I personally am a history nut and love the Gold Country that is right in Sacramento’s back yard. The Holbrooke Hotel/Restaurant/Saloon is located in the quaint town of Grass Valley, California, a little more than an hour’s drive from Sacramento. Setting foot inside the historically rich Holbrooke on Main Street, will take you back in time, yet the modern conveniences are available. It will be a thrill for all guests invited to the wedding, or social event, or even to the corporate retreat to enjoy the yesteryear experience. Holbrooke is a full service hotel with tables, chairs and china included, and the Executive Chef, we are told, is excellent with several specialties offered on a frequently changed menu.

Be sure to request the sleeping rooms in the front of the hotel with the balcony overlooking the town and Main Street. If you have imagination, picture this boomtown when horse drawn carriages and covered wagons carried pioneers and miners up and down the unpaved streets, with many hoping to strike it rich. Back “in the day” many would come to the Victorian era Holbrooke for comfortable beds, excellent food and a serious time in the saloon! The tradition continues at the Holbrooke.

We enjoyed the grand tour by owner Ian, who showed us the stunning formal dining room which will seat 80 – this space used to be the town’s gold exchange back in the 1850s. The Arletta Douglas Room is larger with a capacity of 100 and by joining up with the handsome library and utilizing the central lobby; a standing reception can accommodate 200. Additionally, and for a more relaxed space, there is the Iron Door Room located in the basement level. The original rock walls are impressive as are the massive iron doors giving more evidence of the history of the building.

Another spot to hold a morning social with breakfast, or perhaps a “happy hour” reception, or even a wedding rehearsal dinner, is the intimate back patio with flower beds, trees and lots of Gold Rush artifacts on display.

Your guests can make this California State Landmark a great destination location with 28 rooms in the Holbrooke Hotel and the adjacent Purcell House built in 1870. A bonus is there is a good size on-site parking lot.  Think of the fun your family and friends will have as they see each other all weekend within the hotel, going up and down the original “cage” elevator, or shopping on Main Street, or hanging out in the lively Golden Gate Saloon right inside the Holbrooke. What fun! Perhaps having more fun than some of the previous hotel guests… Mark Twain, Ulysses S. Grant, Bret Harte and even highwayman Black Bart!!

It was a blast having Vixen Vendor Photographer, Debbie Labrot of Lily Rose Photography join us. Thanks for capturing the beauty and the history.

~ Vixen Lora