North Terrace Room Remodel

During the past several weeks, one of our guest rooms, the North Terrace Room, has been getting a little work done, a nip here, a tuck there, a facelift if you will. Here are the first three installments of our video diary on the North Terrace Room remodel. Enjoy! Work will continue in March and the room is scheduled to be back open for reservations in time for Mother Nature's Spring debut in the mountains of North Carolina.

Free Guided Hikes at Chimney Rock in March

Spring is quickly approaching in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and what better time to take a hike through some gorgeous green scenery to a wonderful waterfall? Every Saturday in March, Chimney Rock Park is offering guided hikes to Hickory Nut Falls, a 404-foot waterfall inside the state park that cascades down a huge granite face. Here's the base of the falls:

During the hike along the Hickory Nut Falls Trail {or the Four Seasons Trail if the Hickory Nut Falls Trail is closed for any reason}, you'll see the mountains waking up from their winter's rest -- Chimney Rock Park is one of the best places to see wildflowers in our area. And the park is located just 30 minutes south of the Inn on Mill Creek.

Even better, these guided hikes are at no cost beyond admission to the park, and admission is currently discounted while capital improvements are underway to improve the park (please note, the Chimney is scheduled to reopen in April).

Spring Hints

Our favorite season, Spring, is less than a month away! This time of year, Mother Nature usually gives us little hints here and there that wintertime is waning, and she came through once again. Enjoy these photos taken at the Inn on Mill Creek this week {and visit our Bed & Breakfast Facebook Page for more}:

Dine To Be Kind is February 28

It's time for the annual Dine to be Kind event, where local restaurants partner with the Animal Compassion Network (ACN), offering a portion of restaurant proceeds to help support ACN's spay/neuter program and other life saving initiatives. This is Dine to be Kind's ninth year, and the event is part of ACN's mission: "to help end the euthanasia of healthy, adoptable pets in our community by finding lifelong, stable and loving homes for companion animals in need; by offering assistance to the community’s pets to help ensure their well-being and to keep them in their homes; by advocating for animal welfare; and by educating the public about the contributions companion animals make to happy families and healthy communities."

Participating restaurants include two in Black Mountain -- The Madison and Morning Glory Cafe -- both of which are a very short distance from our Bed & Breakfast. At least 50 Asheville area restaurants are part of Dine to be Kind, so if you're in our neck of the woods on Tuesday, February 28, you'll have the opportunity to help out with a great cause and get a great meal!

See more details at http://www.animalcompassionnetwork.org/.

2012 Asheville Small Plate Crawl

Let's talk food, because, well, lately we've been loving conversations about food. It could be that Brigette is deep in the pages of Ruth Reichl's foodie coming-of-age novel, Tender at the Bone. It could be that we are happily reminded every day that we live in the mountains of Western North Carolina, where local food reigns and local farmers are loved.

So let's talk food. And small plate menus. And Foodtopia, othewise known as Asheville, North Carolina {just 20-25 minutes from the Inn on Mill Creek}. Mix those all together and you have the perfect recipe for the Asheville Small Plate Crawl, which takes place February 21-23.

Presented by the Asheville Independent Restaurant Association and the Carolina Epicurean, the Asheville Small Plate Crawl gives you the chance to sample culinary specialties from Asheville's independent restaurants, without breaking your budget and without having to pick just one of our area's fabulous dining destinations. Win-win!

A delicious screencap from the Asheville Small Plate Crawl website showing just a few of the participating restaurants

All participating restaurants will be offering their small plate menus ($3-$8) all three days of the Crawl, during the same block of time -- 11:30am-9pm, 11:30am-3:00pm, or 5:00pm-9pm.

A perusal of restaurants in the Asheville Small Plate Crawl finds many of our guests' favorites: Bistro 1896, Blue Water Seafood Co., Corner Kitchen, French Broad Chocolate Lounge, Lexington Avenue Brewery, Lobster Trap, Mela, Tupelo Honey Cafe, and many more.

See the whole mouthwatering list of restaurants and their menus, plus more details at http://ashevillesmallplatecrawl.com.