, an elegant gem with a French flavor that will be one of the highlights of your visit. Plan to spend your entire evening here and it will be one you will not soon forget. The comfortable dining room is a circular space with wood paneled walls, wine racks, red/burgundy carpets and chair fabrics and recessed lighting. Tables and banquettes are set with crisp linens, gleaming tableware and fresh flowers.
I usually leave pricing to the end because while important to note, it has little bearing on the experience. Here it is important to highlight right up front. Four courses are available for $98. A tasting menu is $115, with wine pairings $185. The Grand Tasting is $135, paired with wine is $245. The ultimate experience, which we enjoyed, is the Grand Tasting with the Sommelier’s Grand Pairings at $295. This is an extravaganza for the senses with some 13 courses paired with absolutely amazing wines. It is expensive, but I can assure you it is worth every penny.
There are too many courses to go through them all but the menu included caviar, scallops, sweetbreads, lamb, Wagyu beef and foie gras among others. The wines included Champagne, Sancerre, Riesling, Santenay, Chateaunuef-du-Pape, Barbaresco and more. Service was impeccable with at least three servers working our table at all times. The Sommelier, Terry Sekura, was very knowledgeable, explained each of his selections and clearly enjoyed being able to select each of our wines from his cellar. It was an astounding experience.
If you opt for the 4 course meal or the Tasting Menu, you won’t want to miss the wine or beer pairings with cheese as a dessert course. Here’s a sampling; Abbaye de Belloc & Cabernet Sauvignon, “This pairing reads like a romance novel: the sweet yet complex lady meets the brawny, intense gent, and the two of them together are a beautiful force of nature! The undeniably delicious Abbaye is a natural match for a big, beefy red and Cabernet Sauvignon fits the bill to a tee.” Or, Epoisses & Guinness, “Two heavyweights make a fitting pairing: the creamy texture of Guinness along with its notes of chocolate and coffee bring out the sweetness of this complex and captivating washed-rind cheese. The weighty palate of both the beer and the cheese match each other beautifully!”