Inside foyer

Have you been to Bissell House lately?    

With new owners since 2005, the Victorian Era bed and breakfast on Orange Grove and Columbia welcomes locals in for a visit, especially during the holiday season.   Till Twelfth Night (January 5), the house will be splendidly decorated in an Old World Victorian Christmas fashion that is "truly vintage," says innkeeper Juli Hoyman.

Built in 1887, Bissell House is South Pasadena's Cultural Landmark No. 36.   A distinction given to the residence because it was part of the historical "Millionaire's Row," a section of Orange Grove Avenue in the late 19th century that was lined with mansions.

When you step onto the estate, you're welcomed by a large, wise tree in the front yard and an ample porch with wicker furniture and birdhouses placed about.  It feels more like the Midwest or the South, not Southern California.

The seven bedroom, three-story mansion is elegantly appointed yet very comfortable with a mixture of French and English antiques, and Art Noveau and Art Deco pieces. The deep rich hues of redwood unifying the house bring an immediate and solid calmness.  It's almost as if the house is magical said my companion who was instantly soothed by the 119-year-old home.

Study

To our delight, a sitting area stocked with desserts and drinks greets guests upon their arrival.  The goodies - cream puffs, mini cheesecakes, fudge, and chocolate chip cookies  - displayed under a glass bell-shaped cake stand, are there all day and night.  For beverages, the house features a good selection of specialty organic coffees and loose-leaf teas, chai, cider, hot chocolate, juices, and wine and beer.  Teacups and teapots made from English bone china are available to take your drinks from, if you like.  The sitting area's cozy stuffed couches and fireplace make it a fine place to relax and talk.   (All of this reminded me of the magical food scenes in the movie "A Little Princess.)

If guests feel like some entertainment, to the right is a den/study with a flat screen TV, a DVD collection, magazines, and parlor games including a handsome chess set.   The house offers free Internet access throughout. 

Up the stairs are the glorious bedrooms.  Seven richly decorated rooms with names like English Holiday, Garden, and Prince Albert are available, each with a dream bathroom and bedding to rival the finest hotels.  The Garden Room where we stayed had a long and deep soaking tub with whirlpool jets.  Other rooms have claw foot tubs, and each bathroom comes with glass bottles of bubble bath potions and salts, high-quality body products, and thick robes.  The rooms are impeccably clean and decorated with antiques and modern pieces.

Dining room

This is high-end luxury and comfort, and Bissell House has every detail attended to - right down to a laced-covered hot water bottle in the Garden Room bathroom cabinet and Victorian -era dresses in all the closets.  Some guests have come down the stairs for breakfast dressed for the times.

A Cordon Bleu-trained chef prepares popular breakfast entrees such as Crème Brule French Toast, Puffed Pear Pancakes,  Persian Omelets with micro greens and goat cheese, and Artichoke and Mushroom Strata.  All breakfasts are served with a first course of fresh fruits such as strawberries with Chantilly crème.    

For guests visiting the Pasadena area, Bissell House could be a better and more enjoyable option than staying at the Ritz Carlton.  Both places have similar rates, but Bissell House includes the gourmet breakfast , 24-hour access to the sitting room's treats and drinks, and free parking.  Bissell House also has a beautiful pool, jacuzzi and patio, which has a private resort feel.  If guests need assistance, Hoyman can put on her concierge hat as well.

Part of the charm of a B&B is meeting your fellow guests.  My companion and I shared breakfast with a couple from Long Beach celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary.  In addition, Bissell House has had its share of notable visitors. Albert Einstein stayed there in the 1930s  when the property was the home of Anna Bissell McKay, daughter of vacuum magnate Melville Bissell.  Einstein shocked the family when he came down to dinner with McKay's young niece and insisted a place be set for her.  This was at a time when children were best seen and not heard.  While dining, you might even be sitting in the very chair where Einstein sat.

Bissell House is a perfect place for out-of-town guests and also a wonderful retreat for locals.  Weddings have rented out the entire place, women have had girls-night-outs there, and artists have booked the place for retreats.  Bring six friends together and you can have an afternoon tea at Bissell for around $29 per person.   (Call ahead to make reservations. )

Bissell House is Pasadena's bed and breakfast, but it's so much more.  Stop by and you'll see.