Jarrett House

Overpriced and over rated. We had a somewhat large party and were seated quickly. One member of our party was seated beneath an air conditioning vent that was dripping water on him on the table and in his plate. We brought this to our servers attention and she brought him some napkins. We were told because of the size of our party there was nowhere else to seat us. So to me water dripping into your food from an air conditioning vent would make it not only unappetizing but unsafe to eat. Nobody offered to bring him another plate of food and we were charged full price for the meal.
We had a party of 8 and were given 2 baskets of biscuits which had about 6 in each basket the biscuits are not much bigger than a quarter. We had to ask several times for more and were brought a basket of 6 one time. At the prices we paid for fried chicken you would think we could get more than a token offering. Despite new owners and a lot of new construction it just seems to me they are in trouble. Trying to cut costs on biscuits and not properly maintaining their dining room fixtures is one sign. The general apathy and aloof nature of the staff is another.

Been coming here since I was a child and it still holds up. Their fried chicken and trout are both great, as is the baked ham. Their biscuits are worthy of poetic legend, and it’s the only place I know of that does vinegar pie and it’s great.

This used to be one of my favorite places to eat in this part of the country. Anytime me and my wife and family are in the area we try to stop here and eat. We stopped by on Saturday around 5:30 for dinner. We fully expected to find it packed and very busy because it is the middle of tourist season. But to my surprise it was not. Found a parking space right away. When we walked in the main entrance we noticed some changes. The beautiful antique furniture in the front room was gone and replaced with some awful looking stuff. Also gone was the area where you used to pay and where you used to rent the rooms. Well we were seated right away, the dinning room looked pretty much the same, but when we got the menu we got our second surprise, gone also was the family style fare. Now it was a meat and three vegetable type offering. The food choices was pretty much the same with a few added dishes, but the vegetables looked pretty close to the same, you just had to chose three instead of getting a little of all of them. But the price was still the same as before. I chose the chicken. You get three pieces and I picked the potatoes and green beans and beets. You also get biscuits which are still pretty good. But you don’t have the honey on the table like you used to have, you have to ask for it, and they bring it in a bowl instead of the little bottle you used to have at every table. The chicken was really dry and the potatoes where dry and not at all as good as they used to be, and the green beans where bland. The beets where very good. The potatoes used to be smothered in butter, but now they are not. And the green beans used to be southern style but now I think they are can green beans. This cost 18 bucks a plate. The portions where pretty good size, filled me up. The waitress was over worked and couldn’t spend any time at our table, and at one point just brought us our bill and said she couldn’t help us any longer because she had to go make slaw in the kitchen because no one else there knew how to do it, and if we needed anything else to grab someone else and they would get it for us. We had to actually get the hostess to find someone to take our money so we could leave. They make you pay at the table instead of paying when you leave like you used to do. This was a 40 dollar meal for two that in my opinion was only worth 20 at best. I have been going here for over 20 years and I won’t be back unless I hear they have at least tried to bring back the quality of food and service that it once was, and when I show up on a Saturday at 5:30 in the middle of tourist season and can’t find a parking spot I will know they are at least doing something right again.

The meal was the worst we had had EVER had! Everything was canned. We spent $ 50 on a terrible lunch for 3 people! NEVER AGAIN and I am telling anyone who asks me where to eat in Dillsboro, NOT to go to Jarrett House! If I could give it ZERO Stars, I would!

What a horrible experience. They have ruined the flagship of Dillsboro. Trying to pass themselves off as some form of elegant restaurant instead of the wonderful family style restaurant it was for years. The manager wrote me back and based upon her reponse, they simply dont have a clue. This place will go belly up in a year.

We dined at Jarrett House last night and it was fantastic. The service was friendly and genuine. The food was comforting, tasty, and the servings extremely generous. I had some of the best the catfish ever. The menu stated it was fried, but it was more akin to baked. No oil or grease, and it tasted «just caught». Simply delicious. I paired mine with cole slaw, green beans, and buttered potatoes. And the biscuits? Oh, my. Try them with honey.
We had read a lot of reviews mentioning the disappointment about family-​style being discontinued. There is NO NEED for family style here. Each entrée is served with your choice of 3 sides. THREE! If you are in the area of Dillsboro, you are doing yourself a disservice not dining at Jarrett House. Sammy, our waitress, was friendly and accommodating and Natalie the manager is simply the best. Thank you for a lovely experience, Jarrett House.

What a disappointment. Did not know they had ended the family style tradition we had enjoyed in the past.
First– when our drinks arrived we were told they were out of straws.
Second– my wife ordered quiche. 12:30PM and it was not ready yet despite being on the lunch menu.
Third– when I pulled the 2″ long black hair out of my biscuit we should have left right then.
Fourth– the fried chicken (for$ 12) was a drumstick and smallest chicken breast I’ve ever seen.
Fifth– we spent $ 30 with tip for a $ 10 lunch.

It’s very sad to report the decline of the Jarrett House. The change from family style means less waste for them, but with the prices staying the same, it means less food for the customer or at the least, less value.
The food. The trout was very good, as good as ever. The potatoes dropped a long way, as did the apples. The green beans were bland. Even canned ones taste better. The biscuits were excellent, too.
It’s quite a disappointment. I really used to love this place. If they can bring it back to what it was, I will be back. Otherwise, they have lost a long, long-​time customer.

