It’s Good Friday and the start of the long weekend for many. We hope that whatever your beliefs and traditions (we know this is a big fish-and-chips-day for many Newfoundlanders!), that you can take time to take time, enjoy your family and friends, and maybe squeeze in a few extra chocolates! The weather isn’t promising to be great, but Newfoundlanders know how to enjoy themselves no matter what the thermostat says. And don’t forget – we still have room for Easter Brunch at The Doctor’s House. We think Chef Anna may top herself this time!
Still Space Left for Easter Brunch
Here’s a friendly reminder as we approach the holiday weekend that we still have some spaces left for Easter Brunch at The Doctor’s House. Our beloved Chef Anna Dohey will be preparing Strawberry Spinach Salad, Ham and Asparagus Quiche, Homemade Scones with Cream and Jam, two selections of cake, Peach Mimosas, and more. Enjoy a fun afternoon in our gorgeous location, go for an afternoon stroll, and create some new Easter traditions. For more details, full menu or to make your reservation, please see here.
Check the Traps
Fishing season has begun, and we couldn’t be more excited. All the fresh fish – we know it’s why so many tourists come to visit, and can you blame them?
It’s shaping up to be a good weekend. We’re getting busier as we inch into the summer season, and we like busier! The Savour Food and Wine Show went great yesterday, The Berry reports she’s having a great time on vacation, and we’ve got some fun specials on the go, including an Easter brunch coming up soon at The Doctor’s House. We hope things are lining up just as nicely for your weekend, too!
Savour It!
If you’re enjoying the 7th Annual Savour, Atlantic Canada’s premier Food & Wine Show , then you’re in for a treat tonight. Our beloved Chef Anna Dohey is pairing up with stellar up-and-comer Chris Chafe (whom you may remember from a previous fabulous weekend) to prepare what we can only imagine will be out-of-this-world – cod and salt beef croqueta, with romesco, pickled vegetables, micro-greens and smoked paprika oil. Can you say yum?
Of course, we’re lucky to have Anna prepare our meals at The Doctor’s House each weekend – so if you can’t make it to Savour, then make sure to check out our weekly menus!
Dana On the Edge
You may have heard me mention Dana from time. She’s our new Events Manager at The Doctor’s House, she’s doing a fabulous job, and she’s worth her weight in gold – we’re really happy to have her on board. We were also happy to send her to the Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism‘s Edge of the Wedge Course last weekend. Here’s Dana and some new friends learning to snowshoe in Gros Morne.
If you have a REALLY good memory, you’ll remember that I took this fantastic course two years ago, when we had just begun our Ocean Delight journey. I learned tons – and that’s why we knew it would be a great experience for Dana. The course centers on how tourism operators can use their local community to create an experience that is rewarding and enriching for both tourists and locals alike. This has been a key guiding principal for how we think we about what we do out here in the Wonderful World of Whiteway, and we highly recommend it for all our colleagues.
Spring Specials at The Doctor’s House
A few days ago we wrote about our Spring Specials at the cottages, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t also point out that our sister property, The Doctor’s House, has some tempting offers, too. We’ll be open there for Easter and Mother’s Day, offering a fabulous brunch prepared by our in-house chef. We also have options to add a second night for $99, or two 60-minute Aveda spa treatments for $129. That, plus a relaxing Girls’ Retreat weekend, are already proving to be quite popular – so don’t wait too long to make a reservation! For all our specials, please see here.
Goodbye Sweet Molly
We’d like to take a break from our usually happy blogging to say goodbye to Molly, our sweet Devon Rex who passed away yesterday morning. We never had her as a kitten, as you see above – we hope that she enjoyed her adult years with us. She we beloved by all of us, including our goldens, and by everyone who met her. She was a rare creature and she will be missed.
If you have pets, you know how they become a part of your family. Below is how we’ll remember her. 
Hospitality Conference
We’re busy and loving it in Gander now, at Hospitality NL’s Annual Conference and Trade Show. With 375 delegates from 150 different companies and more than 40 exhibitors, there’s lots to see and do! We’ve learned so much about the tourism industry since we started a few years ago, and we’re only happy to learn more. And that learning is extra-fun when Alan Doyle is the Keynote Speaker – he did a great job, like you’d expect!
Of course, you know we love the Wooden Boat Museum and the Legendary Coasts of Eastern Newfoundland!
Thanks, Joe!
If you’ve been to our cottages or even just read our blog a little bit, you know how essential Joe Friday has been to our operation here – the Wonderful World of Whiteway would be a little less wonderful without him! It has always warmed our hearts to see how much our guests love him, too. Take this recent review on Trip Advisor, simply titled ‘Awesome.’ According to this guest, “Upon arrival Joe Friday (who is the jack of all trades) greeted us with his awesomeness! He had the fire going, lights dimmed and popcorn and Hot chocolate waiting for us. My friends and I spent an evening in solitude. This truly is a little piece of heaven. Customer service was excellent and atmosphere was superb! It was Awesome! This place would be top of my list to recommend for anyone!
So while Joe might brag about himself, we sure can! I’ll include a recent comment left in our guest book, below. As always, thanks, Joe, for all your hard work (and if you’d like to see what all the fuss is for yourself, don’t forget about our Stay in and Stay Warm package, which adds all kinds of cozy extras to your stay, now through the end of March!).
Construction on Wedding Banquet Hall Begins at The Doctor’s House!
We’re working hard to turn The Doctor’s House a world-class wedding destination. One of our steps is converting our big barn into a banquet hall that seats 200 people. We started work last week with Point Contracting, the local contractor who also built our house and cottages.
For all the grief that the winter weather has brought us, this current thaw allows us to get a foundation in early. This is a big move to help keep us on schedule.
So here are the ‘before’ shots of the Big Barn Project. We’ll use this blog to keep all our booked wedding couples booked appraised of our progress.
And don’t worry – since this barn was currently empty, we’re not putting out any of our animals. They’re still snug-as-a-bug in their current home!
