The King's Arms Tavern, Willilamsburg, Part I

The King's Arms Tavern was my favorite... no FAVORITE dining experience in Colonial Williamsburg!  Rather than just a meal, this was a dining experience from the moment we walked in through the door.  We were seated at a small table on the very edge of the one dining room we were in.  The table was right next to a window and had a perfect view into the kitchen when the waiters and waitresses walked out.  Our table was also near the door to the next dining room, so most of the waiters and waitresses had to walk right by our table.  Sorta high traffic, but also a nice distance away from the other diners in the room.  It was also nice that we could see the different meals as they went by, which helped us make our decisions.  Our room was decorated very nicely with carpeting and wallpaper and nice candle holders and looking glasses (mirrors).  We had an early reservation at 5:00pm because we had an evening program to attend, so the room was lit by daylight.  Our waitress was amazing!  She was so friendly and knowledgeable, and very entertaining. 

Not long after being sat, we were told all about the history of our dining room.  Then our napkins, and their size, were explained to us.  The napkins were like mini-tablecloths!  Why so big?  (good question... same one I had... so happy we are on the same page!).  Well, the napkins were traditionally tied around the neck since the tavern was frequented by your upper class or gentry level of society.  The diner could tie the napkin around their neck to catch any food they may drop and protect their beautiful clothing.  Apparently they didn't have quite the clothing collection I have in my closet.  :)  The waitress then noticed the puzzled look on my face and said "I bet you are wondering why they may have dropped food?"  Please tell!!!  Forks were different... they really didn't hold food like they do today, so diners would use their knives to shovel food into their mouth.  (I know, red flag... mom always said "don't eat your food with your knife!"  Good thing times have changed.)  Since I was wearing a summery button-down shirt and a skort, I opted to place the napkin in my lap.  The table of teachers from California opted to tie them around their necks. 

We started our meal with a cheese plate.  There were four cheeses: gouda, sharp cheddar, bleu and brie.  There was also some green grapes, two strawberries cut into slices, and a piece of French baguette bread.  It was all delightful.  I really enjoyed the bleu, it wasn't super strong.  It was dry but spreadable.  The brie was a mild brie.  The cheddar and gouda were pretty standard.

Remember how I said this was more of a dining experience than just a meal?  Well, it was time to learn about relishes.  Our waitress brought a sample of three different relishes.  There was pickled watermelon rinds, a corn and pepper relish, and then a very salty ham mash relish.  I tried the pickled watermelon a few years ago on another trip to Williamsburg and did not enjoy it then, so I skipped it this time.  The corn was interesting, it's served cold.  I could taste the corn and red and green peppers, and then I'm pretty sure there were pickles as well.  I don't like pickles.  I did not care for the ham relish at all... again I think I tasted pickles.  I'll admit, I have trouble being adventurous with my food.  Upon serving these relishes our waitress explained that now-a-days, if you relish something, you cherish it.  Back then, if you relished something, it meant that you put relish on your food to hide the stale taste of the meat.  Don't forget, they didn't have quite the same methods of preserving meat like we do today, nor did they have refrigerators.  I know I don't like my meat once it's lived in the refrigerator for more than a few days.  During the "relish" stage of our meal, we were also presented with a basket of bread, again a bread that would have been served by the tavern in the 1772.  It had the density of a pound cake, but it was not as sweet.  Definitely more dense than bread that would be served at a restaurant today.  I enjoyed it with some butter that melted right in.

Meal time!  I ordered Deuling Beef Collops: two fillets of Beef that were served over a bed of roasted red potatoes with a brown sauce and some yellow and green squash.  If you have read my other posts, it will not shock you that I only took a small bite of my squash.  It was cooked nicely, but it's a vegetable and and really didn't have any more of that.  My potatoes were wonderful.  They were nicely roasted with a hint of rosemary.  The beef was good.  I did ask for medium-rare.  It was slightly more done than I would have liked, but I also order knowing that each own cook has their own idea of each level of doneness.  And really, only one of the beef pieces was more medium, the other was just about perfect.  They both still had an amazing taste.  The outside was nicely seared with the simple flavor of salt and pepper.  It paired nicely with the brown sauce.  Speaking of the brown sauce, you could taste the complexity of flavors, from the first layer of carrots, onions and the bouquet of herbs, to the second layer that had more onion and tomato.  Really the sauce was a perfect complement to both the beef and the potatoes.  It was also a useful tool to hide the fact that I was eating some of my veggies. 

It's a good thing I proof read... I almost forgot.  During our main course, the waitress brought out a bowl of creamed spinach.  This was another traditional item that would be found on the dinner table.  There was shredded Parmesan cheese on top.  I tried the cheese, but I'm sure you've already guessed that I skipped the green part.  Sorry, I just can't do spinach.

When our waitress came to collect our empty dinner plates, she asked if we enjoyed it.  Our answer "we definitely did NOT relish our meal!" It was perfect and did not need to be hidden by the relish.  :)  She cracked up laughing and you could tell she was impressed that we had listened to her earlier.

Time for dessert.  I had the Chocolate Williamsburg ice cream.  It was amazing, but I was a little disappointed to find out it was no longer actually made in Williamsburg.  Williamsburg rather contracted with Eddy's to produce it.  It does make sense from a cost standpoint, and it is the same recipe as before.  It was rich and creamy and amazing.  Darryl had a signature dessert called a Syllabub.  It is a wine-laced cream whipped to a froth, seasoned with lemon zest and garnished with seasonal berries.  He really enjoyed it.  There was a strong lemon flavor.  I was only able to grab a very small spoonful to try before being told that if I really wanted it, I could have ordered one for myself.  :)  There is a recipe for the Syllabub in the cookbooks I bought, so I do plan on making it at some point.  I'll need help eating it though, the recipe serves 8. 

So, back to the "experience," we had the chance to meet the tavern keeper.  She was excited to hear that we were from Fredericksburg and wondered if we knew her cousin.  We played along and said we'd visited with her many times and she is doing well.  We learned more about the history of the tavern and heard stories of some of it's more famous visitors.  I bet you would like to hear who those visitors were... but you'll have to visit the tavern yourself to find out.

We were also entertained by a roving musician.  Our dinning room had the pleasure in participating in a few sing-a-longs, the most memorable being about Nottingham Ale, the finest of all the ales.  After the song, we asked our waitress if we could try this ale and were disappointed to find out that they didn't carry it.  We didn't actually expect them too, so we weren't truly disappointed.  But we did jokingly give our waitress a hard time about it.  She was really wonderful.

As our meal finished and we paid the $150ish bill, we walked out very full.  Our waitress did give us some pointers on some of the things to see and do while in Williamsburg and promised us that our dining experience at The King's Arms Tavern would be our best.  She definitely was not wrong.  It was by far the best dining experience we had while in Williamsburg.

Thank you for reading!  I hope you enjoyed my tale of The King's Arms Tavern.  If you wish to visit from home, you can check out this website to The King's Arms Tavern.  The history of the tavern can be found on the last page of the dinner menu.