Spring is beginning to spread throughout the Hill Country, but winter is not ready to leave. The bluebonnets are abundant creating wonderful scenery all over town. Even though it is chilly, we at Riven Rock are excited for gorgeous spring weddings and our Easter event. Chef Brantley has produced a wonderful menu full of Easter classics with his delicious spin.
Continue Reading ›
Winter is fading away, but evidence abounds that spring is on its way! The redbuds are beginning to bloom and the Italian jasmine provides pops of bright yellow into the landscape. We are excited for the new scenery to unfold as the true beauty of our springtime hill country view comes into play.
Continue Reading ›
The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of the elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope. John Buchan
Like golf, fishing is an activity that has certain rituals, sacred cows and a vaguely rabid tinge to its adherents. At Riven Rock Ranch we have nearly a mile of the Guadalupe River to entice the fisherman in any guest.
Continue Reading ›
What a way to close out the summer!
Continue Reading ›
The Texas Hill Country is a place deeply steeped in and respectful of its history. This is part of what makes the area an attraction and perfect vacation spot for countless Texas residents. Great care is taken to preserve historic buildings, artifacts and stories of yester year.
Continue Reading ›
If you're looking for a good ol' slice of Americana this 4th of July, look no further than the Texas Hill Country. Annual events range from the traditional small-town parade to fireworks and symphony performances. With the nice rainfall we've had lately, we will actually have fireworks this year!
Bandera
Continue Reading ›
One sure way to escape the impending summer heat is to take a trip underground. The Texas Hill Country has a number of geological wonders aside from its most well-known, Enchanted Rock. The geological formations of the Hill Country, with the sedimentary rock and plentiful aquifers and springs provides for the formation of quite a few caves.
Continue Reading ›
We're eagerly anticipating the latest performance of the Canto Chamber Choir to benefit St. Boniface Episcopal School at The Terrace Grill, June 7th at 6:00pm. It's great to see a community rally around a cause that is such a great benefit to the community, especially education. The Hill Country Choir will feature direction by guest conductor Dr.
Continue Reading ›
School is out of session in June and it's time to soak up the best of what the Hill Country has to offer. Sun, water, and the finest Texas and Hill Country culture is on display this summer so come out and enjoy these family-friendly activities.
May 24 - June 10
Kerrville Folk Festival
Kerrville
Continue Reading ›
It's summertime again and that means delicious, locally-raised produce is back in force again at The Terrace Grill. The Vitex is blooming all over the ranch, a cool breeze is blowing through The Terrace Grill, and we've just unveiled our Spring/Summer 2012 menus.
Continue Reading ›
If you've ever been to Riven Rock or read much about the ranch, you know we love to support local artisans and products. This week's vendor profile is to welcome our newest vendor, From the Earth Hill Country Pottery.
From the Earth is a labor of love for owner and artist Brian Burckhardt.
Continue Reading ›
With Mother's Day swiftly approaching, I hope you are all fast at work devising plans to lavish tons of gifts and praise on the mothers in your lives. Moms, arguably, have some of the toughest work around and can use a good ‘thank you' every once in a while! Here are 4 ideas from the Riven Rock crew to make sure your mom has a fantastic Mother's Day.
Continue Reading ›
With Easter coming up, this season brings back fond memories of traditional holiday celebrations. Easter egg painting and hunts, chocolate bunnies, wearing your best Easter dress to church, and beautiful spring weather and foliage are enough to bring back the Easter of anyone's childhood.
Continue Reading ›
Spring is moving on along for us at the Ranch. The red buds and Bartlett pear trees have bloomed and are leafing out. The plants are just loving this rain and warm weather. With spring and the wonderful weather, we at Riven Rock are preparing for gorgeous spring weddings and our Easter and Mother's Day events.
Continue Reading ›
Here's a softball confidence-building question for today if you're having a rough day: what do The Terrace Grill's crispy pizzas, red pepper bisque and roasted cauliflower have in common? If you guessed that some component is prepared using our Mugnaini wood-fired oven, you're correct! See, your day is getting better already.
Continue Reading ›
With our native vegetation coming alive and flowers blooming, this coming spring marks the return of our beautiful hummingbirds. Perhaps you've seen them pausing briefly at our feeders next to The Terrace Grill, or zipping from plant to plant as you walked around the rest of the ranch.
Continue Reading ›
The Texas Hill Country is known for green hills and valleys, blooming wildflowers, clean, fresh air, and marrying a classic western mindset with a thriving food and wine culture. What better place to get away with the family for spring break? There are a variety of interesting events taking place during March that make great family outings. Here are our picks for must-see events:
Continue Reading ›
It's no secret we love to use locally grown food at The Terrace Grill. Fresh and vibrant products make more delicious dishes and offer another way to experience what an area has to offer. The food is indicative of the area where it was grown, and like wine, takes on the minerally qualities of the land from which it came.
