Local bounty is showcased in a new venue at Litchfield county’s Mayflower Inn & Spa. A newly opened restaurant, the Garden Room, features the inventive regionally sourced cuisine of chef Luke Dowdy. Invited to sample a meal, I hesitated—wary of spa fare which too often strikes me as tastelessly righteous—but the Garden Room menu is full of delightful surprises.
A family was toasting marshmallows outside on the terrace, and guests at the popular Tap Room were suppering on Mayflower burgers and crab fritters as I proceeded to the Garden Room with its banquettes and tables arranged under a cluster of hurricane lights and windows showcasing views of the spacious manicured lawns.
Chef Dowdy, a native of Virginia with farm to table experience, is also a veteran of the restaurant kitchens of Thomas Keller and Jean-Georges. Dowdy and his family came to northwest Connecticut about a year ago and he has been devising dishes based on regional ingredients. “I like to draw inspiration from what’s around locally – what people in New England like to eat. I cater to that mentality, I cook for the guests.”
Among the regular beverages on the bar menu, featured cocktails are based on teas. The “Afternoon Stroll,” a concoction of green tea enhanced with Grey Goose vodka, sake, and topped with a cucumber slice was a refreshing take on a vodka-tonic.
From the starter menu, the Potato Gnocci with pesto, morels, and spring vegetables was tempting, but I ordered the lighter Citrus Caprese Salad. Two rounds of Lioni Burrata were nestled on slices of grapefruit, blood and cara cara oranges, dusted with mint and pistachios. An unexpected treat was the creamy, oozy burrata, a contrast to the bland hunks of white cheese too commonly encountered.
Served with mint chutney and vegetables on a bed of au jus, the main course lamb chops were so delicious I found myself licking the garlic-rosemary-thyme marinade right off the bones.
Deliciously decorative slices of black truffle adorned the pan seared scallops, served with herb risotto, preserved lemon agro dolce.
Black sea bass, perfectly roasted, was sprinkled with pine nuts and served with roasted fennel in a saffron broth enhanced with tomatoes and lemongrass for an herbaceous feel.
And, the delightful dessert was based on a vegetable!! Paired beside a globe of chocolate mousse was a perfect pink mousse sphere of raspberry—and beet!!—creamy, smooth and satisfyingly delicious. A perfect French press carafe of Mayflower blend coffee concluded the meal before I went up to bed fulfilled and content.
Dining is only one aspect of the Mayflower’s quietly exclusive hospitality. Guest rooms, no-two-alike are individually decorated in tasteful traditional décor. Lounge rooms for relaxing are scattered around the premises, most with cozy burning fires. The daily schedule lists parlor games and crafts, there are fitness facilities, and the Retreat offers a full range of spa treatments, body work, facials, acupuncture. A pool, summer tennis court, hiking trails on the Inn’s 58 woody acres all offer the potential to build up – or work off – an appetite for the inventive local cuisine.
