Comments (0) Best Weekend Getaway - 2009
The Creamery Restaurant and Inn
A great weekend getaway should give you plenty of options. It should promise recreation as well as relaxation. It should be casual enough that you can pack lightly, but classy enough to inspire romance. And it should be distant enough to feel like an escape but near enough that you don't spend half a day just getting there. That's what makes the Creamery such an ideal getaway. Less than an hour and a half east, in the tiny hamlet of Downsville, Wisconsin, it's an unpretentious, single-story inn that hits the perfect sweet spot between rustic and refined. Its 12 rooms sit above the impossibly scenic Red Cedar State Trail, an unpaved biking and hiking path that joins more than 30 miles of trails along burbling rivers and through lush farmland. You can rent bikes at the hotel or canoes and tubes in nearby Menomonie—and don't forget pack a lunch of organic salads, panini sandwiches, or gourmet pizzas from the inn's Brickhouse Cafe. Evenings are set aside for romance and relaxation. The Creamery's elegant restaurant serves largely organic foods raised on nearby farms. Entrées (generally $12 to $24) might include Hoisin-barbecued duck confit or chardonnay-braised lamb shoulder, with plenty of vegetarian options. After dinner, retire to your comfortable rooms ($175 a night Friday and Saturday; $160 the rest of the week), which new owners Terry and Paula Vajgrt have redone in the last year with king-size beds and organic bedding. The double-size whirlpool baths will help restore your aching muscles from the bike ride. When it's finally time to head home, stop by Legacy Chocolates in Menomonie for one last indulgence.
