Fitzwilliam Inn, Fitzwilliam

We thought we were booking a room at a quiet country inn. Wow, were we wrong. From their website: "Fitzwilliam Village has changed little over the last 150 years, allowing our inn to accommodate visitors from around the world for an authentic antiquated experience." Imagine our surprise when there was an all night rock concert directly under our room. No, it was not on their calendar. We had no idea, and were not told when we reserved the room. We also had dinner in their restaurant, which was convenient in the pouring rain that day so we didn't need to go out, but it is at best adequate, nothing special. When I asked the management about the rock concert under our feet we were offered ... ear plugs. "There's nothing I can do", said the owner. No attempt at accommodation, no sympathy, just Sorry, too bad, tough. Needless to say we will never go back.

A friend recommended driving up to the Fitzwilliam for dinner, and we were captivated from the time we walked in the door. We had a wonderful meal, featuring local foods: mint greens in the salad, perch in the fish tacos, and strawberry rhubarb pie. Even though we had had no intentions of spending the night, we decided to do so, waking around the Fitzwilliam green and enjoying some live music back at the Inn before bedtime. Breakfast the next morning was hearty and delicious, enlivened with a backgammon game. The only downside for us was the noise: Due to warm weather, we had the windows to our front-facing room open, and there was a surprising amount of loud, night-time traffic going through the village. In cooler weather, with the windows closed, or in a room not facing the road, this hopefully would not be a problem. But all in all, the charming New England ambiance, the great food, and delightful staff members made for a memorable stay.

I am only rating the dining experience and not the Inn. Place is very NE, very cozy cute pub. On the positive side: great pear salad, crab cakes (but could use a sauce), squash, good lobster bisque (however did not look like or taste remotely like lobster bisque. Should be renamed "Surprise Soup") and a good chocolate dessert with a warm center. On the negative side: Duck, ordered med. rare. came to the table in three conditions. 1/3 delicious, 1/3 very well done, and one third "Duck Jerkey". The haddock was vertually inedible. Frozen, old, grey and watery. Tastewise, the haddock did not taste anything like fish although the panko crust was great. Alcoholic drinks were stingy. Coffee was luke warm. No bread was served and we had to ask for cheese to go with the complementary crackers. We complained to the waiter (owners son) who suggested that we speak to the owner and we said that we would appreciate that. The owner never did come out but instead offered coffee and dessert, which was a nice gesture. Two prople out of 6 had coffee which was luke warm. One person had a delicious chocolate dessert with a warm center and the other had the "recommended" the award winning terrimisou, which was hidiously freezer burned. We dropped nearly $300. at the Fitzwilliam Inn on dinner. We might as well have dropped it directly in the toilet bowl. Definately do not recommend this place as "Five Star Fine Dining" by any stretch of the imagination. John and Carol, Brett and Kristen and Adrienne and Dan ..........Groton, Ma.

We stayed at the Firtzwilliam in September. The guests, the staff and especially the Kelly's made this stay a memorable one. Our room was spotless. The atmosphere in the Pub was conducive to good conservation while enjoying great food. The Kelly's acted as a host would if inviting someone to their home. We went home with a feeling of time well spent.

Stayed there in January 2006. Restaurant was good, lodging was awful. No locks on rooms, no TV or telephone in rooms, no check in or check out process, no information on how to reach someone during off hours, no heat in room overnight, very, very slow hot water, room neglected (dead plants). Restaurant seems to be the focus of the owners with the Inn as an afterthought. Would not recommend this for an overnight stay.