Rowan Oak House

We had a wonderful time at Rowan Oak House. The house is beautifully and lovingly restored, and glows with the patina of care in every room. Our bedroom and bath were very comfortable, large, open, light rooms; quality bed linens; large shower with immediate hot water and good water pressure. We enjoyed sitting on the deep porch in the mornings before breakfast. Breakfast itself was wonderful both days — served in yet another beautifully restored room, with china, crystal, and candles, with fresh and delicious ingredients. We had a delicious cucumber relish (apparently a little sugar is the key) and fresh tomatoes, with a warm fruit compote and a different baked eggs dish. The first day was stuffed French Toast, and the second day was a dish of the owner’s invention that she called Splendor in the Grass.
The owners were very warm and hospitable. Some of the harsher reviews mentioned Barbara’s talkativeness, but we enjoyed hearing about how they got into the B&B business, what it took to restore the house, and some of the behind-​the-​scenes details of what it takes to run a B&B. Les was helpful and gracious. When we want to be left alone, we go to a hotel. We assume socializing will be part of the B&B experience.
The location is close to downtown, and we were able to walk to a different excellent restaurant each night for dinner. There were plenty of interesting things to do in Salisbury for the weekend, and we had one of our most relaxing weekends away.

A blaring TV was in stark contrast with the period focus. We were the only house guests, but barred from much of its use. Porch furniture was stacked for painting. Immaculate museum-​rooms offer little place for belongings. No work space was available in the room so Les suggested a hall table, but when I cleared it for use, stuff was returned before I could use it. Though I hinted at wine, I was given H2O –warm. Bath towels were poor quality & smelled. Because it was a lovely September night, it seemed natural to try to open a window — I got a real sermon over that at breakfast. Bright lights on the building interfered with sleep. Breakfast twice we were served the same canned fruit. Twice I passed it to my partner. The proprietress served decaf w/​o our consent, gave him a headache and we had to go into town to get coffee. Barbara turned breakfast into talk of city politics. All these things would have been OK, not horrible & I would not have mentioned them, except for what happened next.
Barbara made an announcement at breakfast: because of rain, the painter had ‘another’ job and Babs was cooking a pot roast. We began our eggs, the drilling started. We retreated upstairs, but the pounding continued. Hard to believe the enticement: «We offer a sanctuary for tension-​filled travelers.» Then, the smells of the meat cooking in the house kitchen permeated our bed room entirely. We had disclosed from the onset that we were vegetarians. I went downstairs and told her how uncomfortable this was for us, and how we may have to go. I asked why she would do this while we were guests in the house. She asked why we WERE in the house and not off somewhere. «I assumed you’d be away!» She offered vinegar to absorb the odors. I did not want more trouble on my birthday. We were headed out.
As I neared my car, Les came up & with both arms splayed prevented my way, said I’d insulted his wife, he was entitled to his views, I was nothing but trouble and not the only person in the world. I agreed I was not, but that I was his guest, a paying guest. He snarled that it was not my money; my partner had paid. He continued to block my access until I agreed to go. We left. They had a full house on the weekend they were gearing up for. We were only incidental to that. There was just all around not much warmth emanating from this house.

Rowan Oak is a house of horror. We experienced a lack of hospitality — not the warm and friendly greeting upon arrival that we are accustomed to at the many other B&Bs we have visited. Instead, the owner chattered away about the difficulties of owning a B&B and the high burnout rate and joked about other guests who had asked for an iron and hairdryer. Later, we were scoffed at when asking about a local point of interest.
Amenities were few. There were two carafes of wine and bottles of water (no ice) on the downstairs buffet along with a Tip Jar. There was a sitting area outside of our room with TV and movie library but we weren’t offered its use. We did try to sit and read there but the owner had the downstairs TV volume so loud that we were forced back to our room. In-​room TV was a 9 inch screen. The bed was comfortable enough but because of the very sheer window coverings and bright floodlights outside of the windows, we did not sleep well.
We left without having breakfast after an extremely unpleasant and personally prying conversation with the owner. I will omit the horrid details and just say that it took several days to recover from our «psycho» experience. In retrospect, we should have called the police but instead we hightailed it out of there as fast as we could. Enter Rowan Oak House at your own risk

My husband and I stayed here one night on a drive between DC and Atlanta. Wish we could have stayed longer. The place is lovely and rooms are large and comfortable. Everything we needed was there and very clean and light and airy. There was wine to sip in the evening and a big porch with a swing. You can walk to town for dinner or to antique shops during the day. We couldn’t stay for breakfast, but the owners got up early to make us coffee and have homemade bread. The owners are nice people to talk to, low key and eager to assure you have a nice stay. Definitely would stay there again if we are in the area.