Resorts and restaurants come and go, not only in Litchfield County, CT where I’m winding up my July vacation, but around the country. But the Hopkins Inn, a charming 19th century inn with a lovely restaurant overlooking Lake Waramaug, has been a local institution for years. It was on my list of To Do’s when I got here, and Michael and I finally had lunch there the other day.

The owners are Austrian, so the ambiance is Old World Continental. In other words, the waitresses all dress like they’re extras in “The Sound of Music” and the menu features items like Wiener Schnitzel. When you sit on the flagstone patio and gaze out to the lake, sipping the German version of a Bellini (it’s got peach schnapps in it), you feel as if you’re in Europe.

One of life’s pleasures is revisiting places you’ve loved and finding that nothing has changed – in a good way. The Hopkins Inn is as wonderful as it was 20 years ago, the last time I was there. Michael thought so too.