Shelburne Inn

I have used Karen Brown Guidebooks to plan my itineraries for the past five years. In all the time I have used the guidebooks, this is the only accommodation/restaurant that has severely disappointed. We travelled to Seaview/Long Beach specifically to stay at this Inn. The Inn is very run down - it is poorly maintained - and worse, our room was dirty. The windows were filthy, the bathroom was dirty (especially, the eggshell-coloured walls were desperately in need of a wash), and the room seeme...

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I have used Karen Brown Guidebooks to plan my itineraries for the past five years. In all the time I have used the guidebooks, this is the only accommodation/restaurant that has severely disappointed. We travelled to Seaview/Long Beach specifically to stay at this Inn. The Inn is very run down - it is poorly maintained - and worse, our room was dirty. The windows were filthy, the bathroom was dirty (especially, the eggshell-coloured walls were desperately in need of a wash), and the room seemed not to have been dusted for months. If you have brass fittings, they should be kept polished.....these were not and were not clean. The coat stand behind the door into our room was cluttered with the last occupant’s garbage and recycling (plastic containers etc). The restaurant was also disappointing. We had the salmon filet for dinner. It was flavourless, the meal was lukewarm to room temperature when it should have been served hot, and the only item on the plate that had flavour was the pickled beets, which were so sharp they completely dominated any other flavour in the meal. The salad came with store bought (Pepperige Farm?) croutons. The bread (delivered by the waiter who said ’yummy bread for you!’) was doughy white bread, flavourless and at room temperature. It certainly was not fresh bread. The wine list, also, is disappointing - it carries almost no Washington/Oregon wine. We were one of two reservations for the evening, and yet we were seated right at the entrance to the kitchen, which was also right below the speakers for the dining room (and the music was Muzak, or elevator music, and way too loud) and also right beside a telephone - why does the telephone service for the Inn have to ring in the dining room? Usually, a reservation made several weeks in advance would guarantee a nice table - not the worst table in the room. Lastly, our room was VERY noisy. There is a lot of street noise from the busy road along the front of the inn. Nowhere in any guidebooks or on the Shelburne’s web page does it indicate or illustrate that the hotel is on a busy road, a main traffic artery, and right across the street from an all-hours grocery and convenience store. The hotel was not busy. Perhaps half of the rooms were occupied and the dining room was less than half full. I just cannot see any excuse for the run-down state of the hotel and the indifferent to poor dining experience. I see no place in the Karen Brown Guide for this establishment. Of the 13 nights we travelled, this was the most expensive room we booked and the only room that was a complete disappointment.

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In response to the comments posted by CChaplin: We always welcome feedback from our guests. In the 32 years during which we have owned and operated the Shelburne Inn, it is from listening to our customers that we have learned best how to please them. Unfortunately, CChaplin didn’t voice any complain...

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In response to the comments posted by CChaplin: We always welcome feedback from our guests. In the 32 years during which we have owned and operated the Shelburne Inn, it is from listening to our customers that we have learned best how to please them. Unfortunately, CChaplin didn’t voice any complaints to us during her stay. We adhere to the highest standards of cleanliness and the upkeep and maintenance of our 113-year old building receives our relentless attention. In fact, just before CChaplin arrived a fresh coat of paint was applied to the building and our garden was in full bloom after months of preparation for this season. Our housekeeping, reception and restaurant staff are guided in these same principles of cleanliness and quality service. Of course, we are all human, and if something had been overlooked in CChaplin’s room, for that we sincerely apologize. If they were uncomfortable in the room and had made that known to us, we could have corrected or cleaned anything that was in need of attention or moved them to another room more to their liking. We regret that they were not forthcoming with their comments during their stay, as we would have done all that we possibly could to make their stay enjoyable and memorable in a most positive way. Regarding the restaurant “review”, I was not able to read the comments in their entirety, so I can only respond to what I’m able to view on-line. Of course, we strive to please our restaurant guests just as we do our inn guests. If CChaplin had made known her displeasure to her server, I believe we could have rectified the situation and she could have left the dining room a happy camper. I am not in a position to refute how a guest experiences a meal, however I must correct CChaplin’s misstatement regarding our croutons. We make our croutons, ourselves, from our own bread. Of course, it’s much more gratifying to read and hear all the positive comments that our guests commonly leave us, but we do learn and benefit from negative comments, especially when offered in a forthright, constructive manner.

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