EastDell Estates 4041 Locust Lane Beamsville, ON Tel: 905-563-9463 - (905)563-1241 Website: www.eastdell.com
please click on picture for enlargement	Welcome to EastDell	Front of the restaurant

Hours: Daily - 11 a.m. to last dinner seating at 8 p.m.
Sunday brunch: Two seatings - 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. - $18.95 per person
A call ahead and reservations are recommended as the restaurant could be closed for a special occasion.

If you are driving the QEW Highway, you'll have no trouble finding EastDell Estates. There are signs directing you off the QEW to Ontario Street in Beamsville. Once on Ontario St., go toward the escarpment (the high green hill that runs parallel to the highway) to Regional Road 81 which is also called King Street closer to Beamsville. Turn right onto Reg. Road 81 and go to Mountainview Road. It will take you up the escarpment. As you go up, look for Locust Lane and the big EastDell sign featuring a woodcut of a blue heron weathervane. Along the way, you'll pass Angels's Gate Winery which looks lovely but, unfortunately, is not accessible.

Being locals, we stuck to Regional Road 81 which runs parallel to the QE Highway, is far less hectic and absolutely beautiful to travel. On Reg. Rd. 81, you can take your time, and in every small town along the way such as Grimsby, Beamsville, Vineland and Jordan there are restaurants, small shops, shopping centres, churches and historic cemeteries, garden centres and fruit stands.

Parking at EastDell can be messy if it has rained. There is plenty of parking and I found an end spot for my side ramp easily. There is also a grassy area and I've seen people park along the winding driveway into the parking lot as well. The lot is hard packed gravel and sand. You might have to wash your wheels if they have oiled the lot and vacuum the inside of your car or van after using their parking lot but you also might find the incredible view from the winery worth every minute of it.

Situated halfway up the escarpment, EastDell has a commanding view of acres of vineyards, Lake Ontario and Toronto across the lake. Before you go in, take a look at the view. It is incredible.

The entrance to the winery and restaurant is fairly flat and what is lipped is ramped. Upon first entering, you are in the wine shop featuring all of the products EastDell sells made from the grapes in the surrounding vineyards.

To the left of the gift shop are the washrooms. At present the washroom entrances are very tight. What might work for someone in a wheelchair, especially if they are adept at managing tight angles, won't work for someone in a scooter. I got stuck on my scooter and had to ask for help from two strong fellows working in the restaurant. Sue T., manager of hospitality services, told me they were going to build a family-style washroom right next to the present washrooms during the 2003-4 winter. Once in, the stall is large enough and the toilet raised but there this no cutout under the sink to take your knees. We'll be sending the owners of the winery some drawings that should help the designer of the new washroom.

View from deck over vineyards and Lake Ontario	Inside the main restaurant	Lip on patio door

The restaurant is woodframe with high ceilings and tons of glass so everyone has a lovely view and there is plenty of light. It literally hangs off the escarpment on stilts. There is also a deck on the west side that has quite a lip out onto it but automatic doors. If you can pop the front of your chair up, you can access this door. If not, you'll need help. I made it independently on my scooter by taking a bit of run at it and popping the front of my scooter up. Once you are out there though, it is absolutely lovely.

Restaurant and deck fare using local produce as much as possible run from lighter items such as soup at $4.25, open-face sandwiches made with home-made bread at $8.95 to pastas or bocconcini or a melange of cheeses, wine crackers and jellies for $10.95. Can't stop there though, you have to sample EastDell wines with these.

Entrees include chicken, salmon, lamb and beef tenderloin and range from $16.95 to $24.95. There are daily specials and the menus change with the seasons depending on what produce is available locally.

Once you'd eaten you might like to venture down a long winding road to the right of the restaurant that leads you beside the vineyard. If has recently rained, you may want to rethink this as it can be muddy so choose you day and your way carefully. Scattered with wildflowers and a wooded area on the opposite side, there is also a pond and a small cabin in this lovely spot.

This working winery has a self-directed tour and you can wander the premises before or after your meal and a visit to the gift-shop.

"We are somewhat accessible, having accommodated a group from the March of Dimes for our Sunday Brunch for the last two years," Sue O'Dell, president of the winery, said "At the present time we have two handicapped parking spaces, a ramp onto our deck, and nominally accessible washrooms. We also have special automatic doors onto our deck area. We have a permit application into the town to install a full accessible washroom and will post the information on our site when we do."

