Nestled on the shore of the historic and tranquil Upper Rideau Lake in the quaint Village of Westport, is our family-owned, four season inn. The Cove Inn is known as one of the grand old houses in Westport. It was constructed in 1876 by the Fredenburgh family who owned the local sash and door mill. In the late 1920’s, the buildings were converted into the Lexena Hotel under the management of Alex and Lena Brown. In 1932, the Robert’s family added the beverage room (now the Lounge) and the Tweedsmuir Hotel became the place to visit on the Rideau. As time passed, the hotel’s ownership changed several times, but the late Dick Ready’s name stood out as giving his heart and soul to the hotel. In 1988, renovations were undertaken by the Cowans and the Carvers to restore the Inn to it’s original proud state.
Today, the Inn is a special place for local residents & visitors alike to enjoy great food, comfortable accommodations and the best in live entertainment. The Cove stage is home to the long-standing Wings ‘n Tunes/Rack ‘n Tunes + The Open Mic, Blues on the Rideau series, popular Jazz Nights, Head over Heels on the patio, MUSICwestport Festival and many incredible local and international artists. Perched on the edge of the Upper Rideau and Westport Pond, The Cove is comprised of 12 guest suites, a full service 200 seat restaurant and 100 seat patio dining in the warmer months.
The Village of Westport boasts a variety of wonderful shops and warm hospitality you won’t forget. The Rideau Lakes area offers great boating, fishing and snowmobiling on picturesque lakes as well as hiking, snow shoeing and cross-country skiing in beautiful Foley Mountain Park…all just outside our doorstep! Come visit and enjoy our unique rural Ontario town experience. We look forward to hosting you!
With thanks from the whole Cove family
Wow! Seamus and all the staff were fantastic during our stay, always thinking about how to make our day go a little bit more smoothly. We have stayed in lots of hotels both in Canada and around the world and I can say that during this stay, we had the best service and hospitality… ever. We rented a cottage nearby Westport and the Cove was our go to for takeout dinners. We ordered food many times to take back to our rented cottage, awesome lunch and dinner menus, the food was amazing! The bar staff encouraged us to enjoy the veranda while our takeout was being prepared and then brought it out to us, which was really nice!! We booked a table in the patio to enjoy the music on our last night, and we were lucky that there was a room available, so we did not have to drive home after the music and dinner. During our one night stay, the hospitality was amazing! The room was very clean and very well appointed. Nice to have AC at this time of the year. An example of above and beyond hospitality: Walking us down to show me where the kayaks/paddles are, and giving me a push out on onto the river. Seamus sent us text messages during our stay to let us know that we could come for dinner earlier than we reserved, and also that we can check out at noon (instead of 11am), which was awesome, thinking about us. The servers at the bar and in the restraunt were fantastic, took care us well during dinner and prepared a tray with tea and deserts for us to take back to the room, filled our water bottles for our canoe and beach days with ice and water, etc. So… Wow! I would rate 6 if I could. Thank you Cove!!
Martin G.The curry lamb soup to start was one of the best soups I have had anywhere – and that is saying a lot inasmuch as I have tried soups in more than forty countries. My main course (a Thai chicken concoction) was good as was the daily special my wife had. The service was friendly and efficient, and the prices reasonable. The least expensive wine on the menu (a pinot grigio) proved to pair well with the food. We were there for the entertainment and were glad we stayed for the entire performance – it was fun. (The server ensured that we were not driving after we ordered some more wine – that was a nice touch.) We stayed in one of their more expensive rooms that had been nicely refurbished. (We had stayed in the same room some years ago before it was re-done). Since COVID they have not had the breakfast in the dining room, but after the meal the night before a continental breakfast in our room’s refrigerator was sufficient. A cautionary note – all rooms are upstairs and there is no elevator.
Rented a room and had supper downstairs listening to live music. Staff were amazing, food was amazing, our room was so cozy. We went back down for lunch before we left. I can’t say enough positive things about our entire stay there. Highly recommend 🙂
We called last minute desperate for a room to stay in ( our booked cottage vacation turned out to be a disaster ). Seamus the manager took my call, informed us of a cancelation, said he would take care of us – and this he did. When we arrived 20 mins later he heard our story, apologized for someone else’s mistake and assured us he would personally see to us having an amazing stay. After checking in, we mentioned the live music we could hear and how hungry we were, a server that overheard us said that she would have us a table ready by the time we finished taking our belongings to our room.
Few mins later they showed us to our table, the local music guest was great, our apps, mains drinks and dessert were all AMAZING! Trust me when I say try the maple brie app and you have to do their carrot cake for dessert – to die for.
The room we had was very unique – beautiful rustic charm room with new modern crisp clean bathroom. The huge walk in glass shower was what jealousy is made of! The bed was awesome, big and high and a great night’s sleep was well received! So refreshing!!
