Elmwood at Sparks

Super find! We pass through gordonsville often on trips to visit family, and this is a great place to stop. We had quiche, salads, soup, and the open face grilled chicken. All were very good, friendly staff, nice café atmosphere. We’ll be back!

Excellent — my wife is gluten free and they made extra effort to change the sauce for her filet — wonderful food, wonderful service. We loved it.

WOW! Sometimes it’s best to seek the GEM of restaurants in small towns & this is definitely the case for Elmwood at Sparks in Orange, VA! If you are any where NEAR Orange, VA make every effort to stop in for a meal. I promise you will want to thank me! We had dinner and it was beautifully presented, perfectly prepared. Between the four of us we had duck, trout & filet mignon and each morsel was delectable. I would personally recommend the Crepes for dessert but have to say the Chocolate torte and Apple crisp brought raves as well from our table. Attentive, interested & most accommodating servers made us feel as if we were the only ones in the restaurant!

One of the best places to grab lunch in Orange. Cute indoor seating with a modern décor and an open kitchen so you can spy on the chefs that are hard at work. Friendly staff and very tasty meals. Soup varies week to week but they have a fixed sandwich menu. The warm country ham with Swiss and a side of pasta salad is to die for! I highly recommend this little spot if you are looking for a decent meal in town.

This was an unexpected find. (Thanks again Unilocal). After spending a day at local vineyards we found ourselves in Orange around dinner time. After consulting Unilocal we selected Elmwood at Sparks. We were definitely under dressed for the restaurant (we showed up in shorts). However, we were greeted politely and treated very respectfully.
I ordered the trout and my friend ordered the filet. The trout was definitely one of the best I have ever had. From what I can see it appears that some of the dishes are rotated off the menu. When we were there the menu selections were Trout, Salmon, Filet, Duck, Lamb or a Pasta dish. From what I can tell sometimes they offer chicken and pork.
We will be back, not sure when but we will be back!

Went here for a rehearsal dinner. Food was flat out amazing. Service was on point. Will definitely come here again soon.

Stopped by for dinner on the way through town on a Friday night. My wife and I were impressed with the menu and wine list. The food was tremendous. We also plan to stop by during lunch to compare the feel of the place. I highly recommend eating here if you have a chance.

Excellent! Visited from out of town, 4 in our group. Menu is small in terms of selections, however they are delicious and well done. I had the sautéed halibut served over rice w/​seasonal vegetables. Others in my group had pork and lamb entrees. We all cleaned our plates! For dessert, we had the peach crisp and hazelnut Napoleon. All excellent. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen four absolutely clean plates! Fresh items. Service was excellent too! I’d visit again if I were in town :)

I recently was married at the nearby Inn at Westwood Farm, a fabulous bed and breakfast located about 7 minutes away from Elmwood at Sparks. For our wedding dinner, we decided to dine at Elmwood at Sparks because of it’s positive Unilocal reviews and its close proximity to the B&B. I wasn’t really sure what to expect as far as the atmosphere and such of the restaurant just based solely on Unilocal reviews and pictures, but I was pleasantly surprised by how upscale (but not pretentious) it ended up being.
We had such an amazing and memorable dinner here. The staff was so wonderful and personable during the whole evening. This combined with the delicious food made it truly the best wedding dinner I could have asked for. The restaurant even printed special menus for my husband and I, which we brought home with us. Every course we ate was wonderful and prepared well. We started with two orders of the charcuterie, which was fresh and lively, and included foie gras, which I love but haven’t had in ages because of its ban in restaurants back home in California where I am from. Everyone enjoyed their entrees, and dessert was delicious. I love that ingredients are sourced local when possible, and the quality of the food was outstanding because of this. We were the last party in the restaurant, but we never felt rushed by staff. Overall, I highly recommend Elmwood at Sparks if you are looking for an outstanding dining experience in the area. I will definitely be back when I am in Orange again.

Definitely a very elegant and charming restaurant with a very unique menu. Great atmosphere and location. I have never had such a delicious and beautiful caesar salad before trying yours. The desserts were the best part, we had the very tasty rhubarb tart. The wine selection was fantastic. Unfortunately one less star because our fish was just a little over cooked and dry but, still delicious.

I was looking to have lunch as I was passing through town. Quaint place. Quite large inside. Extensive lunch menu. For some reason we waited a long time for our sandwiches, not really sure why. Food was tasty but noting out of the ordinary. Service was spotty. One waitress (blond) was great, the other (brunette) was not at all friendly. I’m not sure that I would return. I’d give this place another chance in a pinch.