Peninsula Ridge Estates Winery Ltd. 5600 King Street, P.O. Box 550 Beamsville, ON, Tel: 905-563-0900 Fax: 905-563-0995 Website: www.peninsularidge.com e-mail: info@peninsularidge.com
click on photos to enlarge	The old barn gift shop and winery	The Carriage House

Major intersection: Hwy 81 & Durham Road.
Winter hours: Nov.-April 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m., weekends 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m., tours at 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. are partially wheelchair accessible -- the production facility is accessible but not the underground barrel cellar.
Summer hours: May-Oct. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. 7 days a week.
Reservations highly recommended.

Parking: There is plenty of parking here and the surface is what I'd call a mixture of stone rubble and asphalt.

We visited Peninsual Ridge on a June day to die for. The air was clean and fresh, the sun skirted by whispy white clouds and the temperature around 74F. Peninsula Ridge is just west of East Dell on the escarpment off of Regional Road 81 but you can see Peninsula Ridge right from the main road. There is also signage from the QE Highway. Anyone with an eye for Victorian architecture will notice this lovely place right away. Set half-way up the escarpment, you'll see a restored red brick Victorian home dripping with authentic gingerbread, a lacey front entrance, two side porches and tons of charm. This, believe it or not, is Peninsula Ridge Estates Winery.

Back in the 1880's, William D. Kitchen married into the Beam Family, the founders of Beamsville. William built his homestead on this 80 acre site which now features the 1885 Queen Ann Revial Victorian house which has been restored not reconstructed, the old barn which has been beautifully restored and made into the gift shop for the winery that is attached to the back of the barn and a carriage house. We're told the original plans on linen for the house are framed and hanging in the restaurant. Everything new is either wood, glass or stone and it works so well with the old and surrounding 40 acres of vineyards featuring chardonnay, cabernet-savignon, cabernet-franc, merlot and syrah grapes surrounding it. The rear of the property is the wooded Niagara escarpment which Norm Beal, the person responsible for this lovely place, has vowed to keep intact for people using the Bruce Trail system that runs along the escarpment, at this point.

Signage and ramp to deck and restaurant doors on east side	The deck and house from the rear	The view of vineyard and Lake Ontario (and Toronto) from the deck .

The accessible entrance to the restaurant in the lovely old house, is past the fountain in the middle of the grounds, up the designated ramp (designated with a very elegant sign, I might add) and around the side of the patio where you'll see double doors with a very small lip. We're told the patio seats 40 and the downstair of the house, 26 people. The patio is under huge trees and there are large umbrellas for shade. Prices range from $18 - $24 for lunch and $28 to $40 for dinner.

The washroom used by restaurant and coach house patrons is under the stairs leading to the second floor of the house. The door to the washroom is only 30" wide as this was likely a closet in the original home. If your chair will go through the door, the washroom is fully equipped with grab bars, cutout under the sink and a slightly (18") raised toilet.

The Coach House was closed when we visited but it is available for groups numbering from 15 to 50. We're told there is a ramp that is put in place to acces the few steps to the Coach House entrance.

Looking up in the old post and beam barn	Storage in the back of the gift shop

The old post and beam barn has been restored with a stone and glass entrance but once inside you'll see that all the old timbers are still in place. It's beautiful. The only problem I could see was the stone veneer floor that can be bumpy for people in wheeled mobility aids. However, much of the floor is beautiful hardwood. There are accessible washrooms in this area as well with wider doors than the one in the restaurant.

At the back of the barn is the huge holding tanks and storage area for the wines made on site. The barrel rooms are not accessible because they are in the cellars but there is a picture of them on the wall by the washrooms that you should see. You can also see more of the place on their Web site.

I can't imagine a more lovely place to sit and enjoy a meal and a glass or two of wine on a summer afternoon than the patio. This winery and restaurant is accessible and truly lovely.

Just as an aside, the Peninsula Ridge Founders' Club is commited to raising funds for the West Memorial Lincoln Hospital building campaign and every May sponsors the Jazz on the Ridge festival featuring the best in live jazz, 11 food and wine stations and a silent and live auction for $175 a person. Check their Web site early in the new year for more on this very special annual event.