On our recent visit to Virginia, we stayed at two out of the way “country” inns that have well regarded dining experiences. They could not be more different.

The Inn at Little Washington is lovely- velvets and fringe, whimsically muraled, fabric draped, high ceilinged glory. You might think you have wandered onto a stage set, a wonderfully comfortable one where a cast of friendly elves caters to every need you didn’t realize you had. A converted gas station, the Inn was first a small restaurant, then carefully reimagined and expanded over time to its current 23 guest rooms and suites. Owner Patrick O’Connell and London based stage and set designer Joyce Evans coined the term “fantality” the blend between fantasy and reality. The Inn’s website says this became the filter through which all design decisions were made. It is built both to impress and to pamper; it does both exceptionally well. The location is almost irrelevant, Patrick O’Connell had the audacious notion to create something so exceptional that people would seek it out wherever it might be. To use the phrase from Field of Dreams, “if you build it, they will come,” and they did.

The Farmhouse at Veritas is a different animal. Built as a home in 1839, it became a six room B&B in 2012. It feels welcoming, comfortable, and authentic to its location. Guests seem to be in or coming to the area, the choice to stay or eat at the Farmhouse tends to be the secondary decision.

When you drive up to the front of the Inn at Little Washington a uniformed Valet greets you and asks your name. He checks the location of your room on a clipboard, takes the car key and tells us that he will drive our car across to the Parsonage, where our room is located, park the car in the small lot behind the building, take our luggage inside leave the key in our room. He directs us to head inside the Inn where a host will check us in and take us to our room. We wander inside admiring the sumptuous décor and stroll inward until we encounter someone in the Monkey Bar. Oh, you are trying to check in, let me find your host. In a minute another person appears, so sorry he says, I was checking in another guest. The Inn has none of the usual well labeled check in desks (the better to continue the fantasy part of the experience) more of a lectern where a person greets you and deals with whatever is needed. Staff appear to fill a multitude of roles and learn your name so they can greet you personally when you next appear. Our friendly host confirmed our check in details, confirmed the time of our dinner reservation poured us a welcome cocktail (sparking wine with some seasonal syrup additive, tasty) showed us the location of the parlor where tea was then being served, grabbed one of the large umbrellas located at every exterior door then escorted us through the rain across the street to the Parsonage. He pointed out the comfortable parlor with a cozy gas fire and the hutch where tea, coffee water and soft drinks were always available, then showed us to our room. Our bags were awaiting us, so we settled a few things, then went over to the main building for tea. Tea and breakfast are included in the room price, so we were going to make sure to enjoy all the benefits the Inn has to offer.

When we arrived for tea, the young lady who greeted us and showed us to our table apologized for the need to ask our name. We saw her several more times during our stay and she greeted us by name, pronounced correctly, every time. She gave us a tea menu and explained the nuances of the choices of the 20 or so tea options. I am referring to teas, not the yummy stuff served with it: Black teas, green teas, white teas, etc. She returned shortly with a tiered tray of sweet and savory concoctions along with small containers of lemon curd, clotted cream, several jams, and pots of tea. It was all delicious, but conscious of our 8:30 dinner reservation we tried not to overindulge. We headed back to our room to digest, relax, and nap before dinner.

Next morning, we were both still pretty full from dinner so we relaxed with coffee in the parlor at the Parsonage before heading over to breakfast. Once again, we were greeted by name as we were seated and given a chance to peruse the menu. While we are doing that a juice flight appeared, four selections of house created blends of juices and flavorings. This is not something I have ever seen before, but the motto at ILW seems to be whatever everyone else does, let’s reimagine it and take it two steps above. The breakfast included in the room price is a bread and pastry basket along with fresh berries, house made granola and yogurt. There are a variety of heavier options all of which sounded delicious available at an extra cost, but neither of us were very hungry, so went with the “basic” option. It was excellent. I am a sucker for really good baked goods. This morning’s selection along with those served at tea were all tender and flakey, not too terribly sweet and like everything else- just a bit different from the expected. After breakfast we wandered around the little village, checked out the farm and a few shops before gathering up our belongings and heading home.

One interesting note about service. Dinner is pre-paid, and you provide your credit card when making the hotel reservation. There is no check presented at dinner nor at breakfast. An invoice appears overnight saying that unless you tell them otherwise, here is what will be charged to your credit card. No messy details at check out, just – here is the key, do you want us to get your car, your luggage, anything else we can do for you? It is all very seamless; all the staff seem to know everything and ready to jump in to help with anything. The young lady who served us at tea appeared to be waiting for us at dinner with our personalized menu at the ready. No haughty maître d’s, no valets looking down their nose because you aren’t driving a Mercedes. Just low key, friendly, efficient service with all the details carefully thought out, so all you need to do is enjoy it. “Fantality” indeed.

The Farmhouse at Veritas is much more of a “standard” B&B; with six bedrooms in the main building and a separate two-bedroom cottage. Furnishings are very pretty, and everything is comfortable. What do you picture when imagining a Virginia country Inn: four poster beds, fireplaces, scattered antiques, porches overlooking the countryside? Check, check and check. There are several common areas- the downstairs gathering room, with its big comfy chairs and fireplace and the upstairs library with nice leather chairs and side tables perfect for relaxing with a book and a beverage. Both locations contain a coffee and tea set up and a small fridge with water bottles. When you arrive, you are greeted, shown to your room, and given an overview of the facilities, the timing of wine hour, dinner, breakfast- all the important stuff. A bottle of wine and glasses await you in the room and a handy printed sheet gives you the key codes for your room and the main door along with other useful information.

Wine hour is low key, a self-serve selection of Veritas wines and some snacks. Find a spot by the fireplace or enclosed porch and relax. In nice weather there are outdoor locations which I look forward to coming back to experience. We watched the sun set from the porch then joined the group by the fire, chatting about travel and how everyone had found the Inn.

Breakfast is served on the enclosed porch. Fresh squeezed orange juice and sparking wine appear along with a warm fresh croissant and tea or coffee and fresh fruit. There are two options for breakfast, one sweet and one savory. Options on the two mornings of our stay included smoked salmon eggs benedict with country potatoes and banana bread French toast with spiced apple compote. All were delicious.

The two places are very different concepts. At ILW everything from the décor to the food is carefully curated and elevated (they use that term on Top Chef all the time, so it must be the in-vogue term for “take something good and reimagine or upgrade it”). Veritas has a more relaxed “European heritage meets southern charm” vibe – you get fresh squeezed orange juice, they don’t tell you that’s what it is, but it tastes like it, and I noticed lots of oranges in the kitchen. At ILW it is four juices in a special rack – things like house made elderberry infused with lemon basil and croissants with fresh grated house roasted hazelnut. I made that last one up, but you get the idea. Dinner at ILW is a fantasy of exotic flavors and ingredients, everything on the menu has been perfected to the last tiny detail. Some of these items have been on the menu for years, I noted mention of the lamb carpaccio with Caesar salad ice cream in reviews from years ago. It is awesome, but it should be. Farmhouse at Veritas describes its menu as homegrown and house-made farm to fork with menus that change bi-weekly. The current posted menu contains no items that were on the menu during our visit in February.

And then there is the price -the most expensive room at the Farmhouse at Veritas is about one third that of the least expensive one at the Inn at Little Washington. They are both wonderful but very different experiences, only one of which I look forward to repeating. And maybe this time we will stay for three nights.