It was so comforting that in a time of such desperation ( walking out of a horrible cottage rental on a long weekend ) that the folks at the Cove Inn made it such an enjoyable experience in the end. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
Westport is a must see town on the Rideau. Lots of sights, interesting places to shop and many restaurants. The Cove was a highlight for us. The food was delicious and they allowed us to bring our dog on the patio (a rarity on the Rideau). They have live music most nights. We were very lucky to be there on Wednesday evening, Shawn McCullough (the regular on Wednesdays), really made the night special. He has a great voice and wide repertoire. You won’t regret the time spent at The Cove.
We were a group of 6 ladies staying at The Cove Inn for 2 nights for our Book Club in mid-June. From making reservations with Seamus, to asking questions of Maureen, to check in, meals, needing ice & wineglasses – we were treated like family. We had 2 lunches and took part in the dinner & show with Miss Emily. The food was outstanding – hot, home cooked & yummy. We spent both afternoons down by the water lounging & taking in the scenery. We will definitely return to this FRIENDLY & WELCOMING country inn.
We had an excellent stay at the Cove Inn! Such a great spot in Westport to walk around and the Inn had such friendly and helpful staff. We attended one of their dinner and shows. The music and food was awesome! Definitely would return! Loved room #26
We enjoyed a fabulous dinner, entertainment, and wonderful guest rooms all with a fantastic water view. The staff were all so warm and welcoming, going over the top to ensure we had a marvelous time!
We attended their first post-pandemic buffet dinner and live music. The Cove is owned and operated by the Cowan family and for 32 years they have been gracious hosts to thousands of guests. Guests? I would say we were welcomed as friends. On this night the parents, Terry and Mary, their son Seamus, and many of the long time servers were on hand to serve us and treat us like long lost (and loved) relatives. The entertainment was top notch, featuring local talent. A wonderful evening. Can’t wait to go back.
The Cove is the perfect getaway for the whole family. The beautiful Inn features live Entertainment, delicious Food, and a cozy atmosphere. It’s easily within walking distance to local shopping, restaurants, and scenery. You can’t go wrong staying here!
Love this place for many reasons!! We have been to The Cove restaurant several times over the years and have always loved their food. This past weekend we stayed at the hotel inn for a wedding. Wow was the outdoor venue for the ceremony beautiful! I wish I got married here!!! The hotel is great. Our room was perfect for me my husband and 1 year old. Comfy bed, large room with a lovely view of the water. The AC worked great too which is nice since we like to sleep with the AC super cold. The staff are also wonderful. So friendly and easygoing and even remembered my daughters name over the weekend.
I will definitely be staying at The Cove inn again and would recommend it to anyone staying in Westport
A really lovely patio and excellent food make a great combination. Westport is a neat little town on the Rideau so lunch at the Cove makes a nice day out. The menu isn’t huge but there is something for everyone.
Stayed one night overnight here with my wife in September. We had live music and dinner on the patio by a scaled down version of the band Turpin’s Trail from Kingston (Chris Murrpy & Jon McLurg) present. Great music and awesome Lobster rolls and mussels for dinner with a nice California Rose. Room was clean with a nice view of the Rideau Lake from one of the 2 corner bedroom windows. There is an open air front porch, and a common room fireplace, but limited capacity in these areas due to Covid, which is understandable. Lovely place to dine and stay. I hope to go back again for a night to participate, playing at their open mic during the week. Some rooms have fridges which ours did handy for drinks and snacks. The room also had a coffee makers with creamers available in the main lobby. The inn is not able to serve breakfast at this time due to Covid, but you can have dinner there with reservations. There is also a couple of nice breakfast spots just around the corner.
I stayed here for two nights with my 12 year old daughter. What a beautiful spot. Everyone we met was wonderful, the food was really really great and they were beyond accommodating to my restrictive diet. (What a great gf vegan brownie by the way!) Special thanks to Maureen who went out of her way to make our visit special.
Great night of music and food in a safe environment… what a treat in these Covid times. Love the old inn atmosphere, the waterfront charm and Westport experience. Well worth the drive from Ottawa – or anywhere!
Meals are nicely presented and the taste of the food is amazing. The sides are uniquely made from scratch and everything is packed in environmentally friendly packaging. Love this place!
We wanted to write and let you know how much my friend(s) and I appreciated the efforts taken by you all at The Cove to not only prepare and serve great food, but for providing a venue to watch Live music again! I was at The Cove on Sunday, July 19 and sat outside on the patio. Head Over Heels was performing on the rustic and charming outdoor stage, and it felt safe. Physical distance requirements and special health measurements were in place And there was an easy and comfortable flow. Every table was taken, but I never felt too close to another table or other guests, and the service was warm and friendly.
I can’t wait for the next opportunity to sit down and enjoy a meal, great service, Live Music, and the general good vibe at The Cove.
Thanks to ya’ll
We had lunch with some friends on Sunday at the Cove and must tell you everyone had an amazing time!! We loved the new menu and the entertainment was an added bonus after 4-5 months of living inside and fearing the Covid19 virus!
The singers performed at a distance and we were impressed with how they wore masks when not on stage. Never once did we feel at risk… great job! We will definitely be back to enjoy more entertainment and our guests said the same.
Thank you guys!
