South Whidbey will be making the pages of famous international magazines thanks to The Inn at Langley.

Condè Nast Traveler magazine readers recently named The Inn at Langley as one of the top 100 hotels in the United States.

The Inn at Langley was rated as one of the top 100 mainland U.S. hotels in the 2006 Readers Poll, featured in this month’s Condè Nast Traveler.

The Inn at Langley was also recognized this month by Bon Appetit magazine as one of only three great destinations in the nation to spend Thanksgiving.

Innkeeper Wendy Hantz said the increased publicity has been good.

“The publicity brings a lot of people form everywhere in the United States to the inn and to Langley,” Hantz said.

The heart of the inn is the restaurant, and come Thursday, Chef Matt Costello will be cooking a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.

“The dinner is by reservation only, and will be very special with Matt’s flair added to the traditional Thanksgiving dishes,” Hantz said.

Costello is The Inn’s general manager and chef at The Inn’s Chef’s Kitchen Restaurant.

Costello starts each meal at The Chef’s Kitchen by briefly talking about the benefits of eating locally raised food and by giving an overview of the night’s menu. He discusses the origins of the meal’s ingredients and explains how the flavors of the food are intended to complement one another.

Guests then relax in the dining room and watch Costello and his team prepare the meal in the display kitchen. The restaurant overlooks a formal herb garden and features a double-sided, river-rock fireplace and an open display kitchen.

“It’s always nice to be recognized for something you love to do,” Costello said.

“Our guests really appreciate our use of locally raised food, and this year’s Thanksgiving meal is going to be our best yet,” he said.

Costello is an accomplished chef who began his career at the Four Seasons Olympic Hotel in Seattle. He joined Seattle Chef Tom Douglas, heading up the kitchens at both the Dahlia Lounge and Palace Kitchen. Costello was the chef of Palace Kitchen in 1996 when the restaurant was nominated for the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in the nation.

Built on a bluff overlooking Saratoga Passage in Langley, The Inn’s 26 guest rooms and cottages each have 180-degree waterfront views from Whidbey Island, and a whirl-bath jetted tub facing both the fireplace and the sea. From private decks, guests can watch the sun rise above the Cascade Mountains on the mainland and set over the passage.

The November 2006 issue of Condè Nast Traveler, which highlights the Top 100 Best in the World, from hotels to cities, awarded The Inn at Langley No. 79 of the top 100 hotels listed in its annual Readers Poll. The Inn received a score of 86.7 out of 100. The No. 1 hotel, located in Chicago, scored a 97.1.

The Chef’s Kitchen Restaurant and The Inn at Langley are consistently judged as among the best in the world.

The Inn and Restaurant received the ZAGAT 2006 “Extraordinary” rating, the highest rating in the Pacific Northwest.

The Inn is on both the Travel + Leisure 2006 Top 500 Hotels in the World List and the Condè Nast Traveler’s Gold List. In addition, The Chef’s Kitchen Restaurant is a Washington Wine 2006 Grand Award Winner.

Seattle-based Columbia Hospitality manages and operates The Inn at Langley, which is owned by Paul and Pam Schell.