The Gardens

Our Saturday adventures often provide a wardrobe challenge for me. For example, what should I wear if we are going to an antique European Car Show held on a golf course with daytime temperatures of more than eighty degrees, full sun, and high humidity followed by dinner in an elegant restaurant?

This past Saturday, we traveled to Lake Lure in North Carolina to attend a car show and enjoy dinner at The Gardens. This area was the setting for the filming of many movies including “Dirty Dancing” and “The Last of The Mohicans.”

We stopped along the way to tour the new Burntshirt Chimney Rock Tasting Room and Bistro. Last year, we enjoyed a visit to their Winery located near their two estate vineyards in Henderson County.

Rumbling Bald Resort located along the north shore of beautiful Lake Lure, is surrounded by the towering cliffs of Rumbling Bald Mountain. This more than three thousand acre property is home to a private white sand beach, children’s water park, distinct dining experiences, and numerous hiking and biking trails, swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, and a Spa. Our first visit to the resort was this past weekend, but it certainly won’t be our last.

The Gardens is a delightful restaurant located across from the registration office. We are planning to return to dine at The Garden when they reopen next spring. We were there for their final evening of the season.

We shared fresh bread with olive oil and spices for dipping.

Mr. Mickey ordered a salad with corn and blueberries.

We shared the delicious Naan bread with dips. The dips included roasted red pepper hummus, Baba ghanoush, and Carrot Puree with coconut and cashews. (Hummus is a bean dip, Baba ghanoush is an eggplant dip.)

I couldn’t resist the pasta, made in their kitchen earlier in the day. We also shared this fabulous dish.

My adventure partner, ordered his usual choice, wild-caught salmon. We shared the decadent Chocolate and Macadamia Nut Semifreddo shown below. (The principal ingredients are usually eggs, sugar and cream. Semifreddo has the texture of frozen mousse.)

I often get questions about how I stay in shape while eating out so often. In truth, we eat out only once or twice per week. When Mr. Mickey and I are together, we always share dishes. I never eat all the food served to me in restaurants. While I may occasionally enjoy a few bites of dessert or pasta with rich, creamy sauces and chunks of crusty bread, these are not my usual food choices.

Both the afternoon temperatures and the humidity were high, so I wore the coolest garment I own. It is a straight simple crepe tank dress. It was much too hot to wear a jacket or even a shrug, so I wore a fifty-one-inch square silk scarf as a kimono. Here’s how to achieve this look. Lay the scarf face down on a flat surface. Tie the top left corner to the bottom left corner. Repeat on the right side. Slip your arms through the resulting “sleeves” and adjust the scarf on your shoulders. The cute Sade Mini bag is from F&W Style here. The look was appropriate for all the events of our day and evening.