Tucked away in a picturesque sweeping valley just outside the seaside town of Scarborough lies Ox Pasture Hall Hotel.
The former farmhouse has been transformed in to a luxury 32 bedroom country house hotel and we were lucky enough to call it home for the weekend..
Although it isn’t well signposted, the approach road to the hotel builds the anticipation with the sweep of every bend before you get to the stately driveaway. As the hotel creeps in to view, you’ll have to be careful to avoid Gingernuts, the resident ginger cat!
The luxury Scarborough Hotel is set in a beautiful 17 acres of manicured gardens and grounds. Some rooms overlook the well maintained courtyards and others over the lake and valley to the rear of the property. You know how fond we are of our cars so we were pleased to see an abundance of car parking which means we could park well away from other guests and dreaded trees without spoiling anyones views – nothing worse than looking out on to a car park! During our stay there was a large wedding taking place in the purpose built suite. The room looked beautifully decorated and as the suite was detached from the main building, there was no noise or disruption at all. I am sure we have all stayed at a hotel while there has been a rowdy wedding on! Not here!
The dining room overlooks the pretty courtyard which meant we could eat lunch and watch the wedding party endure the endless photos prior to the ceremony. I’m sure somewhere down the line when that couple look back at their wedding photos, there’s 2 hungry Geordie’s in the background – oops!
Our suite was at the back of the property which is accessed through the 2 internal courtyards. The old working barns and out buildings have been stunningly converted in to luxury high end rooms and we were blown away with the quality of our room. With our own lounge and open plan bedroom, it was hard not to soak in the views from the windows of the countryside. The open plan room made the whole suite feel ginormous and there was a sheer abundance of space. We relaxed in our suite with a bottle of champagne that I had lugged all the way from home (and managed not to break!) before indulging in a nice hot bath in one of the deepest baths I think I have ever seen. It was huge! Again, the bathroom was huge and very well appointed. No attention to detail had been overlooked throughout the room.
The hotel is a bit of a 4G blackspot which the husband liked as he remained incommunicado during our stay but me being a digital diva, I was hooked straight up to the free wifi which is available throughout the property. I could fuel my Instagram obsession now!
We had a quick snooze before dinner as we had spent the morning exploring Eden Camp near Malton. If you haven’t heard of Eden Camp before, it is a modern history theme museum chronicling the war between 1939 & 1945, from both sides. We have visited a couple of times and we are always so impressed with the size of the museum for the low entrance fee of £7. Whilst the exhibits might not hold a childs attention, the real tanks and torpedos dotted around certainly capture their attention. There is also a large outdoor play area and an abundance of picnic space.
The rain hounded our visit to the museum but there are over 20 huts to explore so your outdoors time is minimal. Each hut is decorated and themed on a specific aspect from the war years. There is a U boat mock up, a shopping street and always our favourite – the Blitz hut. All huts mix real relics and items with replicas as well as sights, sounds and smells you’d expect. The air is thick with smoke in the Blitz and you can smell the tea next to the tea van as if it was a freshly made brew you had just made yourself.
Eden Camp is a short 30 minute drive away from Ox Pasture Hall Hotel and is a great alternative to the usual touristy haunts of Scarborough, if they aren’t your scene. It is also a great rainy day alternative as no one wants a soggy walk on the beach! If a museum isn’t your style, there is of course the famous Peasholm Park, Scarborough Promenade, Sealife Centre and further afield, you have the beautiful North Yorkshire Moors and Whitby. A drive around the area is just as good as anything as the views across the moors are stunning. Being car folk, we enjoyed a spirited drive across the moors and visited Robin Hoods Bay. Stunning views once again!
It was hard to drag ourselves out of the room and back to the main building for dinner – the bed was THAT comfy – but all in the name of providing my lovely readers with a good review, we dragged ourselves back out to the bar for a pre-dinner drink! With said drink in hand, we got cosy by the open fire to mull over the menu for the evening. And what a menu it was. A small but well curated selection caused us a dilemma – we wanted everything!
Service in the 2 award winning rosette restaurant was perfect. All our servers were amiable and incredibly personable. The focus is on local ingredients and that showed in the quality of the dishes presented. With a bottle of bubbles in the chiller, we made a start with the a selection of flavoured breads prior to our starters. I opted for an Avocado Salad and Paul chose the Mushroom Soup. Thick and rich, the soup won the starter battle. We won’t mention the girl we saw eating her soup with a knife and fork though!
Moving on to the amuse bouche which was a rocket based chilled shot with lemon and ginger. What a punch this packed. If this was just the amuse bouche, we were in for a treat with the mains. I opted for the local rump steak and the staff couldn’t have been more accommodating when I asked for it to be served with a pepper sauce. You just can’t beat proper chunky chips dipped in to a homemade pepper sauce, YUM! Paul chose the 2 bone rack of lamb which arrived perfectly pink and presented beautifully. The plate was almost licked clean.
With a pre dessert palate cleanser we moved on to the cheese board – my favourite part of a meal! Local cheese presented simply with crackers and a chutney. The port helped the cheese go down and my Coke was served in a red wine glass – the kind waiter didn’t want me to feel left out with the ‘grown up’ port!
Pleasantly full, we retired for the evening to sleep off the days adventure and a very delicious meal. We both slept like babies which meant we were up and raring to go early the next day. After a saunter around the lovely grounds, we met Gingernuts, the resident moggy. He accompanied us on our morning walk which helped build up an appetite for breakfast! Again, focused on local ingredients, the breakfast presented the usual assortment of dried goods, pastries and fruit as well as a hot menu selection. If you are a fan of beans, be aware they don’t serve them as standard but if you ask at reception on check in, they will ensure you have plenty of beans at breakfast – now THAT is a personal touch!
We were sad to check out but we left feeling refreshed and invigorated and ready to get back home and start a busy busy week. It was nice to switch off and relax and spend some quality time with each other.
If you are looking for a luxury getaway to relax and really soak in the country atmosphere, you won’t find a better place to do it at Ox Pasture Hall Hotel. We are already planning a return visit in the summer to make the most of the cute outdoors seating!
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