|
Katherine Dyson News Article
This Valentine's Day and beyond, these
fabulous gems are sure to please the most
discriminating Valentine
AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- As
Valentine's Day approaches,
BedandBreakfast.com editors share their
secrets about the best undiscovered Inns for
celebrating romance. While a Valentine's
getaway to any B&B is a
treat, these Inns promise special memories
enhanced by quality amenities, distinctive
decor, and superior hospitality. Most have
made the list because their location is
equally special and undiscovered. Each
recommended Inn has been visited by
well-known travel writer and BedandBreakfast.com editor Sandy Soule, or a
member of her editorial team. There is no
fee or membership requirement of any kind
for inclusion in this list, just the ability
to provide unparalleled romantic getaways.
Take it from the editors of
BedandBreakfast.com - the most comprehensive
online B&B directory and reservation network
worldwide - these undiscovered gems promise
romance year-round and are sure bets for
this Valentine's Day.
NORTHEAST
Copper Beech Inn, Ivoryton, CT
Emerson Inn by the Sea, Rockport, MA
York Harbor Inn, York Harbor, ME
Sea Crest by the Sea, Spring Lake, NJ
Fox 'n' Hound, Saratoga Springs, NY
Inn at Bowman's Hill, New Hope, PA
Stone Hill Inn, Stowe, VT
Marlena
Sacca Serves up a Bountiful B&B Breakfast
By Katharine Dyson
One of the best parts of
staying at a Bed and Breakfast is the
breakfast part. At a recent stay at the Fox
‘n’ Hound B&B in Saratoga Springs, NY, I
found myself sitting across the dining table
in the large Victorian-style dining room
from an executive from Westport. He told me
he stays there often, finding it both
comfortable and convenient as well as a good
change from the “infinite variety” of chain
hotels. He also touted the breakfast.
“Wait until she brings
it in,” he said. “It’s different every
time.”
Almost on cue, Marlena
Sacca brought in the first course, placing
the fruit cups in front of us with a big
smile. O.K. I thought, it’s a fruit cup. But
one taste and I knew this was not your same
old, same old.
“What did you put in
this,” I asked.
She smiled. “I have a
little secret. I use just a bit of vanilla,”
she said. “I used to use cointreau or some
other liqueur, but not everyone wants this,
so I use vanilla.” I made a mental note to
remember this trick.
Soon she brought out the
main course, an herb and cheese frittata
topped with homemade salsa and served with
freshly baked banana bread which had sent my
taste buds soaring the past evening as the
baking bread’s fragrant smell curled the
grand oak staircase, turned the corner, and
slid under my door on the second floor.
Later that morning, I
would learn that Marlena, owner and
Innkeeper of the Fox ‘n’ Hound has worn a
lot of hats since she came here from her
native Romania in 1964: music manager, piano
teacher, herb farmer, vinegar maker, teacher
at the Culinary Institute, and currently,
Innkeeper.
Even before you dive
into a mouth-watering omelet or homemade
muffin, you know Marlena knows her way
around the kitchen. Anyone who has a
floor-to-ceiling bookcase jam-packed with
cookbooks, a serious stainless steel jumbo
stove, a barrel of homemade herb vinegar,
jars and jars of spices, and a culinary
garden planted with things like chives,
sage, oregano, and basil must certainly
enjoy culinary pursuits.
So not surprisingly she
tells me, “Cooking has been my big passion.”
It all started when
Marlena decided to pursue her dreams. With
her children grown, she moved to upstate New
York where she bought some property and
started to develop an herb and vegetable
farm near Rhinebeck growing culinary,
medicinal, and scented herbs. “I was just
fulfilling all my fantasies, she said. In
her search for unusual herbs, Marlena
discovered Caprilands Herb Farm in Coventry,
Connecticut where the owner, Adelma Grenier
Simmons (now deceased) took Marlena under
her wing.
I remember my first trip
to Caprilands and a colorful encounter with
Ms. Simmons about 15 years ago. Ms. Simmons,
a vivid character who typically swooped
around the property wearing a cape and was
of an undetermined older age, exuded a
bountiful zest for life and her gardens. I
recall having lunch there, eating at a
table, actually the top of a vintage treadle
sewing machine, in one of the rustic rooms
in her antique house set amidst the gardens.
