At the Holladay House, we are particularly fond of finding comfort. We keep our rooms stocked with plush blankets, soft rugs, and big pillows to ensure our guests are not far from something warm and cozy. Especially during Snuggle Season, our lovely take on the colder months of the year, we prioritize comfort in all aspects of life, including food.
Although we do make breakfast favorites our guests love, a stay at the Holladay House offers you the chance to have comfort food for other meals from our amazing nearby restaurants. Here are our top-10 comfort foods, both in and outside the inn, but tell us yours in the comments of this post – we love new ideas!
1. Homemade Biscuits: If you grew up in the South (or wish you did), then you know there is nothing better than a warm buttermilk biscuit. While they are delish at every meal, and even as a snack, we love them most in the morning. Spend a leisurely Sunday morning pretending you’re enjoying breakfast at the Holladay House with our made from scratch biscuit recipe.
2. Crepes: Do you ever dream about walking along the Seine and devouring a warm crepe in Paris? To some, whisking thoughts and palates to a far-away place would be the perfect comfort after a busy day. If you visit the Holladay House, one of your breakfast items could be our homemade spiced elderberry and vanilla crème crepes. If you’re desperate for crepes before your next visit to the Holladay House, this recipe looks like a fun option! Pro tip: This book is our crepe-making bible and for breakfast, we love to make the crepes thicker for a heartier meal, as well as taking extra care to brown them to develop the flavor.
3. French Toast: When guests think back on their visit to the Holladay House, (or write their reviews online) they often rave about our Crème Brulee French toast. Yep, you read that right. What better comfort food than one that will satisfy your stomach and your sweet tooth simultaneously? A specialty breakfast item here at the Holladay House, it’s nearly impossible to have a bad day when you enjoy this for breakfast. The recipe, which is one of our most-requested, will convert even the most anti-sweet breakfast aficionados!
4. Homemade Soup: We know making mom’s homemade chicken soup isn’t always an option on those really busy days, but we love this list of 30 delicious soups ready in just 30 minutes. A great cup of soup is one way to bring a little more Hygge into your life when you want to feel extra comfy and cozy.
5. Cake: We absolutely love weddings at the Holladay House and a wedding with cake is the “cherry on top of the sundae” for such a special occasion. Although cake is celebratory, it’s also comforting because we have become accustomed to enjoying it during all of our major milestones. Our guests, and especially our wedding couples, have the privilege of indulging in JB Cakes. In fact, they have a new retail location so you can grab a sweet treat while you’re exploring. In the meantime, regardless of whether or not you have a reason to celebrate, there’s nothing stopping you from eating something like this two-step pound cake from Southern Living.
6. Mac n’ Cheese: Another Southern specialty and for good reason. It’s hard to understand why a bowl of cheese and noodles can make you so happy, but some things need no explanation. When you visit Orange, there is no shortage of comfort food, including mac n’ cheese like the renowned recipe served at BBQExchange. You can also find mac n’ cheese served at The Light Well for lunch or dinner, but if you’re up for a more adventurous take on the classic, try Forked on Main when you visit.
7. Chicken Pot Pie: Protein, veggies, carbs and cream. It’s obvious why chicken pot pie is a contender for comfort food. This option looks like the perfect one if you’re looking to spend a little time having fun in the kitchen or trying to use up some scraps in your fridge.
8. Pizza: Sometimes the days we crave comfort food the most are the days when we are totally depleted and the last thing we feel like doing is cooking. Pizza is almost always the cure. You don’t need to be at home on your couch to enjoy pizza, either. When you stay with us you can enjoy delicious pizza at Fabio’s in nearby Gordonsville, brick oven pizza at the new Iron Pipe Alewerks, or in the privacy of your room from Mario’s.
9. Homemade Jam: We are clearly biased towards one meal at the Holladay House, breakfast. But our guests love our jam in the morning on their biscuits, for lunch on apple and brie sandwiches, and on their charcuterie boards at night. Although you can learn to make it yourself when you visit, you can also just buy some to bring home with you. We love elderberry jam, but highly recommend the spiced blueberry jam and roasted garlic jam you can find at Honah Lee Vineyards. Or the Confederate jelly and Yankee jelly at Darnell’s Garden Patch.
10. Cookies: Fresh cookies should be a love language and at the Holladay House, it is one. Our guests frequently breeze past us when they arrive just to grab a cookie before saying hello – that’s how good ours are! We always have the Holladay House stocked with our fresh homemade, secret-recipe chocolate chip cookies so that you never have to resist a craving. We know for a fact that guests return solely for the cookies which makes us so happy. Plus, calories don’t count on vacation, didn’t you know that?
We know that taking a break, finding comfort, and slowing down at home can seem impossible, so we’d love to host you for a night or two. Not only can you find comfort within the Holladay House, but there are dozens of great places nearby that will make sure your comfort food cravings are satisfied.
