Fearrington House is ringing in the New Year with a number of projects designed to improve the guest experience.  Here’s a sneak peak at our first completion: a handsome new upstairs reception space at the Restaurant.

If you’ve dined upstairs, it’s probably been in RB’s Office, a large room seating up to 20 people with windows on three sides. To get there, you’ve passed through a cozy upstairs landing area and may have seen another dining room to your left. While RB’s Office gets positive reviews, the small size and low ceiling height of the other rooms in this former farm house, made them a bit unappealing. More...

Last week new artwork showed up on the walls at the Granary, and it’s definitely worth a look. Local artist Delia Ware Keefe has installed a collection called “Fossilized Layers,” a soothing, calming assemblage of  hand-pulled prints inspired by shapes and forms found in nature.

Says Delia, “I begin making my art by studying the shapes, textures, and forms of organic objects which I have collected over many years. Land and sea, trees, water, birds’ eggs, nests, shells, sticks, leaves, blossoms, webs, stones, insects, fossils, and bones inspire me to draw, paint, and print. Through studying their unique forms I develop designs and abstractions.” The results are beautifully layered imagery, mixing the boundaries between the real and abstract. 

Delia earned her BA in studio art and art history at Emmanuel College, Boston, MA, and studied graduate printmaking at Ohio University, Athens, Ohio and here at UNC.

Look for Delia’s prints in the mezzanine level in the Granary (down a half flight of steps). Come take a peak next time you’re here for lunch or dinner.

Fearrington is full of residents who volunteer their time for worthy causes inside and outside its boundaries. One of the most visible, and demanding, such jobs is President of the Fearrington Homeowners Association. The FHA is tasked with enforcing bylaws and rules, managing common property and in general protecting property values and public safety.

Fearrington is a planned unit development – one of the first in North Carolina – of nearly 1,200 homes. Some homes are single family while others are townhouses. Some neighborhoods have maintenance plans managed by sub-associations, while others have no maintenance plans. That diversity is an asset in that residents can stay at Fearrington, and keep their friendships, clubs, membership at the Duke Center for Living, etc., as their needs change. The FHA orchestrates all these moving parts.

Recently David Erisman assumed role as FHA's President.  Originally a native of Delaware, David is a die-hard Carolina fan (he received both his undergraduate and law degrees from UNC). Learn more about David, and the role of the FHA, here.  Congratulations to David on his new assignment!

Frequent diners at The Fearrington House Restaurant know the affable and attentive Dutch-born maitre d’, Joris Haarhuis. Joris just celebrated his 20th anniversary at Fearrington House – a pretty amazing feat, and just about a miracle in the hospitality world! I sat down with Joris to learn more about his time here and here’s what he said.

“I went to the hotel school in The Hague. To complete your degree, you need to do an overseas internship. At the time, my brother Bart was the food and beverage director at The Siena Hotel [in Chapel Hill] and he introduced me to Fearrington.  I came here originally for only six months, and I did everything – cooked breakfast, carried bags, bused at the Restaurant, did turndown service – wherever I was needed. I stayed for a year and a half because I liked it so much. Then I went back home and graduated. A few months later [proprietor] R.B. [Fitch] called and asked if I wanted to come back. I said yes.”

After a few years at the Inn, Joris moved to the Restaurant, in his present capacity as maitre d’. Within a year, the Restaurant received its first ever AAA Five Diamond award, an honor it's held now for 17 consecutive years. We believe it's no coincidence! More...

Whether you're a kid or adult, PumpkinFest at Fearrington always seems to attract the same high level of curiosity and fascination. And, like clockwork, it's back again this year - this upcoming weekend in fact. Learn more details about the event here. For us, PumpkinFest has already started. The gardeners have made two trips to a local farmer's fields - the first to hand select the 60 large gourds that will on display, and then yesterday to pick them up. And those objects are heavy!

For weeks the gardeners have been reminating about the sorts of designs and carvings they, along with the talented chefs from the Fearrington House Restaurant, will create. Then Friday is the day they all assemble and carve, carve, carve. Carving any sooner means the pumpkin flesh has more time to dry out and sag. It's a carefully orchestrated event.

We hope you'll stroll around the Village Center this weekend and enjoy the scenery - there's live bluegrass, grilling at the beer garden, ghoulish treats at The Belted Goat, spooky story time at McIntyre's Books, and much more. Check the schedule out for full details.

The Fearrington Granary, one of the Triangle’s most popular lunch and brunch restaurants, announces a significant expansion of the restaurant. Changes include a diverse and exceptionally delicious bar and grill menu; an expansive community bar area; and evening hours starting today! Details include:

• Evening service Mondays through Saturdays; lunch hours now 7 days a week;
• A dinner menu designed by Executive Chef Colin Bedford emphasizing Grilled Steaks, Pork Chops, Smoked Chicken and Fresh Fish, with the choice of 6 house-made Sauces; 12 small plates (from Deviled Eggs to Truffled Parmesan French Fries to Roasted Beef Tips w/Madeira Sauce); 10 salads (including The Wedge, Shaved Fennel and Grilled Flank Steak Salads or Grilled Chicken Salads); 7 sandwiches (Pulled-Pork Sliders to a magnificent Croque Monsieur); and 7 House-made Desserts (including the mini Beltie Ice Cream Sandwich and Chocolate Banana Pudding with Caramel Ice Cream).
• Wines and draft beers selected by Max Kast, the Fearrington House Sommelier, offer a range in price, from $4 pints and $5 glasses.
• A full service bar created by noted Chapel Hill designer John Lindsey. More...