Six of us had a scrumptious dinner at the Village Inn last night. We had the famous duck entree and it was delicious! With cocktails before dinner, cozy rooms in which to spend the night, and pastries and coffee this morning, we could not have had a nicer visit. Kate is a wonderful host and the ambience there is New England Inn at its best. I highly recommend it.
Sarah Catherman
I've had my eye on this restaurant for quite some time, but having two young children doesn't allow us much opportunity to try new places as a couple. Well, tonight we had a babysitter and I saw that the Village had fondue night. What an awesome experience! From the super friendly woman who answered the phone when I called to make reservations, to the complimentary desert, to the cozy atmosphere and everything in between, I was so impressed. I cannot wait to bring my sister back for another fondue night. Highly recommend!!
Service: 5
Michaela
Horrible, horrible, horrible!!!! We went to celebrate my 51st birthday with my family, there were 10 of us. We started with two appetizers. The pigs in blanket and the French bread. The pigs in a blanket had approximately 7ish mini hotdogs in the order for $15.95. The French bread pizza was decent and the only good food that we were served all evening. Our main meals were, the shrimp cocktail was decent.. 5 lasagnas that consist of one layer of noodle, a layer of ricotta, sauce and cheese. Two burgers that were hockey pucks. A ribeye that was order med well came out completely black and blue which means burnt on the outside and raw in the middle. The duck was luke warm, dry and the sides were cold. This wasn't a cheap dinner. We didn't complain about the food (which was our mistake). I had read in previous comments of similar happenings there. But I wanted to give them a try for the benefit of doubt ... we paid the bill and will never return. Save your money folks!
Service: 2
A Hayes
My friend was slandered after having a horrible experience at the restaurant, by the restaurant’s owner. Just horrible
PZFLY
Great Romantic spot on a river. Pleasant atmosphere, great service and very good food. Duck is difficult to cook properly and they nailed it. What's not to like. The Village Inn is a nice contribution to the area.
Nancy M
This restaurant has been a favorite of my family for years. As we close our lakeside camp each fall, we look forward to our duck meal at the inn for celebration at the end of a season. Our recent experience was a huge disappointment. We ordered chowder that arrived cold. When we asked for it to be reheated, it came back luke warm. My husband spilled his wine and we asked for a spare napkin. The hostess swung by and handed him a towel. No new napkin, no offer to help clean up, no refill. The puddle and towel sat mounded up for our entire meal. The duck we ordered was to have had the flambe sauce. When it arrived, we were told that there was no liquor to make if flame. And the duck was luke warm at best, and quite tasteless. The staff were inattentive and the meal took forever. We twice had to leave our seats to ask for attention for the above issues. The hostess at the desk welcomed one new diner as we sat for 1.5 hours. Yet she showed zero interest in helping the wait staff or responding to diners trying to wave for her attention. Our water glasses stayed empty with no visits from staff for to check in about the meal or offer a refill. It's time for us to find a new venue for our farewell dinner in Maine.
Ike B.
My wife and I had a great relaxing dinner Tuesday. Fondue for two, served by cousin Sue was delicious and probably enough for 4. Watched 2 bald eagles play over the water from the dining room. What a beautiful spot.
Corinne H.
I love this place the food is great and the service has always been good. This is my family's favorite on vacation the duck is to die for
Barry W.
I'm pleased to be able to RE-review the Village Inn. This summer we were there with our grandkids and it was dreadful! Nothing worked! After our daughter and son in law had an excellent experience we decided to give it another try. Markedly improved over our previous experience. Pleasant ambience, friendly service and decent food if you're into traditional faire. If you're looking for nouveau cuisine, look elsewhere.