She served a fantastic cucumber soup and a
minted tea expertly flavored, as all her
food was, with her own herbs.
Marlena says, “When I
told her (Ms. Simmons) that I wanted to
start an herb farm, she was very excited.
She took me all around her gardens, told me
her life story and how she started her farm.
She gave me some of the books she had
written as well as clippings from
hard-to-find herbs and artemesias. She was
so supportive.”
Marlena’s gardens
expanded and thrived, growing to the point
where she was pretty self-sufficient. She
had about 400 kinds of herbs including
different tansies, wormwoods, flax, and
vegetables. “I love sages and had about
eight different kinds, as many as I could
get,” she says
Then Marlena started to
make herbal vinegars and sold them at the
farmer’s markets, eventually taking them
down to the Culinary Institute of America in
Hyde Park, NY for the chefs to use. This led
to her enrolling as a student at the
Institute and after she graduated, they
asked her to stay on and teach which she did
from 1994 to 1997.
Still she had always
wanted to own a B&B, so she sold her farm
and moved to Hopklin in the wine region of
Mendocito, California, where she purchased
the 21-room Thatcher Inn (circa 1890), one
of first hotels to be built in the area. She
also had a 75-seat restaurant. “It was
wonderful,” she said. “I did that for five
years but wanted to come back east as my son
and daughter lived in Massachusetts.”
Marlena arrived back
east in 2001, purchasing the three-story Fox
‘n’ Hound with its five spacious bedrooms,
massive oak paneling, wrap-around porch,
outdoor pool and gardens. Since then she has
been off and running.
“Running a B&B is hard
work,” she admits. “It’s not for the faint
of heart but it allows you to put together
all the interests that you have. You have to
like people and want to make them happy.
You give a lot yet you receive a lot as you
meet fascinating people and develop a
certain rapport with them. Perhaps it won’t
be a lifelong friendship but for a couple of
days or years it enriches your life.
Conversations can start with food then
progress to travel, politics and world
events.”
As we were talking the
phone rang and she took off sprinting across
the lounge. “I always do that,” she later
told me proving that she certainly has the
energy to do the job. And she obviously
loves what she is doing. Like cooking where
she feels strongly about what you should
eat.
“My philosophy is that
you can cook healthier without sacrificing
flavor. The main thing is to use spices and
herbs in place of fats and sweets,” she
said. Believing in eating lots of vegetables
and fresh fruits, she says, ”I go to the
market every morning and buy what is in
season. If squash is in season, I buy squash
and make a frittata using squash. I might
put some cheese in there but not the heavy
cheeses. I use cottage cheese.
“I make a lot of
frittatas using vegetables and I make my own
salsas. I love to use peppers and often use
green and red peppers combined with onions
and herbs for my salsas which I serve with
the egg dishes.”
She adds, “We use way
too much sugar in this country. I use stevia
a lot in place of sugar.”
Although she is now
preparing only breakfasts on a regular
basis, she also enjoys catering functions
for up to 50 people for events such as
anniversaries, showers and meetings. And she
says, “If my guests let me know ahead of
time that they would like to have dInner
here, I can do that. I love to do that.”
As for her spices,
Marlena buys the more unusual kinds such as
powdered sumac from Kalustyan's in
Manhattan. I raised an eyebrow at the
mention of sumac but was assured this was
the non-poisonous variety and imparted a
terrific flavor to foods.
The Fox ‘n’ Hound, an
imposing Victorian home with five large
guest rooms (all with private baths) sits on
a corner within walking distance of
Saratoga’s main street, Broadway. The Fox
‘n’ Hound has an array of amenities business
travelers value such as direct-dial phones,
TVs, data ports, and fax access. At the end
of the day (or any time of day for that
matter), you can sit on the wrap-around
porch and watch the world go by or you can
lounge by the pool which is tucked into
gardens on one side of the house. “I want
to plant fragrant herbs around the pool,
especially lavenders. They do very well
here,” says Marlena. “ I am also looking for
a certain fragrant artemisia. It’s very hard
to find but I’ll find it.”
Marlena who is regional
director of the Empire State Bed & Breakfast
Association, is now putting together their
annual conference.
For more information contact Fox ‘n’ Hound
866-FOX-1913;
www.foxnhoundbandb.com (Rates: from $95)
Back to the top
|
