Major disappointment for Easter dinner. I booked this place based on rave reviews about the award winning chef. Unfortunately the food was mediocre and not very imaginative. We felt rushed and had to ask the server to slow everything down. We were some of the last reservations of the day and felt like the servers and kitchen were just tired by then. For the prix fixe price we paid, it was not worth it.
ShawnR
In recent years, each Easter has wound up taking on a theme based on whatever core activity Mom and I have chosen to participate in. “Casual elegance” and “I trust” certainly summed up this year. It may initially seem like an impossible contradiction, but from the moment you arrive at The Clifton, you find that not only is “casual elegance” is very achievable but that the ability to achieve that balance is core to the venue's charm. It's about finery being presented in a genuinely warm, inviting way. It's like being greeted after a long journey, shown to a cozy library where you can relax and warm yourself by the fire, while being excitedly told "Wait until you see what we have prepared for you today! We really hope you'll like it!" From the moment I saw that The Clifton was hosting a curated 3-course meal, I knew that was my first choice for how to spend the day and glad when that matched the tone Mom was in the mood for as well. That is where "I trust" came into play. I didn't know exactly what we'd be eating but I wasn't the least bit concerned about it. Having already witnessed how exceptional even "burger and fries" produced in Chef Matthew's kitchen was, I knew to trust that whatever was presented before me, I was not going to be disappointed. That trust was once again validated on Sunday. Not only was everything that Mom and I ordered amazing, but it also disproved the notion that "fine dining" means you must leave the table hungry. There is a very logical nature to the menu options in each category. Mom ordered the oysters and shrimp choices ... I ordered the smoked salmon waffles and leg of lamb ... and, in both approaches, the portion sizes were exactly what we wanted. Both of us got exactly what we wanted and got exactly as much food as we wanted overall. The fact this was so easy to achieve is yet another demonstration of Chef Matthew's expertise in achieving a wonderfully balanced experience for a variety of people and appetites.
DaveO
The atmosphere at this old B&B is very nice, hard to believe it's this close to downtown. The quality of the food is fantastic...however, it's a bit overpriced, small servings and while we had a great time, we left questioning if it was worth the price. Would recommend, but just know you'll be over paying for small portions.
BlaineR
My husband and I made reservations to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We couldn't have picked a better place to celebrate. The food, the service and presentation were excellent and the atmosphere is refreshing and romantic.
Lisa
We went to 1799 for a friend's birthday and all four of us agreed it was a wonderful dining experience. The atmosphere is lovely, their staff was so kind and friendly and the food was exceptional. When we arrived, the front of the menu was printed with "Happy Birthday, Cindy" and she loved that! I dropped off a cake a day prior to our visit to surprise my friend and, when our dinner plates were cleared, they brought the cake, candles lit, without any prompting. I highly recommend this restaurant and, if we had known about the inn prior to booking our stay, we would have stayed there as well.
AaronA
Way over priced for food options and portion! Ordered the king salmon - looked like a 3-4 oz piece for $37!! Only went there for the Red Snapper and it was out of season despite it being showed on the OpenTable menu. Very disappointed!!
J Michael Jones
My wife surprised me with not only my birthday dinner but also my retirement. The ambience of the restaurant was perfect - intimate and cozy. The food was delicious and the service was impeccable.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Steak Au Poivre, Bone Marrow with Escargot
Heather Haughey
This restaurant was most delightful, watching the sunset was wonderful and having the fireplace was magical. The food was delicious. I will definitely be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
KenSomm
They couldn't open my wine bottle as they didn't have a Ah-So puller for old corks. The cork split and they couldn't open my special wine which the brought. They didn't have the alternative wine I ordered in their cellar, so we settled for a wine I really did want & overpriced as time was marching on. Their sommelier was not on duty that evening which was a Friday night!when will they be there? The appetizer was weird and didn't taste as expected same with the amuse bouche. It was a rainy night and their walk way / drive way from parking to the door (long walk) is a dirt road, muddy something people dressed well do not want to walk on in dressed shoes. Their driveway has to be at least fully graveled to prevent destroying good dress shoes, especially high heels. Except for this persistent issue, this has been both great and poor restaurant in the past. It's back to poor and so it will a long time again before we try it, I left a big tip for the very nice server we had, to help her prepare for unemployment when people stop coming!