Continue Reading ›
The Texas Hill Country shakes off the January holiday blues and comes alive in February, buzzing with activity. The countryside makes a perfect romantic getaway with your special someone or if you are just looking for a fun outing, there are many eclectic and interesting events to be discovered. Check out this list of fun events happening in February.
Continue Reading ›
It’s amazing how fixated on the weather we can become. We constantly check the forecast, which may or (more frequently) may not be close to accurate. It’s one of the things in the world that no matter how much we engineer, plan or try to outsmart Mother Nature, in the end, we find ourselves red faced.
Continue Reading ›
We've been trying to keep a closed lid on this-well not really seeing as it was featured in our newsletter-but we're pleased to announce that we have been featured in the January 2012 issue of Southern Living. Riven Rock Ranch was named one of the "South's Coziest Inns," among some of the finest inns and bed and breakfasts south of the Mason-Dixon.
Continue Reading ›
With the recent winter rainfall, we've had some relief from our drought and Hill Country residents are hopeful about wildflowers and greenery returning next spring! Golf courses are no exception, and we're hoping for a return to health for all the grass on the fairways.
Continue Reading ›
Chef Brantley and his staff at The Terrace Grill are dedicated to providing local, seasonal fresh ingredients and with the changing of season comes the changing of the menu at The Terrace Grill. Chef Brantley's menu is composed of wonderful meals to keep you warm in the crisp Hill Country winter using premium local Texas ingredients when possible.
Continue Reading ›
If you've decided to winter in the Texas Hill Country this year, you don't have to forgo all of the traditional winter activities. Sure anything snow related is probably out of the question (how much skiing do you really do on your trips anyway?). But here's one unexpected winter activity that you don't have to do without: ice skating.
Continue Reading ›
It's finally the Christmas season here at Riven Rock Ranch. We've made a vested effort in celebrating one holiday at a time-too often Thanksgiving is just a speed bump on the way to Christmas. Pumpkins and leaves quickly give way to garlands, lights and snow (or in the Hill Country, faux snow) far too soon to truly take in each holiday.
Continue Reading ›
With wedding season winding down, we're starting to shift to our holiday parties like our Christmas and Thanksgiving Dinners, as well as our New Year's Eve party. But, this time of year, we start to get little keepsakes from past weddings.
Continue Reading ›
A mixture of scenic, rolling hills and mild weather make the Hill Country perfect for winter biking excursions. With a bounty of ranch roads and back roads to travel, the possibilities for routes are endless--it’s just a matter of a good map and knowing where to look! Luckily the Hill Country is fast becoming a Mecca of biking enthusiasts. Routes around Kerrville and Fredericksburg are ple
Continue Reading ›
Take a road trip through the Hill Country this winter and you’ll find the historic architecture has undergone a holiday transformation. Traditional 1800s, art deco and more modern structures take on an almost metropolitan feel at night with the newly acquired bright lights of the holidays. Bandera, Blanco, Boerne, Burnet, Dripping Springs, Fredericksburg, Johnson City, Kerrville, Llano, M
Continue Reading ›
What better way to spend the first day of the New Year than at brunch with good company?
Continue Reading ›
Pictures from Phil and Courtney's July wedding are out and they are absolutely adorable!
Continue Reading ›
October is officially Texas Wine Month and there are a ton of wine-centric events throughout the Hill Country. You have 31 days to meander through the Hill Country, savoring the local wine and visiting local wineries. Some you know, and are commercial vineyards, like Becker in Stonewall, others are boutique wineries like Bending Branch and Singing Water Vineyard right outside Comfort.
Continue Reading ›
We're in the midst of wedding season here at Riven Rock Ranch, and you may see a number of posts pertaining to different wedding elements we come across at various weddings. We adore the creativity of the wedding planners and brides and their families.
Continue Reading ›
Looking for a different spin on centerpieces for your next party? You don’t have to travel any further than your herb garden. Fall trends for floral arrangements include herbaceous plants—lavender, basil, mint, among others—that are set to go to seed. These floral arrangements provide a wonderfully wild, organic element to your home or event décor and smell absolutely divine.
Continue Reading ›
The season of holiday parties is almost upon us!
Continue Reading ›
How many businesses thrive without a website these days? In an age obsessed with marketing, expansion, increased profitability and immediate information, it’s phenomenal to meet someone dedicated solely to their art. Meet Truman Young—a legend in the Vermont maple syrup industry. Truman has b
Continue Reading ›
We field quite a few requests here at the ranch for rehearsal dinners, birthday parties, anniversaries and engagements. The first thing our patrons inquire about is The Terrace Grill. After all, you can't beat the atmosphere or the delicious cuisine created by Chef Brantley and his staff.
