The brick portion of this structure near
the Loudon County Courthouse was build ca. 1900…but the two-story log cabin was
built around 1810 by John Hudson Carmichael. (1780-1840). The building served
as a stagecoach inn for travelers’ en route from Nashville, Knoxville, and
Chattanooga. His sons operated the Inn, the ferry, and the stagecoach. Two of his sons, James and Dan, fell in love
with and married two sisters who were traveling on the stagecoach from Georgia
to the Tate Springs Resort.
The Carmichael Inn is now called The
Carmichael Event Center and it’s operated by the folks that operate the Click
Funeral Homes here in East Tennessee. As
an event center, this facility is now the site for weddings, reunions, parties,
corporate functions and ‘celebration of life’ memorials. The Inn has adequate space to accommodate large
and small events within the building and/or on our outdoor patio area.
The Riverwalk Grille, located inside the Event
Center, offers special events catering and it’s also open for lunch Monday
through Friday from 11:00 am until 2:00 pm as well as for Sunday Brunch from
10:00 am until 2:00 pm.
We were seated in the ‘new’ section of the
Inn…there is an occupied upstairs apartment… In this photo you can see a corner
of the original Carmichael Inn, now partially enclosed within the newer
structure.
The Carmichael Inn can be described as an
"I-house" as it is two stories tall, one room deep and two or more
rooms long. It has a central chimney which opens into fireplaces in the two
downstairs rooms. The structure has a gable roof and two front and two rear doors. A two-story
porch runs the length of the house.
We’ve lived in this area of East
Tennessee for over 4 years…and this is the 3rd or 4th restaurant
operation that we’ve seen operating at the Carmichael Inn. We hope that this one succeeds!
Laurie ordered the Melt In Your Mouth
Patty Melt. ($8.75) It is described as “Our grilled burger served on hearty
marbled rye bread topped with Swiss cheese, caramelized onions and mushrooms,
deliciously grilled together”. Laurie
opted for Riverwalk Grille’s ‘Golden Chips’ versus the steak fries that
normally come with her sandwich.
Laurie really enjoyed her patty melt…and
she is a patty melt connoisseur! Even
better were the homemade potato chips…just excellent! There are 6 different burgers on the menu as
well as soup and salad combos, dinner salads, starters plus items for kids to
order…
I ordered the Tempting Turkey BLT.
($7.50) It is described as “tender smoked turkey, smoky bacon and Havarti cheese
perfectly grilled on rustic Panini bread with fresh tomatoes and lettuce”. The house made potato chips came with my sandwich…and
I was grateful for that fact! I could
eat a big bag of these potato chips…perhaps the best I’ve ever eaten.
As for the sandwich, it was OK…but not
particularly distinctive. I really didn’t
taste the bacon, a fact which, considering that it was allegedly ‘smoked’ was
surprising.
Other ‘non-burger’ sandwiches on the menu
ranged from a Grilled Peanut Butter and Cheese, ($4.99), and a Smoky Pimento
Cheese, ($6.75), to the Plentiful Pot Roast Sandwich, ($8.75), and the Fabulous
Philly. ($9.75)
Our next visit to the Riverwalk Grille
will be for brunch! With our senior discount,
the cost per person should be around $12.70.
When you consider the expansive menu offered this seems like a pretty
good deal. Better yet, we’ve seen quite
a bit of positive feedback about the Sunday brunch…. The only problem is that
we’ll need to diet for a day before and a day after this meal!
Carmichael Inn and Riverwalk Grille are
located right next to US Highway 11 at 600 Hackberry Street in Loudon
Tennessee. It’s right at the foot of the
bridge over the Tennessee River in downtown Loudon. Phone: 865-458-0007. For more information about the Event Center
and to view the full menu for the Riverwalk Grille, go to http://clickeventcenters.com/about-carmichael.html.
Just click on any of the photos to
enlarge them…
Thanks for stopping by for a visit!
Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
Sounds like a place we'd love to visit--especially for brunch. But--I'd love the patty melt ---and I was intrigued by the Grilled Peanut Butter and Cheese. Have never put cheese with peanut butter before… Hmmmmm--not sure about that one…
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing.
Hugs,
Betsy
We've been there a few times and it was always just pretty good.
ReplyDeleteDear Dave, Sounds like Laurie enjoyed her choice. I don't think your sandwich had too much bacon if you could not taste it. Bacon is a difficult not to taste.
ReplyDeleteSounds like it might be worth a try though for the brunch.
My best to you and Laurie. Blessings, Catherine
what beautiful´pictures David!! and the food....lol!
ReplyDelete