Lonerhino
We enjoy our all too infrequent visits to your establishment. Tonight's late Valentine's dinner was spectacular, and Jenna is a very fine waitress, server, or whatever the appropriate lingo is these days. Everything was enjoyable. Regarding the wine list, I did notice a New World Viognier that read Northern Neck/Rappahannock. While there are several wineries on the Northern Neck, there is no Rappahannock vineyard, winery or cellar by that name. However, there is a Rapppahannock Cellars in Rappahannock County, Virginia; they are located in Huntly, just outside of Front Royal. The confusion is understandable in that the Rappahannock River creates the southern border of the Northern Neck and extends to its terminus at the Chesapeake Bay, whereas the head of the Rappahannock River begins in Rappahannock County in the Shenandoah Valley near the Blue Ridge Mountains. I just thought you should be aware of this. Thank you again for a lovely evening. We hope to see you again soon!
The hostess was haughty and rude and quite poorly dressed for an elegant restaurant. The salad was large and poorly presented and the beef bourguignon was put in a soup bowl which made it impossible to cut; we asked for a plate. Since the beef didn't have a starch we had to order a side of mashed potatoes which were not mashed but were a puree almost like a thick gravy. The short ribs were okay but an extremely small serving for $38.00 and certainly not remarkable. The server was very nice and accommodating but tried to use words that were incorrect vocabulary and difficult to understand what he was trying to say. The wine was excellent. It is a restaurant that is trying to be too precious with the food and needs a lot of work. I would not recommend it nor would I return for $162.00 for two.
Pkslmcs
The food and the service were excellent; I couldn't ask for better anywhere. The ambiance was very good, but the room was cooler than comfortable for me. The room is on the smaller side and one large party dominated the room as one of the gentlemen went on and on about his “contacts” in Washington, D.C. and all the business he does there. It wasn't possible to tune him out! The Chef went all out to make the food beautiful and delicious. I will definitely eat here again.
AlexT
We went during restaurant week. We hadn't been for a long time so we wanted to see if it was as good as we remembered. It was. The limited menu for restaurant week was very good, and I'm sure the regular menu is better.
Rigby
Went to Clifton during Restaurant week with two other friends. It was a 3 course meal for $45 which was a good value. There however wasn't anything so spectacular or interesting in the food that it would compel any of us to come back. Seems like a lost opportunity for Clifton. If they phone in restaurant week they give up an audience scouting it for other occasions.
Christian Tomlins
Food was incredible and delicious. Nothing we ordered seemed overly complicated, just fresh ingredients and expertly prepared. Portions were perfect and there were many menu options to choose from. The waiters were very attentative and took excellent care of us. They really make you feel special while your dining.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Arugula and Pear Salad, Roasted Chicken
Major disappointment for Easter dinner. I booked this place based on rave reviews about the award winning chef. Unfortunately the food was mediocre and not very imaginative. We felt rushed and had to ask the server to slow everything down. We were some of the last reservations of the day and felt like the servers and kitchen were just tired by then. For the prix fixe price we paid, it was not worth it.
In recent years, each Easter has wound up taking on a theme based on whatever core activity Mom and I have chosen to participate in. “Casual elegance” and “I trust” certainly summed up this year. It may initially seem like an impossible contradiction, but from the moment you arrive at The Clifton, you find that not only is “casual elegance” is very achievable but that the ability to achieve that balance is core to the venue's charm. It's about finery being presented in a genuinely warm, inviting way. It's like being greeted after a long journey, shown to a cozy library where you can relax and warm yourself by the fire, while being excitedly told "Wait until you see what we have prepared for you today! We really hope you'll like it!" From the moment I saw that The Clifton was hosting a curated 3-course meal, I knew that was my first choice for how to spend the day and glad when that matched the tone Mom was in the mood for as well. That is where "I trust" came into play. I didn't know exactly what we'd be eating but I wasn't the least bit concerned about it. Having already witnessed how exceptional even "burger and fries" produced in Chef Matthew's kitchen was, I knew to trust that whatever was presented before me, I was not going to be disappointed. That trust was once again validated on Sunday. Not only was everything that Mom and I ordered amazing, but it also disproved the notion that "fine dining" means you must leave the table hungry. There is a very logical nature to the menu options in each category. Mom ordered the oysters and shrimp choices ... I ordered the smoked salmon waffles and leg of lamb ... and, in both approaches, the portion sizes were exactly what we wanted. Both of us got exactly what we wanted and got exactly as much food as we wanted overall. The fact this was so easy to achieve is yet another demonstration of Chef Matthew's expertise in achieving a wonderfully balanced experience for a variety of people and appetites.
The atmosphere at this old B&B is very nice, hard to believe it's this close to downtown. The quality of the food is fantastic...however, it's a bit overpriced, small servings and while we had a great time, we left questioning if it was worth the price. Would recommend, but just know you'll be over paying for small portions.
