CRATHORNE HALL HOTEL IS NOT JUST ANOTHER COUNTRY HOUSE HOTEL

Crathorne Hall is not just another country house hotel – it’s an historic home that faithfully reflects Edwardian aristocratic splendour.  Crathorne is the epitome of an English country house at its very best.

Set in 15 acres of private grounds it has captivating views of the Leven Valley. As you drive up to Crathorne Hall you think  you’ve arrived at the North East’s very own Downton Abbey.

When we drew up at the hotel’s magnificent entrance  I couldn’t help imagining that Carson would walk through the heavy oak panelled doors at any minute followed by maids and footmen assigned to us for our stay – such is the realism of the Crathorne’s country house ambience.

Built by the Dugdale family, who had made their fortune in the Lancashire cotton trade, the house was completed after three years work in 1903, becoming the largest country house built during the reign of Edward V11.

It had 115 rooms, 41 of which were bedrooms and there were 26 live in servants. The size of the house it is said, reflected Lionel Dugdale’s wife, Violet’s ambitions to launch her son, Thomas, into politics and her daughter, Beryl into an advantageous marriage.

Both her aspirations were achieved with her daughter marrying an Earl and her son eventually becoming a cabinet minister and being created a peer – the first Lord Crathorne. In 1977 the shutters were put up on the private residence and it was sold and became a hotel.

Handpicked Hotels  has put a lot of thought into executing the government’s regulations for Covid 19. Temperature checks and hand sanitising are carried out just outside the main doorway and there is a one way system operating in the corridors of the hotel tactfully indicated by floor stickers that look like blue plaques and blend beautifully.

Through the entrance the oak panelled corridor is impressive with its leather chairs and candelabras whilst the oak panelled reception is discreetly tucked away blends with the character of the hotel with  family portraits hung on its walls.

Portraits are an important adornment at Crathorne and you can track the Dugdale family through the generations – this is partly due to  Thomas marrying artist Nancy Tennant, a talented painter who has some of her work hanging in the hall.

Once checked in we ascended the magnificent wide oak staircase which hasn’t changed since the house was built – and what’s more there’s photos to prove it.

Our room was on the first floor and had huge windows that overlooked the rolling lawns and terrace with its fountains and rose gardens.

The room had its original tile fire place and plenty of comfy armchairs to relax in. The queen size bed was so comfortable and there was air conditioning in our room, a flat screen t.v., fridge and all the other amenities of modern times that one associated with a hotel of this calibre. The bathroom was large and well lit, always important to me, and beautifully tiled.

We decided to take advantage of the peace, quiet and sunshine of the afternoon and took a stroll round the gardens before relaxing on the terrace over looking rolling lawns and woodland.

It wasn’t hard to imagine how this would have been in Edwardian times with ladies taking tea whilst the men were out fishing or shooting with the likes of Downton’s  The Dowager Countess Lady Violet holding court on the terrace over afternoon tea.

Dressing for dinner was a must for us as this place reflects gracious living. The Leven’s Restaurant was the original dining room. The high ceiling, oak panels and big sash windows reflect the Edwardian period. As we sat at our table I wondered how many of the royal, rich and famous had looked out of these windows at the same manicured lawns.

Prince Charles, Benjamin Brittain, Yehudi Menuhin, Lord Mountbatten, Winston Churchill and Conservative Prime Ministers too many to mention have stayed at the hall as well as great ladies of the theatre Edith Evans and Sybil Thorndyke not to mention The Queen Mother who enjoyed afternoon tea at The Hall.

The restaurant tables were socially distantly spaced but yet this did not spoil the ambience. Typical of Edwardian times there are large oak connecting doors from the dining room to another salon where guests would perhaps have assembled for pre-dinner drinks and from there another set of doors into the lounge, the former drawing room where the ladies would retire after dinner whilst the men enjoyed port and cigars before going to the billiard room now the Nancy Tennant Bar with its marble pillars and large fire place.

Crathorne’s restaurant is an AA Rosette Restaurant. Sample the food and its not hard to understand why.

Both my partner and I are lucky enough to have travelled extensively in our respective careers and stayed in literally hundreds of hotels world-wide over the years. However we can honestly say that Head Chef Alan Robinson’s food is some of the best hotel food we have tasted in a while.

Alan admits he is “passionate about food”. Working his way “up through the ranks” as he says he had no intention of ever becoming a chef. “As a teenager I just got a job in a kitchen to pay for driving lessons – but after a while I just fell in love with the art of preparing food”.

And Alan’s food is certainly an art as we discovered from the moment we tucked into our starters.

My partner had Bread & Oils – four different breads all warm served with a large dish of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I went for the Tempura prawns. They arrived hot ,with a batter that was so crispy. The sweet chilli dip was just right and not too spicy.

For mains I chose one of the vegetarian options Spinach and Goats Cheese Pithivier. The puff pastry was light and crispy and cooked just right with a filling of goats cheese and spinach. The Tenderstem broccoli was a match made in heaven.

My partner’s fillet steak was cooked to perfection  tender and succulent and surpassed all expectations with a bearnaise sauce that complimented the meat. The garlic greens and mushrooms that accompanied the dish were hot and tasty along with the triple cooked chips arranged as we’ve never seen before in a block.

Both of us agreed  the triple cooked chips were totally amazing. The best chips we’d ever tasted we both declared. They were hot from the inside out and fluffy – the ultimate chipped potato.

My heaven on a plate came in the shape of Glazed Lemon Tart. A thin pastry base with pure lemon curd topped off with a glazed sugar brule top. So tangy and so delicious yet light served with ice-cream and decorated with mini meringues.

The Assiette of Coffee was a veritable feast for my partner, who normally forgoes the dessert course. It consisted of Brule that was light, ice cream,  coffee soaked syrup sponge and was a work of art in presentation.

After our meal we decided to sit on the terrace under the stars and savour a glass of vino. The perfect end to a perfect day before enjoying a nightcap in the Edwardian ambience of the Nancy Tennant Bar the former Billiard Room.

Next morning I took a short walk in the grounds before sampling the Crathorne breakfast which included my favourite smashed avocado and poached eggs with the avocado soaked in lime it was so different whilst my partners Full English really pleased.

To get some exercise I opted to do the Woodland Walk, after breakfast, which my partner had done the afternoon before – and I was glad I did. It’s a cool walk and so peaceful and you could be a thousand miles away and it helped me totally relax and prepare for the busy week ahead

Soon it was time to leave the gracious Edwardian living of the past – but we will be back.

Crathorne Hall, Yarm, North Yorkshire TS15 0AR.

Tel: 01642 700398 E: crathornehall@handpicked.co.uk.

Website: handpickedhotels.co.uk   – The hotel offers special package breaks and is dog friendly so fido can come too. PS He’ll love the grounds and the walks.