Had Valentine’s Day dinner at the Elmwood this evening. Restaraunt was busy, but not overwhelming for a holiday dinner; we had a reservation for 8pm. Enjoyable atmosphere with nice spacing. This was our first time eating here, and have heard good things about it. Parking was pretty convenient as we found a spot right on the street.
We started with the New England clam chowder and the creamy pasta; both were pretty good. We were also served what seemed to be fresh baked dinner rolls, and slices of whole wheat bread. The chowder could have used a bit more seasoning though.
For the entrées, we had the sesame crusted tuna and surf and turf. The tuna was great, and the wasabi mashed potatoes worked decadently with the crusted fish. I enjoyed a glass of Riesling, and a sparkling water with my plate. The surf and turf was ‘more turf than surf’, leaving more surf to be desired. I was told that the filet was good overall, though.
We both had the apple tart with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Dessert was just ok, it would have been more enjoyable with a crust to add a bit of texture. Probably would not choose this one again.
Overall though, we would give the Elmwood another go, as it is a local choice for a nice, relaxing dinner in Orange.

I’ve eaten here a total of 8 times and have not been disappointed once. The service is amazing — Kristen especially. I am amazed that they remember my high maintenance eating (no gluten) and make alterations to the entrees to accommodate me. Cannot say enough wonderful things.

A nice place, popular with the locals. SUPER busy on a Saturday with customers from two nearby fesitvals. Had to sit at the corner of the counter due to the crowd, but the bonus was that I got to be entertained by the busy cooks in the open kitchen with their enormous collection of copper pots suspended from the ceiling. Oh yeah, and the open-​faceed portobello sandwich with roasted red peppers hit the spot.

Was visiting Madison’s Montpelier and asked an employee for a dinner recommendation. Elmwood at Sparks was one of the recommendations. My boyfriend and I walked in around 6pm, right when dinner started. We did not have reservations but the hostess was so nice to seat us at a table to our liking. We ordered the special fried green tomatoes with sausage and mini egg and micro greens as well as escargot and mushroom risotto. Both appetizers were beautifully presented and were so delicious. The red wines tinto and cotes du rhone were nice pairings. Main courses were grilled swordfish and pork napoleon, both were excellently prepared in presentation and taste. Not over cooked or dry, just right. We cleaned our plates. Desserts were warm apple crisp with Greek yogurt w strawberry swirl and raspberry tart w gingerbread ice cream. We were amazed with how perfect the desserts were made and the presentation. Service was attentive and friendly. Definitely recommend the place and will go back if in the area.

I can recommend the Elmwood Burger and ice tea. The burger was perfectly toasted – not too dark and not mushy and not too greasy. This is the restaurants signature dish – thus it would be highly unlikely for them to screw this up. The wait staff and maitre-​d and wait staff were very courteous and polite.
To earn five stars, I would need the drink refill area could be a little more organized.
The rest rooms were clean.
Overall, I like this restaurant!

Looking for a place for lunch after visiting Montpelier and my phone directed us to Elmwood at Sparks. Seeing a 4+ star review, we knew we were probably going to enjoy our lunch. We sure did! It was Burger Day and my two friends who opted for the burgers said they were the BEST that had ever eaten! WOW! My husband had the chicken salad and I had the ham and cheddar melt on puff pastry and both were wonderful. The waitress was very very helpful and very nice. Don’t hesitate to go there. The dinner menu looked a little intimidating to us as we eat a little less fancy than the items offered. I’m sure, however, that whatever you order here, you’ll love it.

Great romantic night and lovely dinner. My boyfriend and I made a last-​minute trip to this city to stay at a nice inn and go wine tasting and sightseeing for the weekend. We knew we should have made reservations but thought we’d try anyway. The woman up front was immensely helpful and catered to us despite our no-​reservation transgression. We waited about 25 minutes but just walked around the main street. Dinner was lovely, great ambiance with candles and flowers. We had a salad, mushroom pasta and then a sherry-​soaked crêpe for dessert (yum!). We were so impressed with the attentive service and the quality of the food. Five stars.

About a 2 – 2:5: This restaurant came highly recommended; we stopped by for lunch, and the staff seemed a bit stand-​offish. I ordered the ‘Hot Ham and Cheddar’ «Open» sandwiches, which was some herbed cream sauce on a crisp puff pastry; this was nice and salty, but I thought there was way too much ham slices; my husband tried out their Herbed Shrimp and Penne, which had some shrimp and pasta tossed in butter, herbs, and Parmesan cheese; the pasta was overcooked, and the overall dish seemed a little bland. I’ve heard that their filet mignon and their scallops are excellent and exceeds in quality compared to high-​end restaurants — I would love to go back and try those dishes out sometime if I’m ever in the area again.
+underwhelming brunch/​dinner place
+unfriendly staff T_​_​_​T

Visited last weekend with my wife and we experienced the trinity of gastronomy. Fun, downhome, professionally waited place with a local menu and chef. We can’t wait for our next visit.