Waters Mill : North Georgia Weddings and Events Venue

Today has been a great day. The very hot summer is coming to an end with nice afternoon rainstorms lowing the humidity and the dog days of summer heat with the tinge of Fall in the air.

I have been walking high today and no it is not because of my new MBT shoes. Although I must admit, last night was the first time my feet have not ached after an event. I have been walking high today because last night we had the distinct pleasure of hosting the rehearsal dinner for the Briley’s from Indiana. I met the Briley’s last February has they were ending the search for their son’s rehearsal dinner for an August wedding in the North GA mountains. I happened to be working at Waters Mill last February when the Briley’s stumbled upon us very frustrated from their search for the perfect venue for the festivities. It wasn’t long into our conversation that both parties had a mutual respect for each other and the relationship was formed. Because of the distance, we planned all the details virtually via email.

Last night was the first time I had seen the Briley’s since our February acquaintance and what a blast we had. The air was absolutely clean with no toxins in the air and the sky was clear from the morning rains. No humidity and the temperatures were seasonally low. Low humidity and low temps are a much welcome blessing in the South during August. Guests began to arrive at Waters Mill after traveling from long distances and ready to experience Southern Hospitality at its best. Waters Mill and her staff did not disappoint. During the cocktail hour, the culinary staff had prepared homemade beautiful Reuben puffs and mushroom stuffed with herbed cheese and crab. Following a lively cocktail hour, we moved into dinner. The Briley’s had over 40 menu items to choose from and their selection was superb. We began dinner with fresh baby spinach, tossed with mandarin oranges, toasted pine nuts dressed with homemade buttermilk vinaigrette. Very light with interesting complexities. We then served pork tenderloin that was massaged with many spices and placed on the grill over hickory chunks of wood. We use chunk wood when grilling at Waters Mill. It gives great flavor to the meats and gives a great “smoke”. We also served Black Angus Filet Mignon with a Blackberry Compound Butter. Wow! The palette is now very happy and excited. To complement the entrée selections, we served a spinach artichoke casserole along with twice baked potatoes and to finish the meal a southern delicacy….creamy grits bar. Now, I realize this is a lot of starch but it also proved to make a lot of people very happy. We ended dinner with, as my sweet husband would say, desserts that were just “naughty”. Our pastry chef prepared homemade bread pudding with a bourbon anglaise sauce on top. Gasp. Because we always aim to please our guests, we served two desserts in order to have peace in the family. It was just too difficult to make a final decision. My Mom made homemade apple dumplings served with my now famous homemade caramel ice-cream on top. Because we are so serious about the food being outstanding at Waters Mill, Mom actually traveled to Ellijay, the apple capital of Georgia, to gather the perfect apples for her dumplings. She rolls the dough on a marble slab, fills the apples with lots of butter, spices and sugar and bastes every 30 minutes. I must say the bowls were clean when they made the return trip to the kitchen.

The evening ended with the guests enjoying all of the property. Some enjoyed the Koi Rain Porch while listening to the frogs hollering and the katydids singing their evening lullabye. The men enjoyed a nice stoogie on the front porch while rocking and telling tales. And I resting in the dark and fading into the night, very pleased of all the laughter for once again Waters Mill had made new friends from her pleased clients.