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Scotsman
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
I introduced my mum to the restaurant at Scotland's best hotel and she's loved it ever since
This is her dream venue Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... My mum found her spiritual home rather late in life. David Cheskin Although she's lived in Edinburgh for decades, her first visit to Prestonfield House was only about two years ago, when I took her for festive afternoon tea in their restaurant, Rhubarb. She was bewitched and smitten. Since then, she's treated friends to tea at this plushly theatrical five-star destination, which was awarded Best Hotel in Scotland 2025 by the Good Hotel Guide, and has announced that she wants her funeral wake there. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I know, it's a bit depressing, but she's very pragmatic and you can't help thinking of these things when you're 89. When I invited her to try their new Spring Afternoon Tea, which is available until June 19 and is £60pp - or £75pp with a glass of Billecart-Salmon Brut Reserve - she switched off her beloved snooker and practically leapt out of her seat. She also refused to use the hotel's wheelchair that I'd procured for her. If she was going to her favourite place, she was going to walk in the door, albeit slowly and clutching onto every high-backed heavily upholstered chair that was en route. Thankfully, there are a lot of them. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad We made it to our favourite table, with the view out to the lawn and their resident peacock, Colin, who was pecking about the grass. The food comes thick and fast. There's lots, so don't schedule lunch or dinner that day. Maybe skip breakfast, too. After we'd received our rhubarb rooibos and Scottish breakfast teas (you can try as many as you like, or choose coffee or hot chocolate), we started on the plate of savouries. There seemed to be a verdant green theme, to suit the season. These pairs of bites included a bonnie asparagus quiche that was topped with wild garlic pesto, as well as the satisfyingly palate-coating mouthful of powdered clava brie and herb truffle, plus black sourdough crackers that were topped with tiny lapsang souchong cured sea trout cubes, and dots of limey avocado puree. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad David Cheskin Once we'd dispatched those swish amuse bouche, we could move onto the finger sannie section on the lower ground floor of our three tier cake stand. Apart from the Scandi open cucumber sandwich that was topped by minty pickled red onion, dill fronds and sour cream, they've gone classic loaf-with-the-crusts-cut-off here. Well, it wouldn't be an afternoon tea without sandwiches that adhere to the roof of one's mouth. My fave was the sturdy protein hit of spring chicken with lemon and spring onion. Its filling prompted a joke about mum's age, but she didn't laugh. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad There was also a sturdy egg version, but with the twist of Caesar mayo, and a well stuffed brown bread Ayrshire ham number that was pimped up with rhubarb and honey relish. After all that, we were starting to feel prematurely replete. If Colin was inside, he could've helped us with a few crumbs. I think that would've cheered him up, as we could see children trying to feed him handfuls of grass, and he looked well unimpressed. At this point, mum moved onto the plain and buttermilk fruit scones with clotted cream and raspberry jam, while I focused on the colourful penthouse-level cakes. There was a neat, purple-lidded blueberry, lemon and lavender gateau and a Jaffa Cake-ish Earl Grey and chocolate orange mousse. However, my heart was won by the marzipan-clad lemon verbena and lime battenburg, which was topped by a Mary Quant-esque white chocolate daisy and was probably my favourite afternoon tea cake of all time. So beautiful to look at, and to eat, with a fluffy sponge innard in pale buttery yellow and green pastels. I also loved the rhubarb and custard cardamon tart - another substantial and memorable treat, with the sunshine hitting its yolk-like pink dome of rhubarb gel. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Gaby Soutar We did our best at eating every item, but, without Colin's help, we were done. I couldn't finish the scones, she couldn't do the cakes. The remnants of everything had to be taken away, in a little branded box. At least it's going to feel pretty decadent, I'm sure, to eat such fantastical gems in front of the snooker. It'll also help to draw the experience out, because she still adores this place. Let's hope we'll have many more visits. No wheelchair required.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Yahoo
Norfolk venue named one of UK's best 'posh pubs'
A north Norfolk venue has been named one of the "best posh pubs to stay in". Jane Knight, the editor of the Good Hotel Guide, compiled a list of the "inns whose beds are as fabulous as their beer". The Pigs - which sits in the countryside in Edgefield, near Holt - was included. The pub boasts 18 rooms which all come with their own spa facilities as well as a restaurant and bar area. "It's hog heaven at this Norfolk pub, which is all about wallowing," Ms Knight wrote in the article. "Even the standard sties (sorry, rooms) have a sauna and a bath made for two, while spa suites also feature a steam room and an outdoor hot tub alongside a fire pit. READ MORE: She added that there is an impressive range of treatments on offer, including a champagne and truffle facial. "As for food, the pub's Marmite and white chocolate pot after dinner is its signature dish - and yes, you'll either love it or hate it," she added. This is not the first time the Pigs has earned acclaim. It was named Pub of the Year at the Suffolk and Norfolk Tourism Awards in March and, last summer, the Times called it one of the country's best dog-friendly hotels.
Wales Online
02-05-2025
- Wales Online
Welsh pub that's made The Times' best posh hotel list
Welsh pub that's made The Times' best posh hotel list The Times' most recent list of 'the UK's best posh pubs to stay in' praised The Bell at Skenfrith as an inn "whose beds are as fabulous as their beer" The Bell at Skenfrith has been named one of the best posh hotels to stay in the UK (Image: Rob Besant ) A pub in Wales has been named one of the best poshest pubs in the UK. In The Times' most recent list of 't he UK's best posh pubs to stay in', The Bell at Skenfrith in Monmouthshire has been recommended as an inn "whose beds are as fabulous as their beer", according to the editor of the Good Hotel Guide, Jane Knight. The pub was listed alongside establishments in Aberdeenshire, Cumbria and Devon, amongst others. In the list, The Bell at Skenfrith, which is a 17th century coaching inn, is described as "more boutique hotel than bar". The review continues: "This 17th-century Welsh coaching inn makes a stylish base from which to explore the Monmouthshire countryside or for fishing on the River Monnow, beside which it stands. "The six circular walks that start at the Bell's front door include the four-mile Knights Templar Trail, which crosses the border to an English Knights Templar church. "Back at the pub there are local wines, beers and ciders on offer in the Monnow Bar followed by locally sourced food in the airy restaurant, while the rooms might feature a modern four-poster and river views." It comes after the pub was recently listed as one of the best beer gardens in the UK by lifestyle magazine TimeOut. From superstar gigs to cosy pubs, find out What's On in Wales by signing up to our newsletter here . Article continues below They named The Bell at Skenfrith was fifth on their list of the 12 best beer gardens, which described the "idyllic views over the valley". You can read more about this list here. Located in the picturesque village of Skenfrith, next to the ruins of a medieval castle and alongside the banks of the River Monnow, the inn is renowned for its award-winning restaurant, run by head chef Joseph Colman. The menu is changed on a regular basis to match with every season. According to its website, its current menu features peppered Brecon beef carpaccio, pan-fried black bream with samphire and roast Welsh lamb. The beer garden at The Bell at Skenfrith has recently been named one of the best by Time Out magazine (Image: The Bell at Skenfrith ) The restaurant also uses local suppliers and some of the vegetables even come from their own kitchen garden. Meanwhile, its hotel has 11 rooms, which are all "individually designed" bedroom that come with en suite bathrooms. And as mentioned in The Times review, the pub is situated in the perfect place for a country walk, with the pub itself creating six of their own guided walks in and around the Skenfrith area, named Circular Walks. These walks can take you across the border into England and back, and on a beautiful, clear night, the pub recommends that budding astronomers, sky scouts and galaxy watchers should head over to the area as the sky is "never diminished by orange light". Article continues below
