Willow Creek Inn

the service and food here has never disappointed me and I am a hard person to please

Most of the food was grown there. Very fresh and delicious. Couldn't find that anywhere else. We are grateful for the evening.

Best food in North Carolina, maybe in the USA. Personal service. Would recommend the Willow Creek Inn to everyone.

I really don’t want to write a bad review, but there was no live jazz as advertised and the food was served buffet style and was cold by the time we got to it. Still, I would be willing to give it another visit at a time when dinner was served tableside.

We had an amazing dinner! The Chef was very friendly and menu was delicious! Will definitely be back. It is a must do experience!

One of the best culinary experiences I’ve ever had! A very modest restaurant from the outside but don’t be fooled! The food was so unique and original and the Chef was quite a character. I’ll remember this meal for a long time. Can’t wait to go back!

In as few words as possible. An impeccable dining experience. We felt as if Mansour invited us to his home to share a meal and what a delicious meal it was. Mr Zand gives a new meaning to farm to table. We will return soon with many in tow.
Thanks
Jim & Rose

The service was very good. Everyone from the Chef to the staff was friendly. The atmosphere was very nice. The quality of the meal was amazing and 6 courses for $100.00 is unbeatable. The fact that it included the wine and pre dinner cocktail was even more value. That being said, as a wine enthusiast, when I go back, I will bring my own wine for the main course. Yellowtail just didn’t do the Beef Wellington justice. But who can complain when you are already getting so much bang for your buck.

The staff was incredibly friendly. Some food was amazing, some, nothing extraordinary. The place is clean inside, but very outdated and run down. From the parking lot to the condition of the building (outside moreso), there is much left to be desired. I am not high maintenance and find some older, one of a kind places, sometimes better than others. If the food was all outstanding, the rest of the stuff I could easily overlook. Potatoes were on the menu, and not an option that night as was stated. My kids were disappointed. The pumpkin cheesecake was wonderful. I asked for white wine, got red wine. Was okay overall. Wouldn't go back though.

Thanksgiving

Way off the beaten trial but well worth the hike great ambiance and conversation.

Purchased this deal which cost $51 for a 4-course dinner for two. It was a 68 minute drive but traffic was not a problem on a Saturday evening. We were pleasantly greeted by the owner and chef, Manseur. He had called me earlier in the day to ask if would like steak or fish. I had fish (Sea Bass) and husband had wonderful selection of Filet Mignon. The first course was a type of lamb patty, and was quite filling, but I did not finish. The second course was a beautiful salad, straight from his garden, and it was absolutely delicious! I've not ever had a salad that good, ever! He brought us a small scoop of sorbet which was a palate cleanser. Then a few minutes later we were served the 3rd course, our entrees. They were both very delicious, prepared perfectly to our liking. It came with a tasty orzo that was also flavored with saffron. He served us a delicious Red Merlot that was top notch, loved it! He also brought out some bread and butter with our meal. The 4th course was a wonderful dessert, his homemade pecan pie. So yummy. When he bought the property years ago, there were 98 pecan trees on it! This is located among farmland. So please don't expect 4 or 5 star surroundings, but do expect food that is top notch! You can't lose on this deal, and sadly I doubt you will see that $51 price point for a 4-course dinner for two again for awhile! His website shows different fun occasions that you can book and reserve for future dates.

We loved talking with Chef Mansour a d our meal was scrumptious.

wonderful presentation and finished product. Always get our moneys worth here

This is my favorite restaurant in the area. It is a charming setting with beautifully laid tables, flowers, linens and proper silverware. The food is consistently good and I know I will have a nice leisure meal. I introduced my friends to it the other night and they said it was the freshest salad they had ever eaten and the food was delicious. Three of us had beef and you could cut it with a butter knife it is so tender. The fish was good and flavorful .
Willow Creek is always a highlight of the dining experience. Highly recommend as it is small, intimate, delicious food, good service, great price and you get to know the chef who welcomes and seats you. You feel you are a guest in his home.

This is a dining experience. It is not normal going out to eat dining. If you expect a menu, there isn't one. If you expect a wine list, there isn't one. You have a choice of wine Red or White, that is all.
I believe some of the negative reviews for this restaurant are reviews done from the perspective of eating at a traditional restaurant and having multiple choices for everything.
The chef does farm to table, they are his dishes. You can ask for gluten free and he will abide. But everything else is done very well by the chef.
The food, the wine, the service, the atmosphere were all great.
I hear he has special events throughout the year, we will try one in the future. But just dining there was an experience.