Matthew M
Absolutely mortified by the ignorant, arrogant and belligerent behavior of co-owner, Kate Beales. I arrived at 7 PM for a 7 PM reservation. Apple Maps and Trip Adviser show that the place was open till 9 PM. My friend was supposed to meet me, but she was lost and running late. The waitress said that guests were supposed to be out by 9, but where my friend was running late, we could stay as late as 9:30 p.m as she was going to be working there cashing out. However, I should get my order in as soon as possible and she should put it on the table by 830 at the latest, which meant they needed to start the meal by 8 p.m. Well, by 8 p.m, my friend still hadn’t arrived, so I put in an order for two drinks, two salads, the half duck, and a filet mignon, which cost about $150 before tip. Thankful for her kindness and her offer to let me and my friend stay until 9:30, if need be, I gave her a $50 bill, and I gave her another $20 bill to give to the cook who might also have to stay late. My friend just kept getting lost and more lost, and at 8:30 she still hadn’t arrived. At 8:45, I’m talking to my friend on the phone who is saying she will be there in about ten or 15 minutes out. Co-Owner Kate Beales was apparently eavesdropping around the corner, and comes around the corner and interrupts me in mid-conversation with my friend on the phone and says: “That’s not gonna work, man. We are closing. We need you out by nine.” Shocked, I explained that I had tipped her workers $70 to thank them for offering to stay a little later, and she actually responded by saying: “You can’t buy our workers, man. We will take that off of your bill.” Apparently, “Sir” is not part of her vocabulary. Indicating she would take a $70 tip off of a bill for food that I hadn’t even received yet meant both that she expected me to pay for the food. Now, I suppose I could have gotten up and just left, but in Belgrade, the general store closes at 7 PM, and the nearest grocery stores are 20 miles away in Augusta. And, most grocery stores don’t stay open past nine. I was hungry. I knew my friend was going to be hungry. She was lost. And by the time we finally met up, the last thing I really wanted to do was try to Augusta to try to get some food. Neither one of us had eaten all day. I left straight from work at 5 PM in Camden, which was an hour and 15 minutes away, and she left from southern Maine, an hour and 15 minutes away. Besides, if you think Kates behavior is inappropriate up until now, just read on. I have no idea what was about unfold. Kate leaves, and the nice young waitress comes out with the food. I ask her to just box it up as the owner said she wanted us out by 9. It had to be about 9:52 at that point because about 4 minutes later I would actually begin videoing Kate as she literally harassed me out of her place, and the that video is time stamped 8:56 p.m,. The waitress felt really bad and encouraged me to just eat the steak while it was hot. She said: “It’s a filet mignon. Enjoy it!” So, I was like, “OK. I’ll eat this really quick….just box up the duck.” If being given a $50 steak with less than ten minutes to eat it and be sent out was not bad enough, Kate somehow actually managed to make things even worse. This was about 10 or 15 minutes after the last other guest had left, mind you, so it’s not like I’m the only one there. And, contrary to what Kate says in the video, I was not there two hours after closing time. I arrived at seven or 7 PM reservation, and it was not yet even 9. I begin eating my food, and Kate comes out ostensibly to tidy up tables. I intentionally made no eye contact with her and said nothing to her. Most people would have just left it at that and just let the person have their 8 minutes to finish their $50 steak. But, not Kate. I guess she felt she needed to make me understand. She starts telling me that her employees needed to get home, and it really wasn’t acceptable to keep them there two hours after they closed. Of course this is an untrue, offensive accusation. It said on Apple and TripAdvisor that they were open until nin
The owner has shown she has a righteous and entitled upbringing and uses her inherited wealth to justify her privilege over those who dine there like myself. I will not be going back and wish she would understand how locals live. It's a lipstick on a duck kind of place. The high price tag and pretentious vibe has no place in my hometown. Make the restaurant about everyday people who want to do a date night again. And improve the sanitization.
Liz B.
My family and I had the pleasure of visiting the Village Inn recently and I cannot say enough wonderful things about our experience. The food was outstanding, our server was top tier and the views of the lake were breathtaking. I don't understand some of these negative reviews I am seeing, as our experience was incredible and we are already planning our next visit to this establishment. I highly recommend the 12 hr roasted duck with cranberry walnut stuffing!!
LizBiz123
My family and I had the pleasure of visiting the Village Inn recently and I cannot say enough wonderful things about our experience. The food was outstanding, our server was top tier and the views of the lake were breathtaking. I don’t understand some of these negative reviews I am seeing, as our experience was incredible and we are already planning our next visit to this establishment.
Matthew M.
