Frommer's Review
If you like your B&B a bit on the unusual side, look no further. In place of Victorian architecture and antiques, you'll find rooms in what once were chicken coops and feed silos at the Old Chicken Farm Art Center. Our favorite: the Artist's Loft, situated within two cylindrical silos (the bedroom in one, a sitting area and bathroom in the other) connected via arched doorways and decorated with interesting murals and mosaics. There are also the themed Santa Fe and French rooms in the old coop. Outside, you can get a firsthand look at artists at work or relax in one of the many shady nooks and crannies on the property, including a sculpture-laden courtyard and a covered patio. The restaurant, the Silo House, serves prix-fixe dinners by reservation on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings.
San Angelo
In the late 1800s the all-black regiments known respectfully by American Indians as the Buffalo Soldiers kept travelers and settlers in West Texas safe from attack by hostile Indian tribes. The protection they provided from Fort Concho was effective enough that a rowdy town sprang up on the opposite bank of the Concho River. In those days, the frontier town that would later become San Angelo was known for prostitution, gambling, and illicit revelry in general.
Immortalized in gunslinger ballads and given nods in Old West novels, the town has grown up. These days the fort has become a historic landmark and the town is home to a university, Angelo State, a beautiful fine arts museum, a bordello museum, and fun little shops along the Concho River. It also has some hidden gems, like the artists' commune known as the Chicken Farm and a colony of Mexican free-tail bats that fly in clouds from the Foster Road Bridge. It's also known for native sons Los Lonely Boys, who snagged a Grammy in 2005.
Fodor's Review:
Inn at the Art Center
This cozy B&B is set amid a complex known as the Chicken Farm, which houses artists' studios and the Silo Restaurant. Rooms are built into old coops and grain silos; the structures influence the rooms' shapes. Pros: Shopping right outside the door. Cons: Some rooms are a little small.
