Fair Hill Inn

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  Owners are lovely, detail oriented and execute a serious dining experience. As farm to table as it gets. The staff is well trained and very knowledgeable. Trust the chef to pair your wines and sign up for any wine dinner, prix fix or Sunday Supper. Sit back and enjoy the phenomenal flavors fresh ingredients can offer. Best of the best.

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  Posted on 09.03.13 L B.

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  We have enjoyed a meal at FHI one time prior and it was nicely done.  Excellent selection of wines.  Tonight was Easter dinner and we were seated right away, but waited 20 minutes for a waitress to show. None ever showed.  We went to tell the  hostess and so she waited on us, not knowing what else to do. When she arrived to take our drink order, she informed us of the numerous beers that were out of stock. When it came to the prix fixe dinner menu (choice of 2 appetizers, and choice of 2 dinners) they were out of one of the appetizers (salmon souffle) that was replaced with Rockfish, and the rib eye had now been replaced with London Broil that resembled pot roast. Portions small.  When you send out an email to your customer base with your menu selections, your customers choose to have their holiday dinner based on that menu, not to find it was changed up by 50%.  Poor planning, poor service. Will not be back.

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  Posted on 03.31.13 Cathy K.

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  Living in New England, I didn't think many places south of NJ had historic inn-restaurants with charm, class, and amazing food.  Fair Hill Inn blows away any food I've had at a historic in before.  We had the five course tasting menu and plenty of wine.  The portions were just right and the service was spot on.  Though we live far away, I want to come back to this place time and time again!!  We'll just have to keep visiting our friends who live nearby.

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  Posted on 02.23.13 Alexandra S.

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  Stuck out in the Wilds of Cecil County, it would be understandable if you never made it here. That would be a bloody shame.  From the in house made salumi and cheeses, to the fresh from the  garden veggies and herbs, to the organic game and meats, this really is about as good as it gets.  This is not a cheap place to eat, but I've never walked away feeling like I didn't get what I paid for.  The service is above average, but not exceptional.  The wine selection is phenomenal, and the bartender has a rather extensive selection of cocktails, going back to the 1920's.   Speakeasy nights are a blast.  For most people this will not be an every day place to go. But if you want a real treat, or for a special occasion, put this on your list.

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  Posted on 10.23.12 Kevin D.

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  The Fair Hill Inn is our go-to restaurant when we are looking for an talented bartender, interesting and delicious cheeses and homemade sausage (salumi), a great wine list, and excellent food.  If I could change any thing, it would be to just *tweak* the ambiance a bit toward the cozy side.  Still, my wife and I have become regulars (at 3-4 times a year) in the last few years, and have never been disappointed.
  
  I think the description of the fare as American is about right.  The key to the FHI is that they grow and prepare as much of their food as they can.  In the summer, the greens are all grown on site.  In the winter months - not as much greenery on the plate.  They make all sorts of delicious air-cured sausage, serve local cheeses, and get much of their meat from nearby farms.  The wine list is excellent, and if you liked classic cocktails, you just need to stop reading now and go.  Excellent service and a farmhouse-setting round off a dining experience worthy of a special occasion, anniversary, or just a night away from the kids.
  
  Highly recommended.
  
  Update, 6/18/12:  Had to drop my rating by 1 star because the awesome bartender has moved on.  The food is still excellent, and our waitress did a good job making the cocktails we ordered during our most recent visit, but it is not the same experience unfortunately.
  
  Update, 3/23/13:  Despite the lack of a full-time bartender, the waitstaff take their classic cocktails seriously.  I haven't yet asked for anything they didn't know how to make.  Unlike most places, where they have never heard of a Sidecar, Vesper, or Negroni.  Here, you won't find 10 "martinis" that are really just dessert in disguise.  Back to 5 stars!

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  Posted on 04.18.12 Rick B.

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  My husband and I had a truly lovely meal here.  Our waiter was not polished but sincere and attentive.  My one complaint was that our meal took TOO long.  I usually like a leisurely meal but we sat at 8:00 and didn't leave until close to 11 (and I had to ask them to hurry our dessert).  There was too much time between our courses and since we had done the tasting menu paired with wine, it was odd that our wine came out a good 10 minutes before the food--not exactly a "wine pairing."  Other people have told me that this was not their experience so I'm hoping it was an odd glitch because otherwise we really did have a very, very nice meal.

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  Posted on 02.26.12 Hannah K.

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  Ditto to the previous reviewer. I can't believe this place only has 1 review - the 2nd is on the way...
  The food is plain amazing, the resto is definitely a special occasion place. We went with their 5-course dinner with a wine pairing option. The pace (it took 3.5 hours for our group of 4 people to get though it), the portions and wine amount were just right. At first I wished that we had a little more food on the plates and more wine in our glasses but at the end of the evening I realized that I was neither super full nor drunk so the menu planning turned out to be genius.
  For my selection I had a salad, lobster/cauliflower souffle (super!), fois gras, antipasti and a grilled boar chop. Everything was extraordinary good. I did enjoy wine selection as well. Italian white that was served with a salad wasn't anything to write home about, the same with Merlot that was offered with the main course (boar), but the other three wines were great (I think it was South African Chenin Blanc with lobster, Alsatian Gewur with fois gras and some Italian red with antipasti).
  The location amused me, it's literally in the middle of the nowhere. We had to cross over 2 state lines to get there but it was definitely worth an hour and 15 min drive. Wish they were closer to us but we will be back.

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  Posted on 02.26.12 Olga M.

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  Could it really be that nobody has yet submitted a Yelp review for this fine dining establishment here in northeast Maryland?  I have been to the Fair Hill Inn perhaps a dozen times over the past ten years, (most recently in attendance at a catered dinner this past week) and have been repeatedly impressed by the ambiance of simple elegance and the creative menu that never fails to dazzle and amaze the most sophisticated palette!
  
  This time, my appetizer was a sort of lobster-cake in a (spinach?) cream sauce, followed by the beef entrée in two cuts, each perfectly tender and flavorful. Excellent though it was, I think I was even more taken of my wife's salmon; amazingly moist and of a melt in your mouth consistency.
  
  Located in an old farmhouse in the booming metropolis of Fair Hill Maryland (translate: a stoplight, gas station, and video store) there are several different dining areas in the various downstairs rooms, with a long bar center-stage that looks to be amazingly well stocked.  We have yet to do one of their wine flight dinners, but the wine list is impressive and lengthy.  This is definitely a $$$$ establishment, and most definitely NOT a BYOB, which elevates it on our scale to a 'special occasion' kind of place.  Much quieter than so many commercial eateries these days, the calm ambiance lends itself well to special gatherings where conversation and conviviality are the top priorities.

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  Posted on 01.22.12 Paul H.

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