my experience with co-owner, Kate Beales was one that showed her to be an unkind, ignorant, belligerent and incapable manager who should not be interacting with the public or supervising people. According to TripAdvisor and Apple, they are restaurant is open until 9 PM. I arrived at 7 PM for a 7 PM reservation, had a drink and waited for my friend to arrive. My friend was running late, and the waitress, who was very kind, told me that if need be, we could stay until 9:30 PM to finish our meal, if she ran too late. At about 845 p.m, when my friend still hadn't arrived but after I had already put $150 order in which was in the warmer waiting for my friend to arrive, Kate Beals overheard me talking to my friend on the phone saying that she would not arrive for another 10 or 15 minutes. Kate comes out of nowhere and interrupt me in the middle of a conversation on the phone with my friend tells me in a rather unprofessional manner "that's not gonna work, man. We're gonna need you out by nine." This is after I had given the waitress a $50 cash tip for offering to stay as late as 930 while I waited for my friend to arrive, as well as giving a $20 tip to the cook for the same reason, and even though I hadn't even received my meal, co-owner, Kate Beales had the waitress put a $50 half dock, a $50 filet mignon and a salad on the table, and then basically told me that I had eight minutes to eat it. That the first interaction that I had with her, which head she just left it at that would have resulted in my being very upset, but at least I would have been able to eat my meal in peace. Not wanting to make further issue caused by case, unprofessional behavior, because I really just wanted special night for my friend who had been working all week and was driving a pretty long way to meet me, but ended up getting lost in the middle of nowhere in Central Maine, not that Kate had any empathy, for that fact, whatsoever, I agreed to eat the steak and have the duck boxed up to go. But if being given a $50 steak and eight minutes to eat it wasn't bad enough, Kate, basically insulted, harassed, and accused me of untrue things and said untrue things to the point that I had to put my fork and knife down and just leave. For example, she kept telling me that I was keeping them two hours past closing time by arriving at 7 PM and staying until 9 PM. and, when I told her that it said online that they were open until 9 PM, she told me that was not true and that nowhere online did it say that. and, I actually have that on video because her behavior was so inappropriate that in the middle of my two minute meal, I actually had to take out my iPhone and start recording it. It was that unbelievable. but in the ultimate display of selfishness and uncaring behavior, Kate made her cool return the $20 tip that I had given him, and she made the waitress return the $50 tip. And, I have it on camera where the waitress gives me the $50 bill back, I tell her to keep it, and the waitress tells me to leave it in the folder. But, when I left the restaurant to go out to my car, which was before 9 PM, the cook followed me out and gave me the $50 bill back. And, this is a young waitress, who is also a mother working on tips. So, if you are thinking about patronizing this restaurant or inn, you might want to consider that this is the type of person who you're giving your business to.
Tourist591515
The owner was eavesdropping as I spoke to the bartender about ordering a bottle of wine. The bartender was about to get it when the owner Kate came out of nowhere and told me to go back to my seat. She then told me that the bartender is too busy. (We hadn’t seen a waitress in several minutes.) She then stalked me and wanted my name and more. I told her to get out of my space and walked away as the waitress came up to rescue me. Kate then stalked my sister and told her she was thinking of kicking me out! I have never experienced a more rude, creepy, and quite mentally disturbed as this person.
Six of us had a scrumptious dinner at the Village Inn last night. We had the famous duck entree and it was delicious! With cocktails before dinner, cozy rooms in which to spend the night, and pastries and coffee this morning, we could not have had a nicer visit. Kate is a wonderful host and the ambience there is New England Inn at its best. I highly recommend it.
I've had my eye on this restaurant for quite some time, but having two young children doesn't allow us much opportunity to try new places as a couple. Well, tonight we had a babysitter and I saw that the Village had fondue night. What an awesome experience! From the super friendly woman who answered the phone when I called to make reservations, to the complimentary desert, to the cozy atmosphere and everything in between, I was so impressed. I cannot wait to bring my sister back for another fondue night. Highly recommend!!
Service: 5
Horrible, horrible, horrible!!!! We went to celebrate my 51st birthday with my family, there were 10 of us. We started with two appetizers. The pigs in blanket and the French bread. The pigs in a blanket had approximately 7ish mini hotdogs in the order for $15.95. The French bread pizza was decent and the only good food that we were served all evening. Our main meals were, the shrimp cocktail was decent.. 5 lasagnas that consist of one layer of noodle, a layer of ricotta, sauce and cheese. Two burgers that were hockey pucks. A ribeye that was order med well came out completely black and blue which means burnt on the outside and raw in the middle. The duck was luke warm, dry and the sides were cold. This wasn't a cheap dinner. We didn't complain about the food (which was our mistake). I had read in previous comments of similar happenings there. But I wanted to give them a try for the benefit of doubt ... we paid the bill and will never return. Save your money folks!
Service: 2
My friend was slandered after having a horrible experience at the restaurant, by the restaurant’s owner. Just horrible
Great Romantic spot on a river. Pleasant atmosphere, great service and very good food. Duck is difficult to cook properly and they nailed it. What's not to like. The Village Inn is a nice contribution to the area.
