My husband and I stayed at the Copper Beech Inn while in CT to attend a friend's wedding. When we arrived, we were greeted by a very loud, slightly unprofessional receptionist. She kept us waiting while she was on the phone and had trouble answering simple questions when we asked. Our room was "upgraded" without our consent...I had picked the room I wanted to stay in when booking and was upset when we didn't get to stay in it. The room we did stay in, was very dark and had stained carpet. The bathroom was nice, but the attention to detail was lacking in the craftmanship. There were gaps between the tile and the sink, etc. We had placed a do not disturb sign on our door and our room was entered and cleaned anyway. I value my privacy and was not pleased about this. The breakfast each morning was from the same menu but there were several options and all were delightful :) What was not delightful was listening to Jennifer (the receptionist who checked us in) scream into the phone as the breakfast was served in the sunroom right outside the reception area.

The brightest spot of this trip was dinner at the Braissere Pip...the meal was amazing despite the power outages that were occuring during our meal.

In summation, this place could be amazing...it just needs a little attention to detail.

From the moment we parked at the Copper Beech I felt my heart sink. We'd booked a $325 'suite' and had read all the wonderful reviews of the restaurant/brasserie. The front of the inn looked gloomy at best. Empty planters and a dirty old carpet on the landing outside did not bode well. The lobby may look inviting in the deepest winter with it's maroon funereal tones, but on a sunny May afternoon, it evoked the Adam's family at best. Our 'suite' turned out to be two connecting rooms stuffed full of Victoriana and so dark that lamps were needed at all times. The wallpaper was peeling, the paint chipped, rust surrounded the tub. Not a great welcome.
The good news is that the restaurant lived up to its reputation. Dinner was superb.
Sadly breakfast the next morning was a laughable disappointment. Service was molasses slow, the food awful. Endless waits for coffee, juice and forgotten requests (cutlery, butter, jam, salt, pepper) hello??? It's breakfast!! How hard is that?

We came into the Copper Beech Inn feeling disappointed at its facade, had a nice meal, then left the next morning, saying never again, not at this price.

You are probably gathering from our title that we had such a terrific time staying at the Copper Beech Inn for the weekend! It was the perfect respite from the hectic city environment to which we are accustomed. From the moment we were greeted and guided to our room I knew we were in for a treat. The front desk staff was excellent and very welcoming. The room was beautifully designed, spotless and comfortable. And when we sat down for our first meal at Brasserie Pip, I knew that we were in for something truly special.

My girlfriend and I are foodie, bar diners, generally speaking. We like to order an item at a time, whatever happens to catch our eye, chit chat with the bar staff and have a comfortable meal at the bars in most restaurants we frequent. Although we had made a table reservation at Brasserie Pip, the maître de was so polite and accommodating when we changed our minds to eat at the bar. The bartender was so sweet, very easy going and professional and such a delight to talk to. And the food was, to say the least, delicious, simply amazing.

We struck up a conversation with the very talented Chef when we had finished dinner. He paid a visit after I had asked the bartender to send our regards for the food, especially the braised short rib and the frise’ salad with lardons and a perfectly fried egg! Chef Tyler was a pleasure to talk to and as we ended our conversation he asked if we were planning to join them for dinner the next night in their main dining room. He offered a tasting for us that featured some of the local fare and his signature dishes. We happily accepted, said our goodbyes and headed back to our beautiful room to a bottle of wine and excited expectations for what we were to experience the next evening.

The next night at the Restaurant at Copper Beech Inn was perfection. I won’t get into too many specifics but let’s just say this was one of those dining experiences that you simply don’t forget. The service was crisp, attentive, warm and friendly. The tasting menu was on par with anything I have experienced in Manhattan, from Eleven Madison Park to Bouley to Scalini Fedeli. Chef Tyler obviously has an amazing command of his kitchen based on execution alone. But more importantly, he projects a thoughtfulness and an inventive and perfectly appropriate take on modern new American food. The dishes were adventurous at times, the flavors were homey, rustic, fresh and always perfectly balanced and matched both the season and the local ingredients exceptionally well. It was the kind of meal that keeps people coming back, even if coming back means traveling two hours from NYC.

If you're looking for an escape from the hustle and bustle for a weekend or just a night out for a fantastic dinner and a wine list that is unrivaled, Copper Beech Inn is an experience not to be missed.

My wife and I have been here previously, and we enjoyed it enough the first time to come back again with some friends. Everything we liked about it the first time was the same, and there were some very nice additions -- like a newly constructed guest house with rooms that had most of the 19th-Century charm of the main house and all of the convenience and modernity of a 21st-Century property. Another great addition is their chef (Tyler Anderson).

We ate at the Inn all three nights that we were there, and each meal was special in it's own way. Our first night there was Valentine's Day, and dinner was a prix fixe meal in their brasserie. It was much better than a typical prix fixe dinner.

During dinner, Ian Phillips, one of the owners, stopped by the table to chat with us. (I should point out that no one in our party had ever met Mr. Phillips before, so he was just touring the room and making sure his guests were happy.) When he found out we were going to be eating at the Inn the next night (in the main dining room), he told us that the menu there would be the same as what we were having that night. His solution: he called over his chef, and arranged for us to have a special tasting menu the next night.

The next day's dinner was one of the finest dining experiences any of us had ever had. Each course was wonderful, and each somehow managed to outdo the ones that had preceded it. If I have any complaint, it was that I didn't leave enough room to finish my dessert.

Our final dinner was a casual affair at the brasserie. Mr. Phillips had suggested we try the chicken, and we took him up on his suggestion. He was right. It was a simple meal, but each bite was amazing.

The wine list is very good also, but I'll leave the details of that to someone else. The same goes for breakfast, but enough about the food. It's time to talk about the staff, which apparently has learned a great deal from Mr. Phillips. We didn't have to ask for much, because most of what we needed (or even just wanted) was presented to us as a matter of course. And the few things we did have to ask for were delivered promptly and graciously.

Do I have anything negative to say? Not really. Ivoryton in February is not a hotbed of activity, but it's a nice place to relax, and there's enough to do in town and nearby if you get tired of sitting in front of the fireplace.