The Inn at Little Washington

The Inn at Little Washington is a luxury country inn and restaurant located in Washington, Virginia. Patrick O'Connell and Reinhardt Lynch founded the Inn in 1978. It has been a member of the Relais & Chateaux hotel group since 1987.

Awards and honors

The Inn has been featured in several national and international newspapers including "The Washington Post" and "The New York Times". It was the first establishment to ever receive five stars for both its accommodations and its cuisine in the Mobil Travel Guide, a distinction that it still maintains. It repeated this feat by becoming the first restaurant/inn to receive five diamonds from the AAA for both its food and accommodations. It has also received five James Beard Foundation awards including those for "Best Service", "Best Wine List", "Restaurant of the Year", "Best Chef in the Mid–Atlantic" and "Chef of the Year". The "International Herald Tribune" rated it as one of the "Top Ten Best Restaurants in the World". Additionally, the Zagat Survey for Washington, D.C., has rated it as number one in all categories for the past 14 years. Travel & Leisure Magazine has ranked the Inn as the number one hotel in the world for food, the number in the world for service, and the number eight in world and number 2 in North America overall. The Restaurant has been awarded Wine Spectator’s “Grand Award” for the last 12 years. Other distinctions include Cigar Aficionado’s “Grand Cru” award for the restaurant’s wine list, and the “Reader’s Top Table” award in Gourmet’s "Restaurant" Issue.

Andrew Lloyd Webber once claimed, "For my money this little hotel provides the best overall dining experience I can remember in a long while, perhaps my best ever." [Citation|last = Webber| first = Andrew Lloyd| title = Matters of Taste|newspaper = London Telegraph| date = December 14, 1996| issue = 570| url = http://www.jimsteinman.com/96wdtw19.htm| accessdate =2007-06-19 ]

Ownership

Though owned and operated by Patrick O’Connell and Reinhardt Lynch since 1978, the Inn is no longer owned jointly by the former business and romantic partners. Their personal relationship deteriorated in 2006 and precipitated the business split. [Citation|last = Argetsinger| first = Amy |others= Roxanne Roberts | title =Big Breakup Brews Between Inn Owners at Little Washington |newspaper = Washington Post|date = September 13, 2006| url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/12/AR2006091201593.html | accessdate =2007-09-26 ] The Washington Post reported that O'Connell, the chef, took out a loan of $17.5 million in January 2007 in order to facilitate a buyout of Lynch and become sole owner of the famous establishment. The specific amount Lynch received was undisclosed.

Notes

References

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External links

* [http://www.theinnatlittlewashington.com/ The Inn at Little Washington Website]