Continue Reading ›
It's always a shame to see staff members leave, especially with the close bonds that are formed in this family-owned business, but we certainly enjoy the time they spent here on the Ranch with us. We employ a number of Comfort High School students and we enjoy having them as a part of our restaurant staff. It's important to us to encourage growth and employ local youth.
Continue Reading ›
If you know us from staying here for a weekend, eating at The Terrace Grill or have just heard about us in passing, you may not know that we host many weddings on the Ranch. From small family weddings to events of up to 250 people, we play host to many of these milestone celebrations. Our beautiful wedding pavilion is a great setting for a magical Hill Country wedding.
Continue Reading ›
Built to seamlessly meld with nature, Riven Rock is buzzing with active wildlife. Even on these steamy summer days, there are plenty of animals to be seen roaming the ranch grounds-you just have to know where to look!
Continue Reading ›
We were delighted to have Tanji Patton come out recently and film the Ranch as a part of her site Good Taste with Tanji, which chronicles the best of the food and wine scene in the Hill Country, San Antonio and Houston. Tanji & Co stumbled upon us on a jaunt through the Hill Country having visited a neighboring winery, Bending Branch, and High's Café and Store in downtown Comfort.
Continue Reading ›
Well, if you need another reason to go out to eat, this week is the 2011 Go Texan Restaurant Round-up. Spanning July 25th through the 31st, the Roundup is meant to support local restaurants, products and food banks.
Continue Reading ›
We entertain quite a few Hill Country weddings here at Riven Rock Ranch, but we also host a number of other events. Bed and breakfast guests come and go; restaurant patrons stop in for the first time or come to one of their cherished and familiar fine dining spots.
Continue Reading ›
We adore having guests here at Riven Rock Ranch, whether they're staying in the cottages or personal guests staying in the Main House with the English-Havens family. This week we played host to Nicole Rammer, a family friend of Kathryn, Perry and Hunter.
Continue Reading ›
We sat down with Joseph and talked about his palette, how he became a chef and his favorite ingredients.
How did you get into the culinary industry?
Continue Reading ›
Texas Hill Country, what comes to mind? Bluebonnets, lantana, lazy winding rivers and beautiful sunsets - those we knew. Now, however, after our Riven Rock Ranch sojourn, memory banks for my husband and I are filled with so much more. We truly weren’t prepared for what awaited us. It
Continue Reading ›
Summer is just one of those seasons that takes you back to your childhood and there's nothing like fishing to remind you of days spent at summer camp or grandma's house or just lazy days out on your own looking for whatever adventures or trouble (as your parents called it) the day brought.
Continue Reading ›
It's no secret that it's hot and dry here these days. Wander into any local watering hole and you'll find old timers discussing the old drought of the 1950s with wells running dry and unproductive crops.
Continue Reading ›
It’s officially summer and along with the hot weather has come a number of changes around the Ranch. The pool is open, we’ve pruned the grapevines and Chef
Continue Reading ›
What's more honest than a handwritten note? It's hard these days to slow down, pick up a pen and write a note from the heart instead of firing off an email. More often than not, our guests come to us to embrace a slower pace, a sabbatical from their everyday lives. And so many of them stop and read through our Guestbooks in each cottage. They leaf through our ever-filling pages and stop for a moment to reflect upon their stay with us and share their experience. We all love to read these entries after our guests have left as we reflect upon the unique people we've met and the stories they've told us.
Continue Reading ›
Open since August 2009, The Terrace Grill, our on-site restaurant, has earned a reputation as a unique dining destination. Riven Rock Ranch has created a wonderful open-air restaurant nestled in a native plant garden, complete with a koi pond and meandering stream. Despite the beautiful setting, the real standout is the exceptional food prepared by Chef Joseph Brantley.
Continue Reading ›
Built to seamlessly meld with the outdoors, as is the rest of the Ranch, our wedding pavilion and gazebo are the stars of this post. Completed in 2008, this venue has been the setting for many weddings and other family events. Constructed from rock quarried from the Ranch, the pavilion is the perfect venue for an outdoor event.
Continue Reading ›
Wednesday we were joined by sixty-seven members of the Canyon Lake Newcomer's Group for a luncheon held at the pavilion at The Terrace Grill. The Canyon Lake Newcomer's Group was formed to greet new members of the community and introduce them to the best the area has to offer. Obviously, we were thrilled to have them come visit our restaurant and take a tour of some of the cottages.
Continue Reading ›
We would like to thank all of our guests for an extremely successful Valentine's Day Dinner! Ninety people joined us Sunday evening for a sold out event at The Terrace Grill. With table settings decorated with long stemmed roses and romantic Latin classical guitar music it was truly an occasion to be remembered.
Continue Reading ›