My husband and I made reservations to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We couldn't have picked a better place to celebrate. The food, the service and presentation were excellent and the atmosphere is refreshing and romantic.
We went to 1799 for a friend's birthday and all four of us agreed it was a wonderful dining experience. The atmosphere is lovely, their staff was so kind and friendly and the food was exceptional. When we arrived, the front of the menu was printed with "Happy Birthday, Cindy" and she loved that! I dropped off a cake a day prior to our visit to surprise my friend and, when our dinner plates were cleared, they brought the cake, candles lit, without any prompting. I highly recommend this restaurant and, if we had known about the inn prior to booking our stay, we would have stayed there as well.
Way over priced for food options and portion! Ordered the king salmon - looked like a 3-4 oz piece for $37!! Only went there for the Red Snapper and it was out of season despite it being showed on the OpenTable menu. Very disappointed!!
My wife surprised me with not only my birthday dinner but also my retirement. The ambience of the restaurant was perfect - intimate and cozy. The food was delicious and the service was impeccable.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Steak Au Poivre, Bone Marrow with Escargot
This restaurant was most delightful, watching the sunset was wonderful and having the fireplace was magical. The food was delicious. I will definitely be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
They couldn't open my wine bottle as they didn't have a Ah-So puller for old corks. The cork split and they couldn't open my special wine which the brought. They didn't have the alternative wine I ordered in their cellar, so we settled for a wine I really did want & overpriced as time was marching on. Their sommelier was not on duty that evening which was a Friday night!when will they be there? The appetizer was weird and didn't taste as expected same with the amuse bouche. It was a rainy night and their walk way / drive way from parking to the door (long walk) is a dirt road, muddy something people dressed well do not want to walk on in dressed shoes. Their driveway has to be at least fully graveled to prevent destroying good dress shoes, especially high heels. Except for this persistent issue, this has been both great and poor restaurant in the past. It's back to poor and so it will a long time again before we try it, I left a big tip for the very nice server we had, to help her prepare for unemployment when people stop coming!
We enjoy our all too infrequent visits to your establishment. Tonight's late Valentine's dinner was spectacular, and Jenna is a very fine waitress, server, or whatever the appropriate lingo is these days. Everything was enjoyable. Regarding the wine list, I did notice a New World Viognier that read Northern Neck/Rappahannock. While there are several wineries on the Northern Neck, there is no Rappahannock vineyard, winery or cellar by that name. However, there is a Rapppahannock Cellars in Rappahannock County, Virginia; they are located in Huntly, just outside of Front Royal. The confusion is understandable in that the Rappahannock River creates the southern border of the Northern Neck and extends to its terminus at the Chesapeake Bay, whereas the head of the Rappahannock River begins in Rappahannock County in the Shenandoah Valley near the Blue Ridge Mountains. I just thought you should be aware of this. Thank you again for a lovely evening. We hope to see you again soon!
Restaurantji Recommends
The hostess was haughty and rude and quite poorly dressed for an elegant restaurant. The salad was large and poorly presented and the beef bourguignon was put in a soup bowl which made it impossible to cut; we asked for a plate. Since the beef didn't have a starch we had to order a side of mashed potatoes which were not mashed but were a puree almost like a thick gravy. The short ribs were okay but an extremely small serving for $38.00 and certainly not remarkable. The server was very nice and accommodating but tried to use words that were incorrect vocabulary and difficult to understand what he was trying to say. The wine was excellent. It is a restaurant that is trying to be too precious with the food and needs a lot of work. I would not recommend it nor would I return for $162.00 for two.
The food and the service were excellent; I couldn't ask for better anywhere. The ambiance was very good, but the room was cooler than comfortable for me. The room is on the smaller side and one large party dominated the room as one of the gentlemen went on and on about his “contacts” in Washington, D.C. and all the business he does there. It wasn't possible to tune him out! The Chef went all out to make the food beautiful and delicious. I will definitely eat here again.
We went during restaurant week. We hadn't been for a long time so we wanted to see if it was as good as we remembered. It was. The limited menu for restaurant week was very good, and I'm sure the regular menu is better.
Went to Clifton during Restaurant week with two other friends. It was a 3 course meal for $45 which was a good value. There however wasn't anything so spectacular or interesting in the food that it would compel any of us to come back. Seems like a lost opportunity for Clifton. If they phone in restaurant week they give up an audience scouting it for other occasions.
Food was incredible and delicious. Nothing we ordered seemed overly complicated, just fresh ingredients and expertly prepared. Portions were perfect and there were many menu options to choose from. The waiters were very attentative and took excellent care of us. They really make you feel special while your dining.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Arugula and Pear Salad, Roasted Chicken