October 2012
When Chef Amanda Stine and Mary Garland, owner of Garland’s Oak Creek Lodge, met at a wedding, neither guessed their relationship would the one to last for over three decades and include publishing a feast-filled cookbook called Sharing the Table at Garland’s Lodge. Yet the lodge’s dining room has forged many a friendship, creating a family atmosphere that says, “Stay and sup with us.”
Below the sandstone cliffs of Secret Canyon, Garland’s Lodge hosts 16 cabins nestled among 10 acres of produce-rich orchards and organic gardens. There is also a chicken yard. Guests are fed from this bounty which rotates with the ripening harvest. Diverted springs water the orchards where 13 apple varieties, peach, pear, cherry, blackberry and even a kiwi vine offer opportunities for Stine to whip up pies, tarts and cobblers. Garden green beans, onions, peppers, squash, thyme and mint create inspired salads as well as pungent stews and soups. Eggs become breakfast or indulgent cakes and puddings.
“There is a seasonal influence in the menu, and we use everything we can,” Stine said, “with lots of veggies in the meals, salads and soups. And for dessert, I love to make anything custard – flan, panna cotta, you name it.” Dietary accommodations are easily done with notice.
Stine’s ties to the lodge started with a seasonal spot in the kitchen. She soon met a man, married, and Garland’s turned into a life choice that has benefitted all. Her practical experience began in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and Stine polished her skills through hours in the kitchen, supplemented by stacks of foodie magazines and a groaning shelf of cookbooks. She also took pastry intensives at the premiere Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. This has earned the lodge mentions in magazines ranging from Sunset to Phoenix Home and Garden.
For those staying at the lodge, meals are included, yet outside guests can make a reservation to dine. The hall’s shotgun style of stone with rustic, hewn beams and anchor fireplace has expanded with wings where friends can lounge, awaiting the dinner bell. Or on a soft summer evening, guests often recline in Adirondack chairs on a carpet of grass and surrounded by red rocks. In either case, they sip Garland’s signature cocktail, Banjo Bill’s Anticipation, made with bourbon and apple cider pressed on the premises. In season, they order a fresh peach daiquiri – a sigh in a glass.
Nothing puts the stamp of approval on a restaurant like repeat customers. The lodge’s evolution from quaint cottages to elegant dining has been a steady road and Mary credits her chef. “Amanda has honed her craft, staying current as well as sourcing local, quality ingredients in addition to our gardens. She finds the best stuff, whether it’s cheeses or oils.”
On a wet evening, the crackling fire is inviting and intimate. Many people have been coming for a dozen years or more, and others are meeting for the first time. Eyes are drawn to the tempting menu as we tear into olive oil brioche. The fixed courses are soon laid before the lodge’s 50 diners. First, we spoon up a nourishing mushroom and leek soup, daubing the last of it with the subtle, fruity-flavored bread.
Next, a mixed salad, topped by crusted goat cheese and apricots with champagne vinaigrette offers warm, cool, tangy and sweet bites in turns. When the main event arrives, its aromatic scent fills our nostrils. The braised lamb shank, seasoned with lemon and thyme rests in a pool of hearty lentils, butted by baby carrots and green beans. These turn out to be fresh, firm and yielding. Meat falls from the bone, and guests groan in pleasure.
At my table, the couples sing Stine’s praises and recall past menus. Red chile bread, posole and squash soup, chocolate chile pots de crème. Roasted chicken with mushrooms, sweet onions and thyme, mashed sweets and Yukon gold potatoes plus braised kale with garlic and apple cake to finish.
And a southern theme emerges via Stine’s mother in shrimp and sausage ettouffee plus harvest bread with fresh pumpkin pie. These diners can remember many a good meal and a laugh, such as the night the staff served venison and hung a towel over the resident deer mounted in the dining room.
The kitchen is the original homestead from 1910 fitted with cherry cabinets and black, iron pull handles from my childhood. “The lodge reminds many people of their own happy memories,” Mary said. Yes, happy, content, well-fed memories. NAMLM Gail G. Collins
Visit garlandslodge.com to learn more about the restaurant and lodge.