Last winter, John and Bek Garcia planned a trip to stay at The Allison House Inn bed and breakfast in Quincy to celebrate the publishing of a children’s book Bek Garcia had illustrated.
John Garcia had previously covered state politics in Tallahassee for the Miami Herald and was somewhat familiar with the area, though he had never been to Quincy. When he spoke to the owner of The Inn, Garcia said he and his wife wanted to buy a bed and breakfast to start a new chapter in their lives.
The owner said he was selling The Inn to move closer to his family in Naples. The Garcias knew they had to buy it.
“It was just what we were looking for,” John Garcia said. “After the hustle-and-bustle of New York City, we were looking to settle into a much quieter lifestyle.”
By April the Garcias’ dream of owning a bed and breakfast had become reality.
Taking the long way
John Garcia grew up playing among cars on the Lower East Side of New York City.
Bek Garcia grew up camping and swimming in the suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. She is an artist, award-winning children’s book illustrator and graphic designer whose work is widely acclaimed.
He is a journalist who was the communications leader for LatinoJustice PRLDEF, a civil rights organization for Latinos, and was director of digital journalism at New York University. Before that, he was a reporter for the New York Daily News and Miami Herald.
He is also a former national racquetball champion. The Garcias married in 2013 after meeting in the mountains of Ecuador.
A history of its own
The Inn is a two-story historic home built in 1843 by a future Florida governor, Abraham Kurkindolle Allison. The six-bedroom inn was converted to a bed and breakfast in the 1960s.
It is on the National Historic Register and surrounded by more than 30 homes more than 100 years old and is in the heart of the 36-block historic district in Quincy as designated on the National Historic Register.
Local luxury
Since becoming a bed and breakfast, The Allison House Inn has received numerous awards from bed and breakfast magazine, including the Most Historic Inn, Best Breakfast in the Southeast, and Most Affordable Luxury Bed and Breakfast.
The Inn is filled with antiques from the British Isles. The grounds are lush with crepe myrtle, azalea, camellia, bamboo, fig, pear and pecan trees. Weekday guests enjoy an expanded European breakfast with homemade baked goods, fresh fruit, and the inn’s famous Allison House Inn granola.
Weekend visitors are offered a full breakfast with stuffed French toast, crepes, baked eggs and quiche.
All guests find hosts glad they and their visitors came to Quincy.
“We have fallen in love with Northern Florida,” said John Garcia. “We now get to pursue our dreams together in this relatively small, yet artistically hip community.”
Bek Garcia agreed. “We love running a bed and breakfast where travelers can stay, explore the area and share their stories with us.”
For more information about the inn and photos of the inn’s six rooms, visit www.allisonhouseinn.com or call 850-875-2511.
Randall Lieberman
randall@prioritynews.net
