THE PERFECT MATCH

NEWCASTLE MEETS ITALY -BELLISIMO

Vibrant, exciting, welcoming and with a special charm all of its own Newcastle is the perfect place for a city break at any time of the year.

This city has something for everyone from art and culture, history and some fabulous shops for retail therapy combined with a great selection of bars, restaurants, clubs, music venues and hotels.

One of the jewels in the city’s hotel crown is The Innside by Melia situated on the historic quayside with views of the River Tyne from its rooms and open air terrace.

Walk into the foyer of the Innside and you can be sure of a wonderful sincere Geordie welcome from the staff on reception. Its light and airy and I loved the Georgie piece of artwork highlighting the city’s triumphs and celebrities – Whey-I

The hotel is in a unique position on the cobbled quayside and its easy to find and the fact that you can reserve parking makes it so much easier.

After a speedy check in we were on our way in the high powered lift to our river view studio room.

The Innside has one of the best views in town of the iconic River Tyne and the famous bridge as our three travelling bears found out.

It was dusk when we arrived and when we opened the door to our studio room the twinkling lights over the city, the bridge and the river gave the room a fairy-tale effect through the floor to ceiling windows.

Our room was well planned with the Melia avant-guard design. I loved the elegant bathroom with its powerful large rainwater shower, white fluffy towels, to die for toiletries, a separate toilet and even a yoga mat for those who want to de-stress.

The king size bed with its crisp linen and sinkable pillows was heaven to sleep in whilst there was plenty of hanging space and mirrors to check your appearance before going down to dinner. The studio had a small fridge but what I really loved was the hospitality tray complete with Angel of the North shortbread biscuits .

There was a large couch ideally placed in front of the window that would, if required, transform into a sofa bed. A great feature of the room where one could sit and watch over the Tyne with a glass of something in the evening or a coffee in the morning. Pictured is one of the studio rooms similar to the one we occupied.

After we unpacked we made our way down to the Innside’s large bar which is spacious, comfortable and yet has an intimate feeling for a cheeky glass of wine whilst I, ever the hack opened my lap and did some work and my partner got back into his book.

But the best part of stay was to come later when we dined in the hotel’s Gino D’Acampo Quayside Restaurant.

Set on the banks of the Tyne this is a wonderful space open for breakfast, lunch, dinner or drinks throughout the day. It’s a relaxing place to enjoy,relax and savour.

The open plan space is full of natural light and has floor to ceiling windows and a myriad of different types of seating from intimate tables for two to sinkable bench wall seating and different variations of modern types of seating.

The Quayside Terrace can be accessed from the restaurant. This is a wonderful piece of contemporary design with its wicker chairs, tables, faux grass, parasols to shade out the sun or protect from the rain along with dozens of heaters for those chilly nights.

Right on the banks of the Tyne with views of the bridges this can be a romantic place for sundown cocktails, alfresco eating or who knows even the place to make a romantic proposal of marriage – after all its not long to Valentine’s Day and coupled with the romance of Italian food and wine – the perfect setting.

We didn’t make it onto the terrace as temperatures were near freezing and there was driving rain but the view of the river was fantastic from our table.

But visiting Gino D’Acampo’s eatery is always a pleasant experience and the new menu is one to be savoured.

The restaurant has a large selection of Italian wines and a large selection of Italian, Signature and Modern Classic Cocktails which are a must to try.

My Gino’s Martini was just the ticket whilst my partne loved his Spritz Amalfitano made with Bepi Tosalini Limoncello, Hotel Starlino elderflower aperitiva, Prosecco and soda.

We decided on the combination of Freshly Baked Italian Breads. There was ample for two and the selection consisted of Focaccia with cherry tomatoes and olives, ciabatta bread, grissini with pecorino, carta di musica served with a pesto dip. The bread was warm and above all tasty.

My choice of starter was a forgone conclusion I love Arancine but Ginos crispy mushroom risotto balls, with mozzarella,tomato and red pepper sauce are just amazing. The risotto balls were soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. The King Prawn Bruschetta with chilli mayonnaise and toasted ciabatta delighted my partners tastebuds.

A grass and grain fed Angus rib-eye beef steak was my partners choice. It was juicy, cooked to perfection and very tender. It came with crispy and fluffy fries and he chose a peppercorn sauce. Spicy Spinach was his choice of a side and he loved the Garlic and chilli that it was cooked in giving a normally bland vegetable an extra kick.

I chose the crispy chicken breast and I certainly was not disappointed. It was tender and the meat just fell off my folk and was stuffed with mozzarella, sundried tomato and basil pesto which gave the chicken a real depth of flavour.

I can never visit Ginos without satisfying my addiction to Zucchini Fritte (Courgette fries) Do try them – strips of courgettes fried in a crisp batter – ah bellissima

My partner just couldn’t manage a dessert but I had to have my heaven on a plate consisting of Irish Cream Panna Cotta with the inclusion of cholate coffee beans true indulgence.

Breakfast in many hotels is sometimes a let down with bad service, food rather iffy but here in Ginos breakfast is a true delight and what a selection from a full English to a wonderful choice of meats, cheeses, fruits, cereals, pastries and juices to name but a few and so beautifully presented, topped up all the time and with great caring staff to look after you.

Our check out was a seamless as our check in and we were genuinely sorry to be leaving – something that happens very rarely to travel writers. Every member of staff we came into contact with made us feel special and went that extra mile to see we were happy, satisfied and contented customers.

And although we didn’t make it onto the terrace our three world-wide travelling bears did!