Best Foodie Hotels For A Gourmet Getaway!
What would be your idea of a great foodie experience? A fantastic pub lunch? Bottomless brunch? A Sunday roast? Or perhaps a Michelin-star meal? From country house hotels to boutique inns, gourmet dinners to homemade breakfast classics, the Good Hotel Guide shares 10 of their top foodie hotels.
Ballymaloe House, Shanagarry
Summer dining at Ballymaloe
A family-owned country-house hotel and restaurant in Cork, Ballymaloe House is a pretty Georgian farmhouse with a passion for food that extends to its own cookery school. A biodiversity champion, the hotel is surrounded by pretty gardens.
Head chef Dervilla O’Flynn uses produce from the walled kitchen garden, the farm and the local vicinity to create dishes such as cauliflower with squash and spinach korma or lamb with coriander, lemon and crushed swede.
The Cross at Kingussie, Kingussie
The restaurant and bar at The Cross at Kingussie
A former Victorian tweed mill where you wake to the sound of birdsong and the splash of the Gynack Burn that once powered the looms, The Cross at Kingussie sits in a blissful location in the Cairngorms national park. Cosy and welcoming, its food is a standout feature.
Pick either a three-course or a six-course tasting menu, with dishes that might include wild halibut with fish velouté and Parmesan gnocchi.
Lime Wood, Lyndhurst
Cornish native lobster linguini, Parmesan, chili and lemon at Lime Wood Hotel
The New Forest’s Lime Wood Hotel is sophisticated, rustic, and stylish all at once. A place where wellies are as welcome as cocktail dresses, it’s a Regency townhouse that welcomes families but is also a bolt-hole for lovers.
Guests stay in a choice of accommodation from forest hideaway suites to a lake cabin with a freestanding outdoor tub. Food is a central feature thanks to chefs Angela Hartnett and Luke Holder, who serve an Italian-inspired menu.
The Herb House Spa is also a prize feature (we particularly love the hydro pool with forest views). The Spa has its own Raw & Cured café offering nutritious dishes such as home-cured salmon, and borlotti bean salad.
Coll Hotel, Isle of Coll
Cosiness, company and great food at the Coll Hotel
The Isle of Coll’s only hotel and pub, Coll Hotel has been a labour of love for the Oliphant family since the 1960s. The Hebridean retreat has won multiple awards for its hospitality, and is famous for its fresh home cooking and welcoming style.
The star of the menu is the freshest seafood you will ever taste, with shellfish creel and fish from nearby waters. Meat and veg are supplied from local farms, and everything from bread to ice cream is homemade.
Foresters Hall, Cowes
Steak and seafood at Foresters Hall
An incredibly chic boutique hotel on the Isle of Wight, Foresters Hall is located in a set of Georgian townhouses, set above Cowes harbour. Elegantly styled rooms and suites are a combination of stripped-wood floors, statement wallpapers and armoires. Each room enjoys individual details like a four-poster bed or a wood burner.
New food venture The Brasserie by Smoking Lobster serves an enticing mix of seafood and fresh pasta. A stand-out dish is the seafood bucatini, with its generous helpings of prawns, crabs, clams and lobster.
The Pig at Harlyn Bay, Padstow
Fabulous food in historic surroundings at The Pig
A short stroll from the sands of Harlyn Bay, Robin Hutson’s seventh Pig features a combination of eras. A Georgian facade sits alongside medieval and Jacobean interiors. Lavishly designed, it’s a feast for the senses. Each room enjoys its own character features as well as welcome extras including fresh milk in a fridge and beach mats.
As with all Pig hotels, it pays careful attention to the provenance of its food. It has a 25-mile sourcing policy for the majority of ingredients, and much is produced in the kitchen garden. This pig also has a Lobster Shed, where both the classic grill and thermidor are superb.
Baraset Barn, Stratford-upon-Avon
Fine wines and a great dining experience at Baraset Barn
This restaurant-with-rooms close to Stratford-upon-Avon has a reputation as a foodie haven. Food is served in style in a beautiful old barn with statement lights dangling from impossibly high, beamed ceilings.
Imaginative menus include a selection of small plates. Inspiring options range from crispy pomegranate pork belly and herb flatbread, to king prawn pil pil with toasted focaccia.
Retire to a modern bedroom block close by where rooms have a Juliet balcony or terrace and pretty views to wake up to.
Number One Bruton, Somerset
Local cheese on arrival at No 1 Bruton
Enter through a sunshine yellow front door and you’re greeted by a world of exquisite country interiors. This Georgian town house in Somerset is stylish but unstuffy. Rooms are spread between the main house and cottages around a courtyard garden, all with treats of local Cheddar and crackers to greet you.
Food is a low-key Michelin-starred affair. Merlin Labron-Johnson serves up whatever is fresh that day, with an option of six or nine courses. Dishes are tasty and unusual, such as smoky duck with beetroots and elderberry, and ewes’ milk pudding with rhubarb.
The Pipe and Glass Inn, South Dalton
Venison Tartare by Tim Green at The Pipe And Glass
Look out for the impressive spire of St Mary’s Church on the approach to South Dalton, an enchanting village in the East Riding of Yorkshire. The landmark will lead you almost directly to the door of James and Kate Mackenzie’s celebrated pub-with-rooms, The Pipe and Glass Inn.
The modest-looking inn has gained an international reputation as well as many major awards, including a Michelin star, for its exceptional food. Whether you’re having a rum-laced hot chocolate or a decadent three-course meal, everything is delivered to superb standards.
You can also stay the night in one of ten impeccably decorated rooms and suites. Choose from the garden rooms or luxury rooms at The Old Lambing Yard, just a short walk from the pub.
Hambleton Hall, Rutland
Dine looking out over Rutland Water at Hambleton Hall
Set within beautiful gardens, Hambleton Hall is an impressive Victorian country house that invites you to relax and unwind in elegant surroundings. Brimming with beautiful details, the decor honours the heritage of the property whilst offering the best of modern hospitality.
Looking out across Rutland Water, it’s in an idyllic location, which also inspires its menu. Michelin-starred chef Aaron Patterson has made a name for himself serving a concise daily menu using produce from the walled kitchen garden. Favourites include poached halibut, cucumber, oyster leaf salad; or roast venison, turnips, braised red cabbage.
The kitchen table at Lime Wood Hotel, © Amy Murrell
Find delicious recipes and inspiring travel suggestions in every issue of My Weekly magazine. In newsagents and supermarkets every Tuesday, or subscribe to have your issue delivered!
