The Black Diamond Inn & Social House - Carmi, Illinois

Barbie F.

We really enjoyed staying in this beautiful historic home.
Ruth was amazing! She took care of us and when my nephew left his speech locked in his the room, she saved the day! The rooms are beautiful and I loved it all! The patio outside was really nice.

Gary B.

Thé Social House Inn has recently been renovated and is under new management. The rooms range from very nice to exquisite. Guests have access to the patio, garden room, library and parlor. The house was built in 1905 and remains as beautiful today as it was then. During COVID the home was rented to workers that completed the huge solar field near Carmi. After that project was completed the home was returned to its original great condition and multiple guests have enjoyed its ambience.

Rita B.

Let me begin by saying this was my fourth stay at The Social House in Carmi. I have always found it to be comfortable and pleasant. I'm only reviewing this time in the hope that the owner will read this and make some real changes, return it to what it once was.

As far as B&Bs go, the second B has always been lacking. Historically there has been a wide selection of "fix it yourself" foods. I like a hot breakfast and there just isn't/wasn't much to eat hot. This time though there was a loaf of bread, cheese danish, and some mini muffins. That's it!

Then the room was missing some key items.
1) Trash can. None in the room or bathroom. I left some trash on the sink. Nothing particularly gross, but I had a lot of luggage and didn't have an extra hand to take out my trash. Should I have to?
2) Hair dryer. Found one in the room next to mine. Why don't all of the bathrooms have a hair dryer?
3) Bathrobe tie. Bathrobe is a nice touch, but without the tie to keep it closed, it's kind of useless.
4) Proper liquid hand soap dispenser. The hand soap on the sink had a cap like you find on your dish soap that clearly didn't come with the hand soap.

Broken things
1) Shower head. When checking in I was told that the shower is broken. It's fully functional, just doesn't hang on the wall, it's on the floor of the shower. Need two hands to wash yourself? Set the shower head down, shampoo and wash, then pick it up and rinse off. Forced morning workout?
2) Chipped paint in bathroom. Large area of chipped paint near shower threshold. This probably bothered me the most. If this isn't remedied quickly there's going to be a mold problem soon.

I really can't understand why I wasn't advised of the shower problems with that room when I made my reservation. Why not offer a room upgrade for the same price or a discount? Better yet - don't rent that room until after it's repaired! There were only two people staying that night and there are 8 or 9 rooms. Don't rent that room!

Like I said, hopefully I'll have the opportunity to visit again and hopefully things will be better next time around.

Paulette B.

Our family has been staying at the Social House for several years. When Pat was the manager our stay was always good! The last few times have not been accommodating.Social House is listed as Bed and Breakfast..Not true. The first night was good. But no coffee or breakfast. The whole main floor had been rented for a shower. So the kitchen area was filled with people and preparation for the shower. You could not get in that room. to even get coffee. I really see now that I should have chosen Super 8 motel because at least you could have got coffee.We paid a lot of money to stay there because we were in the Port Room. She could have made arrangements for her guest. WE were paying people also. Hope she gets her priorties together to serve other guest. Beautiful B&B.So sad!!

Leslie P. (.

Beautiful rooms. Quaint. It's a beautiful place for a wedding dinner, wedding, social gathering, or formal meeting. I took my grandaughter up to the house to take her pictures for Christmas. The hostess Amanda makes you feel at home, keeps the place very clean.

Lauren D.

Do not recommend! We recently stayed at the Social House while in Carmi for a wedding. We have been to events at the Social House in the past and were shocked to see how unclean & unkempt the house has become. We checked into our rooms and upon entering the bathrooms (one of the basement rooms) we found hair on the floor, toothpaste residue in the sinks and dust/dirt on the side tables - all showing that it had not been cleaned recently. When we texted the manager to share the state of the room she said “they were just cleaned”. I didn’t have any other options for places to stay so I cleaned the bathroom (with my own supplies) and found a vacuum cleaner upstairs & vacuumed our room. Based on how much was in the vacuum when I finished, it was obvious that it had not been cleaned recently. It was not only very disappointing that it was in the state that it was but also that the manager did not seem concerned or willing to do anything to make it right. I would not recommend anyone staying there in its current state and if I had had another option, would have left.||||Leaving this review here since my review on Facebook was deleted!

Ken V.

I have never stayed in a more filthy, disgusting room. Had we not needed to be at a funeral and visitation in 30 minutes we would have left. In talking to locals at the funeral I was told that they had been hearing the same reports. No attempt to wipe down bathroom surfaces or the toilet had been made. Absolutely gross!

Layne B.

I have stayed at the Social House Inn multiple times for various work occasions. I've never had a bad experience there. I would recommend to everyone and it would be a great place to host an event! Beautiful and well kept place!