The only good here were the homemade biscuits. Everything was deep fried and bland. The green beans were from a can! The server was really nice but the meal was just terrible. I gave it 2 stars rather than 1 because the service was friendly, the place is clean and cute but I would never go there again.

Sometimes change is not good. While the menu is generally the same, the fact they got rid of the family style was not great. The other miss tonight was the potatoes and chicken. The chicken was dry and tasteless. The potatoes were do watered down that it was hard to find the butter flavor.
On the up side were the biscuits and country ham!
I have been coming here for forty years without a single miss. … Until today.
So sad.

Disappointed– drove to Dillsboro just to eat here. Food was over priced, the music was too loud and annoying– our server was probably new– no personality, everyone around us was served before us– our food took way too long! He also over charged us by $ 25 which we had taken care of…

Just had my first meal at this awesome historical establishment! Love the history of the place and the staff was more than happy to answer all my tourist-​y questions. Onto the GOOD stuff… The food! The portions! The service! I split the meatloaf with my mother and after two hearty appetites I still had a good bit to go. The vegetable of the days was sweet carrots and some of the best I’ve ever had. The green beans recipe has recently been switched back to good olé country style and tasted like my granny made them. They started the whole meal with these delicious little homemade bite size biscuits and fresh local honey. I finished up my meal with the vinegar pie. Now I had to be coerced into it. But let me tell you they need to call it sugar cookie pie! It was delicious! My waiter, Scott, was super attentive and kept the sweet tea coming, so we made fast friends. This place is worth 10 stars and I’d recommend anyone passing though or in the area to stop by. Maybe even go a little out of the way to visit this little gem :)

With out a doubt the best catfish I have ever had! Two large pieces and outstanding sides. If you are looking for a home cooked meal away from home stop in and see Natalie, coach, and the rest of the family in this family owned business.

Food was not fresh. The vegetables where canned or frozen and were not seasoned in a southern style at all. I had the catfish; it was ok, but that is all I can say about it, only two small pieces. The biscuits were poor quality production biscuits. The «homemade» applesauce was good. I had been to this restaurant numerous times over the last twenty-​five years, but had not been in the last six years, and boy what a change. Something has happened. They have gone «cheap» on everything, which has affected the quality greatly. We won’t be back; not for $ 15 a head. No, not me, not again.

The restaurant being over 100 years old, you would expect to see an old fashioned interior. The cheap country tables and chairs nestled in a dining room with an office style dropped ceiling did little to evoke an 1800’s experience.
My fried chicken was pretty good and you get quite a large selection of sides with your entrees.
Sadly, my diet Pepsi was flat and tasted moldy. Everyone at our table agreed the biscuits tasted just like store brands in the pop open refrigerated container, just cut into small squares.
I waited to visit this place for years, maybe I am around too many southern cookers, but for us, it was unanimously a great disappointment.
My relatives were here over ten years ago, and they all agreed this was not the Jarrett house of old, but an «Under New Management» that prefers profit over perfection.

Cannot check in here because either Unilocal or Google Maps is confused about location. Doesn’t matter. Get the fried chicken!

Visited town on the GSMR train in the early afternoon. Train staff talked up this restaurant and they weren’t wrong. Talked to other diners from the train and everyone loved the food.
Family style meal served in heaping dishes. I had the chicken but tried bites from the kids plates also. Chicken was very good, moist and cooked all the way through. Hate places that can’t cook chicken all the way through.
Servers where swift, polite and efficient. Older building that was very clean.
Overall a fine experience and I would return happily.

In our recent visit to Asheville we had to stay outside of town because everything was booked close to town. We ended up in Dillsboro, NC. Just down from the Hotel on the main drag in Dillsboro is the Jerrett House. It’s both a restaurant and a large B&B.
We were running late coming back from Asheville. The Jarrett House closes and 8:00 and we got there at 7:45 and other than being out of two popular items (Chicken and dumplings and pot roast) they were very accommodating. The dinning room serves family style meals. My wife wasn’t that hungry so we decided to just get the fried chicken and split it. So we ordered one all vegetable meal and one with fried chicken.
The chicken wasn’t the best I have ever had but it was darn good. The vegetables (coleslaw, carrots, green beans, buttered potatoes, pickled beets and homemade applesauce) were very good. When the waitress brought out the chicken she added an extra breast since it was late and we were sharing.
The dining room was very clean and orderly and the wait staff were nice and friendly.
I would recommend eating at the Jarrett House especially if you are hungry!

Great southern food, dumplings almost like my aunt used to make. Beets were delicious! This is a family style restaurant, but you only get one plate of entrée, after that $ 3 per refill. You can ready all the side dishes you want.
If you didn’t have to pay for entrée refills I would say this is a good value, but with entrees starting at $ 13.95 it is not a ‘great deal.‘
The vinegar pie was delicious.
The wait staff was friendly and efficient; and the ladies at checkout were very friendly.

Very good southern cooking. I had the chicken and dumplings which was excellent.