This restaurant has been a favorite of my family for years. As we close our lakeside camp each fall, we look forward to our duck meal at the inn for celebration at the end of a season. Our recent experience was a huge disappointment. We ordered chowder that arrived cold. When we asked for it to be reheated, it came back luke warm. My husband spilled his wine and we asked for a spare napkin. The hostess swung by and handed him a towel. No new napkin, no offer to help clean up, no refill. The puddle and towel sat mounded up for our entire meal. The duck we ordered was to have had the flambe sauce. When it arrived, we were told that there was no liquor to make if flame. And the duck was luke warm at best, and quite tasteless. The staff were inattentive and the meal took forever. We twice had to leave our seats to ask for attention for the above issues. The hostess at the desk welcomed one new diner as we sat for 1.5 hours. Yet she showed zero interest in helping the wait staff or responding to diners trying to wave for her attention. Our water glasses stayed empty with no visits from staff for to check in about the meal or offer a refill. It's time for us to find a new venue for our farewell dinner in Maine.
My wife and I had a great relaxing dinner Tuesday. Fondue for two, served by cousin Sue was delicious and probably enough for 4. Watched 2 bald eagles play over the water from the dining room. What a beautiful spot.
I love this place the food is great and the service has always been good. This is my family's favorite on vacation the duck is to die for
I'm pleased to be able to RE-review the Village Inn. This summer we were there with our grandkids and it was dreadful! Nothing worked! After our daughter and son in law had an excellent experience we decided to give it another try. Markedly improved over our previous experience. Pleasant ambience, friendly service and decent food if you're into traditional faire. If you're looking for nouveau cuisine, look elsewhere.
Absolutely mortified by the ignorant, arrogant and belligerent behavior of co-owner, Kate Beales. I arrived at 7 PM for a 7 PM reservation. Apple Maps and Trip Adviser show that the place was open till 9 PM. My friend was supposed to meet me, but she was lost and running late. The waitress said that guests were supposed to be out by 9, but where my friend was running late, we could stay as late as 9:30 p.m as she was going to be working there cashing out. However, I should get my order in as soon as possible and she should put it on the table by 830 at the latest, which meant they needed to start the meal by 8 p.m. Well, by 8 p.m, my friend still hadn’t arrived, so I put in an order for two drinks, two salads, the half duck, and a filet mignon, which cost about $150 before tip. Thankful for her kindness and her offer to let me and my friend stay until 9:30, if need be, I gave her a $50 bill, and I gave her another $20 bill to give to the cook who might also have to stay late. My friend just kept getting lost and more lost, and at 8:30 she still hadn’t arrived. At 8:45, I’m talking to my friend on the phone who is saying she will be there in about ten or 15 minutes out. Co-Owner Kate Beales was apparently eavesdropping around the corner, and comes around the corner and interrupts me in mid-conversation with my friend on the phone and says: “That’s not gonna work, man. We are closing. We need you out by nine.” Shocked, I explained that I had tipped her workers $70 to thank them for offering to stay a little later, and she actually responded by saying: “You can’t buy our workers, man. We will take that off of your bill.” Apparently, “Sir” is not part of her vocabulary. Indicating she would take a $70 tip off of a bill for food that I hadn’t even received yet meant both that she expected me to pay for the food. Now, I suppose I could have gotten up and just left, but in Belgrade, the general store closes at 7 PM, and the nearest grocery stores are 20 miles away in Augusta. And, most grocery stores don’t stay open past nine. I was hungry. I knew my friend was going to be hungry. She was lost. And by the time we finally met up, the last thing I really wanted to do was try to Augusta to try to get some food. Neither one of us had eaten all day. I left straight from work at 5 PM in Camden, which was an hour and 15 minutes away, and she left from southern Maine, an hour and 15 minutes away. Besides, if you think Kates behavior is inappropriate up until now, just read on. I have no idea what was about unfold. Kate leaves, and the nice young waitress comes out with the food. I ask her to just box it up as the owner said she wanted us out by 9. It had to be about 9:52 at that point because about 4 minutes later I would actually begin videoing Kate as she literally harassed me out of her place, and the that video is time stamped 8:56 p.m,. The waitress felt really bad and encouraged me to just eat the steak while it was hot. She said: “It’s a filet mignon. Enjoy it!” So, I was like, “OK. I’ll eat this really quick….just box up the duck.” If being given a $50 steak with less than ten minutes to eat it and be sent out was not bad enough, Kate somehow actually managed to make things even worse. This was about 10 or 15 minutes after the last other guest had left, mind you, so it’s not like I’m the only one there. And, contrary to what Kate says in the video, I was not there two hours after closing time. I arrived at seven or 7 PM reservation, and it was not yet even 9. I begin eating my food, and Kate comes out ostensibly to tidy up tables. I intentionally made no eye contact with her and said nothing to her. Most people would have just left it at that and just let the person have their 8 minutes to finish their $50 steak. But, not Kate. I guess she felt she needed to make me understand. She starts telling me that her employees needed to get home, and it really wasn’t acceptable to keep them there two hours after they closed. Of course this is an untrue, offensive accusation. It said on Apple and TripAdvisor that they were open until nin
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The owner has shown she has a righteous and entitled upbringing and uses her inherited wealth to justify her privilege over those who dine there like myself. I will not be going back and wish she would understand how locals live. It's a lipstick on a duck kind of place. The high price tag and pretentious vibe has no place in my hometown. Make the restaurant about everyday people who want to do a date night again. And improve the sanitization.
