The Lodge on Lake Lure was severely damaged by Hurricane Helene, but producer Clay Johnson is happy to report they're up and running, ready to greet you.

[gentle music] - [Clay] When you walk under its jasmine-draped trellis to the front door of The Lodge on Lake Lure, you know you're about to enter some place special.

- [Spence] When you walk in, you immediately see this grand room, this lodge lobby, and you're like, "Man, this is a cool throwback-in-time lodge," the panel walls, the hardwood floors.

And then you look out of the windows, and you see this majestic view of the lake and the mountains, and you're like, "You can't build that."

- [Clay] It's what prompted Spence Romine and a business partner to add the lodge to their collection of small inns around the country.

- If you have a great view, and you've got a great location in a cool little area, you can make everything else work.

- [Clay] The state first built the lodge in the 1930s as a retreat for its highway patrol troopers.

- [Spence] Whenever troopers needed a break, they could pay a very, very small amount of money and come stay here on the lake.

- [Clay] Decades later, the state sold it to an investor, who turned it into an inn.

It was an inn under several more owners until the pandemic shut it down in 2020.

Romine and his partner bought it in 2022.

- We just looked at it, and we saw the view.

We saw that it kind of checked the box of needing updates, which is kind of where we can add value to it.

We read old reviews, and we realized, "Okay, these are the things that people are complaining about, so let's make sure we get those things right."

- [Clay] They replaced the furniture, redid the floors, and changed out the HVAC system.

They added a bar to what was just a sitting room.

- [Spence] We made it where the bar looked like it's been there for 100 years.

- [Clay] Romine and his partner updated the lodge's 17 guest rooms, 15 of which have lake views.

They all have private bathrooms and either a king or queen bed.

- [Spence] We wanted it to be a great little getaway for couples.

- [Clay] The rear of the lodge has decks, terraces, and patios.

- [Spence] There's so many sitting areas that all have the central point of looking at the lake.

- [Clay] They have the grounds redone with a focus on native plants.

- We want it to look good, nice, but we also want it to look as natural as possible.

We don't want it to look overdone, you know?

- [Clay] They added a new boathouse and a dock to give guests lake access.

- If they wanna jump in the lake, they can jump in the lake.

If they wanna go on a boat ride, we've got a boat.

We'll take you on a boat ride.

And if you just wanted to sit there in the many chairs and little couches that we have, you can just sit there.

- And we're gonna light it on fire with my trusty torch here.

- [Clay] At day's end, you can hit the bar for a signature cocktail like the 525, a smokey blend of a Manhattan and Old Fashioned.

- And then we're going to be straining over our freshly smoked cube.

- [Spence] Next door there's fine dining overlooking the lake at the lodge's restaurant Appalachia.

- We are in Western North Carolina, so a lot of this stuff that we do for the menu here is as local as I can possibly get it.

This is our crispy Duroc pork belly, house-made kimchi aioli, some house pickles.

Right here is carrot and cucumber, a little bit of house hoisin sauce and toasted sesame seeds over the top.

This is crispy duck leg confited in duck fat and slowly cooked for about six hours, Parmesan spring peas, and then an emulsion of beet and whipped carrot on that with some grilled and pickled mushroom relish finished with Maldon salt.

This is a lemon blueberry tart, house-made with a lemon mousse, blueberry curd layered on top, and then a meringue made with lavender, fresh blueberries on top.

We have a really beautiful view here as you can see.

I want the food to match that view.

- [Clay] Jennifer Cohen and her husband love both.

She says they've stayed at the lodge many times.

- It's small, charming, welcoming, gracious.

It slows everything down, [sighs] and peaceful.

It's peaceful.

- We've all gone on vacations where you go home from your vacation, and you're like, "Man, I'm kind of worn out," whereas I think the perfect vacation in Lake Lure is you can go home and think, "Man, that was great.

That's just what I needed because I'm relaxed."

I think the lake and the mountains are the destination, and we just provide a quiet place to enjoy that.

[gentle music continues] - The Lodge on Lake Lure is located at 361 Charlotte Drive in Lake Lure.

Appalachia serves dinner Thursday through Sunday from 4:30 to 8:00 and lunch Friday through Sunday from 11 to 2:00.

For more information, give them a call at 828-655-0455, or visit lodgeonlakelure.com.