CHIMNEY ROCK – The Esmeralda is back.
Henderson County Chamber of Commerce officials and The Esmeralda employees celebrated the hotel’s comeback with a special ceremony last week.
The Esmeralda, which was known as the Esmeralda Inn under former owner Ackie Okpych, is now owned by a corporation called American Prime and is ready to welcome guests, said the hotel’s general manager Billy Burnette.
“We opened in October after spending a year renovating the hotel,” he said. “Slowly but surely, interest is building and we’re trying to let people know we’re here.”
Col. Thomas Turner opened the Esmeralda Inn in 1892. The Turner family operated the inn until 1937. The original inn burned down in 1916 and was rebuilt in 1917. The 1917 inn burned to the ground in 1997, when it was owned by Okpych. The fire, believed to have been caused by an electrical short, caused more than $1 million in damages.
Rebuilt from the ground up, the inn re-opened in October of 1999 with the assistance of Preservation North Carolina and operated until 2000, Burnett said. Miami-based American Prime bought the hotel in 2006, invested $2 million in renovations, then reopened it under the name The Esmeralda in 2007.
Over the years, The Esmeralda has hosted a number of movie stars who were in the area making films, including Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Gloria Swanson, William S. Hart and Clark Gable. Author Lew Wallace finished the script for “Ben Hur” in Room 9.
The Esmeralda Inn was named after the screenplay “Esmeralda,” written by Francis Hodges Burnett. Burnett wrote the play while staying nearby. “Esmeralda” was the longest running Broadway play in the 1800s, according to the Web site on Hickory Nut Gorge.
Operators of the updated establishment hope to reacquaint locals and visitors with its rustic charm in a relaxed, comfortable setting nestled in the Hickory Nut Gorge across the street from Chimney Rock Park.
The 14-room inn boasts new carpeting and lighting in addition to new, updated furniture designed to be rustic yet contemporary, Burnett said. A fountain is the centerpiece of a courtyard in front of the building. Guests walk into a lodge-type setting as they enter the front door. A huge rock fireplace offset by a wrought iron chandelier is the focal point of the ground floor. A marble staircase leads to the upper floors.
All of the rooms offer Anichini linens, Molton Brown toiletries imported from London, Ethan Allen furniture, 32-inch flat screen televisions, Bose Wave music systems, wireless internet access and private baths.
The inn also features a lounge with a billiard table, poker table, sitting area with views that overlook the Hickory Nut Gorge and a high definition television. A cabin next door to the inn is slated to undergo renovations as The Esmeralda’s spa and meeting center, Burnett said.
“It will be a place to hold board meetings, corporate retreats and weddings,” he said.
The Esmeralda is also home to PRIME restaurant, which opened three weeks ago, Burnett said. Executive Chef Cardiff Creasey creates a seasonal menu that highlights classic French and Spanish cuisines with pan-Latin and Asian influences. Unique dishes include Baked Local Trout with Pork Belly Confit, Colorado Lamb Osso Buco and Rabbit Cassoulet with Carolina Country Ham and Spinach Salad. PRIME is open for dinner Wednesday through Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m., and Sunday brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
