This year I decided to buy my boyfriend an experience gift, rather than an object, as his main Christmas present. Coincidentally, it also happened to be a treat for myself too. How did that happen?! Wink wink nudge nudge!
I purchased a Groupon voucher for a night away, including three course evening meal and full cooked breakfast for two, staying at the Marco Pierre White Rudloe Arms at a cost of £125. This seemed like a really good offer and after spending ages tossing up between a weekend away or a luxury mini break in the UK, seeing this sealed the deal. I was lucky to be able to get my first choice of date when booking the voucher and we set off on Saturday afternoon, very much ready for some time to ourselves without our small humans around! The hotel is located just outside Bath and was very easy to find travelling from London. In this part of my review I'm going to focus on the hotel itself. I'll review the food separately so as to avoid this becoming too lengthy!
Upon arrival we drove up a narrow, tree lined driveway and were greeted with this beautiful old building. Check in was straightforward and we were told our room would be in the newer building a minute or two by foot back down the driveway. I have to say, I was a little disappointed by this but only due the fact I struggle with too much walking.
Entering our room I was blown away by the size of it! There could definitely be no complaints about it being cramped! We walked into a living room with two large sofas and a chair, off which was a small kitchen complete with cooker (but no equipment, other than basic tea and coffee facilities). Through the living area was the bedroom, with a double bed and small tv. To the right was the bathroom, which was one of the only areas I felt slightly let down the overall feel of the room as it had marks on the walls where it seemed to be mid refurbishment. Overall, I was hugely impressed with the room and suspect we were actually allocated a suite.
We made our way up for dinner and enjoyed a drink in the bar beforehand. They had a wide selection of wines and spirits. Personally, I loved the quirky decor, particularly the welcoming signs and jukebox!
As we made our way through to the restaurant I started to pay a little more attention to the surroundings around reception. I'd read more than a handful of reviews deriding the decor as "weird", "freaky" and "strange". Upon seeing it first hand, I have to totally disagree! It was perfect for our personalities and a cheeky weekend away. Many of the large black and white photos on the walls did heavily feature fetish themes, such as rope bondage and latex, but they were never vulgar. I found them both beautiful and tasteful. Perhaps not the place to book for your grandparents or parents though! ;-)
The restaurant itself was lovely, and very well presented for both dinner and breakfast. All staff we encountered were fabulous and extremely helpful. I'd definitely recommend this place to any of my friends for a weekend away!
Katy x
No comments:
Post a Comment