Davis eventually sold the home to
Squire William A. Moore, who added
Victorian touches to the house. More
changes came in 1903 when Isaac Par-
rish bought the house and added its
distinctive large Colonial style veran-
da. In 1979, the venerable structure
was converted into an inn and has
served meals ever since.
Michel and her husband, Chris,
bought the property in 2000 and
opened the restaurant a year later.
Holly Hill Inn has featured a season-
al menu long before that became the
method du jour on the food scene,
and with that in mind, I was given the
not-so-arduous task of visiting in two
different seasons.
Both trips featured wildly different
menus. My first trip resulted in a spe-
cialty preview menu featuring select
offerings of Michel's newest restau-
rant, Honeywood, which would open
several months later, while summer
returned to Holly Hill Inn's roots.
Each experience, while different,
succeeded in achieving the restau-
rant's goal of good food prepared
using the freshest ingredients avail-
able, preferably local, and served by
a knowledgeable and caring staff.
Honeywood—literally Michel's larg-
est endeavor—is her only restaurant
that has a traditional restaurant vibe
in terms of structure. It is aiming to
show off Kentucky cuisine at its finest
in The Summit at Fritz Farm, a swanky
new shopping area in Lexington.