Don’t waste your $.

We went here for Thanksgiving. It was a lovely drive from Charlotte and the setting and building are very charming. From all we heard, the really great meals are not at Thanksgiving, but throughout the year at special dinners. Thanksgiving was really just OK in terms of the food. Several of the dishes on the buffet were cold, and we were first in line. We had to wait probably half an hour at our table before we were served soup and ok rolls, nothing special. Wine comes with dinner which was great, though don't expect fine wines or fine dining. The restaurant is in a house, and we were seated on the porch, where there were about ten other groups. The area where the buffet was located was a hodgepodge of papers, bags of rolls, books and paintings. The kind of sight you would expect at a slightly eccentric aunt's home. I say that as a rather eccentric aunt myself. Though my home when company comes is much neater than this was. I would love to go back for the Persian dinner or a meal that is specially planned for us. All in all, we were happy we went out to the country for Thanksgiving and enjoyed ourselves. The servers were friendly as was our host. I would chalk it up as a fun experience.

Fantastic food with a wonderful chef/host. I really cannot say enough good things about both of those. If it were closer, my wife and I would be regulars (and we probably will be wife's birthday regulars - it was that good!)

The food, the service, everything, was perfect. Monsignor called in advanced and asked if we would like chicken fish or beef, and then took care of the rest. We had a succulent meal followed by the most divine lemon pound cake.

Chef ought to be ashamed of himself. What a disappointment. Nobody introduced themselves. Nobody told us what we were eating. Lentil soup was good. Salad was very good. It ended there. My wife's salmon was indistinguishable from what you can get at K&W Cafeteria or Golden Corral. Dry and overcooked. Awful. Our "beef" appeared to be prime rib that was subjected to meat tenderizer. All the plates had some kind of potato/beef/cheese slop and hopelessly overcooked carrots. One of our five "courses" was a tiny ball of sherbet to "refresh" our palates. Silly us, we thought we'd get an appetizer. Dessert was an unremarkable dry pound cake with pudding filling. Red wine was inoffensive. That's it. So, for 3 adults and a child we were charged $305. I can't remember when I was ripped off this badly. Please do yourself a favor and do not go there.

Way out of the way in Vale, NC is this little, quirky gem of a restaurant that has neither a menu nor a freezer. All dishes are prepared based on what fresh ingredients the chef can get that day. And the chef will call you ahead of time to find out whether you want beef, chicken or fish. We had a 5-course meal as well as fresh in-house baked bread and a palate cleanser of sorbet. The chef, Mansour Zand, pulled up a chair and chatted with us throughout the meal and kept our wine glasses full. The food was delicious, plentiful and interesting. I usually don't eat dessert but the lemon cake was just too good to pass up. There are very few restaurants that operate this way, with such personalized service and creative cookery, so it's a bonus that it's less than an hour's drive from Charlotte. Willow Creek Inn also hosts theme nights, so we'll be trying some of those for sure!

Valentines

Very rude Chef. Food was good but not worth his attitude. Wait staff had no idea what they were serving, you had to ask the rude chef. Who may or may not tell you. No menus, your choice is chicken,beef or fish, that is the description. So you get one protein and whatever else he wants to give you. He may take offense if you ask what something is. Our story is from the Twighlight Zone. I tried to paste it but couldn’t . I don’t recommend the restaurant nor the chef. Although the food was good. Other reviews mention his attitude. My wife told him he was a mean man when we left.

So glad I came across the Willow Creek Inn for Thanksgiving...just wish I had come across it a year ago! Can't wait to see the place in the daylight and to experience some of the seasonal events, especially Persian New Years. Mansour is a wonderful, welcoming host. It appears that he speaks to every table in the restaurant. Looking forward to my next visit.

Wonderful event all the way around--setting, food, ambiance, and entertainment. Was definitely one of the best evenings I have spent in years.

Excellent food, and owner was very interesting to converse with between courses. However, tables are all close together in small room with no music, so there is no privacy. Obnoxious table next to us made everyone in the place miserable.

Easily one of the best experiences and meals my wife and I have ever had. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys great food and a simple atmosphere. The cook has an amazing sense of humor and is a joy to talk to . We were completely blown away by the experience.

A favorite and we will be back again and again. Monsignor is brilliant

Very cute place with great food. The environment is so friendly that you feel like you are in a big dinner party in a friends' home