My family and I had the pleasure of visiting the Village Inn recently and I cannot say enough wonderful things about our experience. The food was outstanding, our server was top tier and the views of the lake were breathtaking. I don't understand some of these negative reviews I am seeing, as our experience was incredible and we are already planning our next visit to this establishment. I highly recommend the 12 hr roasted duck with cranberry walnut stuffing!!
My family and I had the pleasure of visiting the Village Inn recently and I cannot say enough wonderful things about our experience. The food was outstanding, our server was top tier and the views of the lake were breathtaking. I don’t understand some of these negative reviews I am seeing, as our experience was incredible and we are already planning our next visit to this establishment.
my experience with co-owner, Kate Beales was one that showed her to be an unkind, ignorant, belligerent and incapable manager who should not be interacting with the public or supervising people. According to TripAdvisor and Apple, they are restaurant is open until 9 PM. I arrived at 7 PM for a 7 PM reservation, had a drink and waited for my friend to arrive. My friend was running late, and the waitress, who was very kind, told me that if need be, we could stay until 9:30 PM to finish our meal, if she ran too late. At about 845 p.m, when my friend still hadn't arrived but after I had already put $150 order in which was in the warmer waiting for my friend to arrive, Kate Beals overheard me talking to my friend on the phone saying that she would not arrive for another 10 or 15 minutes. Kate comes out of nowhere and interrupt me in the middle of a conversation on the phone with my friend tells me in a rather unprofessional manner "that's not gonna work, man. We're gonna need you out by nine." This is after I had given the waitress a $50 cash tip for offering to stay as late as 930 while I waited for my friend to arrive, as well as giving a $20 tip to the cook for the same reason, and even though I hadn't even received my meal, co-owner, Kate Beales had the waitress put a $50 half dock, a $50 filet mignon and a salad on the table, and then basically told me that I had eight minutes to eat it. That the first interaction that I had with her, which head she just left it at that would have resulted in my being very upset, but at least I would have been able to eat my meal in peace. Not wanting to make further issue caused by case, unprofessional behavior, because I really just wanted special night for my friend who had been working all week and was driving a pretty long way to meet me, but ended up getting lost in the middle of nowhere in Central Maine, not that Kate had any empathy, for that fact, whatsoever, I agreed to eat the steak and have the duck boxed up to go. But if being given a $50 steak and eight minutes to eat it wasn't bad enough, Kate, basically insulted, harassed, and accused me of untrue things and said untrue things to the point that I had to put my fork and knife down and just leave. For example, she kept telling me that I was keeping them two hours past closing time by arriving at 7 PM and staying until 9 PM. and, when I told her that it said online that they were open until 9 PM, she told me that was not true and that nowhere online did it say that. and, I actually have that on video because her behavior was so inappropriate that in the middle of my two minute meal, I actually had to take out my iPhone and start recording it. It was that unbelievable. but in the ultimate display of selfishness and uncaring behavior, Kate made her cool return the $20 tip that I had given him, and she made the waitress return the $50 tip. And, I have it on camera where the waitress gives me the $50 bill back, I tell her to keep it, and the waitress tells me to leave it in the folder. But, when I left the restaurant to go out to my car, which was before 9 PM, the cook followed me out and gave me the $50 bill back. And, this is a young waitress, who is also a mother working on tips. So, if you are thinking about patronizing this restaurant or inn, you might want to consider that this is the type of person who you're giving your business to.
The owner was eavesdropping as I spoke to the bartender about ordering a bottle of wine. The bartender was about to get it when the owner Kate came out of nowhere and told me to go back to my seat. She then told me that the bartender is too busy. (We hadn’t seen a waitress in several minutes.) She then stalked me and wanted my name and more. I told her to get out of my space and walked away as the waitress came up to rescue me. Kate then stalked my sister and told her she was thinking of kicking me out! I have never experienced a more rude, creepy, and quite mentally disturbed as this person.