The Park Grill Steakhouse Restaurant in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, serves
as a welcome retreat from the bustling main street. Perched
only a few hundred yards from the entrance to the Great
Smoky Mountains National Park, the lodge like building looks
quite at home nestled up against the Appalachians.
Soft light glows from lamps gracing the entrance. I open
the branch-framed front doors to give my name to the greeter
(there is a long wait on weekends and holidays), and the
mountain lodge feeling wraps around me like a warm, woolen
throw.
Massive beams form a wooden cathedral. No live spruce trees
were harvested to construct the restaurant. All of the large
logs were standing trees killed either by bark beetles or
forest fires. The wood was selected for interesting branching
patterns, big knots, or large scars. Three fireplaces enhance
the atmosphere.
Don’t leave the Park Grill Steakhouse without taking a stroll
around to look at the decorative items in the restaurant
that are the works of East Tennessee artisans. And, by all
means, check out the restroom! (You’ll have to see
for yourself)
The Park Grill Steakhouse (865-436-2300) is open for dinner (5:00
p.m. seven days a week. Oh, and bring the little tykes along,
too! The restaurant boasts an excellent children’s
menu. The price? Half your child’s age! For the entire
family: no trip to the Great Smokies is complete without
a visit to The Park Grill Steakhouse.
Visual Feast ~ Restaurant mural shows Smokies
By Kristi L. Cristy
As seen in The Knoxville News-Sentinel
Diners at The Park Grill Steakhouse restaurant in Gatlinburg can take
in more than good food at a meal. While they're feeding
their appetites, they can devour a spectacular three-part
mural of Gatlinburg with their eyes.
The mural, which Knoxville artist Ann Lorimer painted from
the suggestions of interior designer Marilyn Miller, was
designed in three parts to accommodate the ceiling beams
and trusses in the restaurant.
The left section is a distant view of early Gatlinburg
done from a 1911 photograph, Lorimer said.
"I decided to add vitality to this scene with livestock
and a hound dog, and the addition of early 20th century
likenesses of Park Grill Steakhouse owner Geoff Wolpert and his sons,
Jacob and Jordan," she wrote in an explanation of the
mural Wolpert keeps in the restaurant. "Indigenous
wildlife is included throughout the mural. In this panel,
it is eastern bluebirds, a red fox, cardinals, tufted titmice
and chickadees."
The right and middle sections were more challenging for
Lorimer, because they were modeled after "Camp Art,"
an early 20th century type of American folk art, which she
was not accustomed to using. It incorporates a more rustic
depiction, since it was developed by avid outdoorsmen who
liked to paint.
"It was decided that a mural done in this style would
best compliment the ambience of The Park Grill Steakhouse," Lorimer
said. "However, I did choose to make featured elements,
such as the log cabin and the foreground animals, as realistic
as possible for purposes of identification. All were researched
for authenticity. White-tailed deer, striped skunks ('polecats')
and purple finches ... are watched over by (Grill Manager)
Caroline's cat, Elvis, and my golden retriever, Wellington."
Lorimer says the mountains "relate the various elements
of the mural and give it all continuity."
Eatery Displays Jim Gray Painting
By Staff
As seen in The Mountain Press February 1997
The most recent work by renowned artist Jim Gray is on
display in the Smoky Mountains but this time it is not on
display in a traditional gallery.
"Majestic," Gray's latest oil painting, has found
a permanent home at The Park Grill Steakhouse restaurant in Gatlinburg
and is the most recent in a series of works by Smoky Mountain
artists to be displayed by Park Grill Steakhouse owners Geoffrey and
Pat Wolpert. Other notable artists whose works have adorned
The Park Grill Steakhouse's walls include Robert Tino and Vern Hippensteal.
The Park Grill Steakhouse recently acquired "Majestic" as
a gesture of it's continued support of the arts in the Smoky
Mountains. In a further cooperative effort, Jim Gray Galleries
is offering for sale limited editions lithographs of "Majestic,"
also available at The Park Grill Steakhouse.
A total of 1,500 signed and numbered copies have been produced
of "Majestic," the original of which is valued
at $70,000. The limited edition lithographs are for sale
at $200 each until only the last 100 are available. At that
point, the price will increase in increments of $50 for
each 10 of the final 100 that are sold.
"Majestic" features a multi-hued country landscape
which includes Mt. LeConte in the background. "I felt
like I was painting an old friend. A road like this is familiar,
no matter where you are from," Gray said.
The Park Grill Steakhouse restaurant itself is reminiscent of the
grand lodges of America's national parks and opens for dinner
at 5 p.m. nightly.
~We are Open 7 Days a Week.~ 4:30pm on Saturdays, 5:00pm Every Other Day
Park Grill Steakhouse 1110 Parkway, Gatlinburg, Tennessee
