A Punters’ View of the charming country pub, The Alice at Hawthorn, in Yorkshire
There is a line that runs through the Terminator film franchise, “There is no fate but what we make”. The Punters, with all due respect to James Cameron and his colleagues, disagree. Sometimes things happen that do just seem to be destiny.
So it was that one of The Punters’ offspring bought us vouchers for a vineyard tour for Christmas. We looked and there were three possible destinations, Leicester, Holmfirth and near to York. We had already done the one in Holmfirth and the one in Leicester was a bit far for us so the one near York it was.
The location was the Yorkshire Heart vineyard and brewery and, having looked at the range of brewed and fermented offerings, the thought of going there and having to say, “No thanks, I’m driving” nearly reduced me to tears. Oddly, the perennial passenger that is Mrs Punter wasn’t that bothered, but I manfully stuck to my guns and declared that we were staying over or not going at all. I pointed out to Mrs Punter that there was both camping and “glamping” at the vineyard. Mrs Punter then reminded me that the only camping she would do involved en-suite facilities, an actual bed and walls made out of bricks and mortar rather than canvas.
So I set out on a mission to find somewhere suitable to stay and, this is where fate played its hand, the very first search result for “Hotel Nun Monkton” was The Alice Hawthorn which is a venue that has been on The Punters’ radar for quite some time and had been the first option for our annual “avoid work” getaway at the start of January but had been shut for a well-deserved break.
Not only was it the first thing that came up, but it turned out to be less than 5 minutes away from the vineyard and (we are told) only around 20 minutes away for healthier souls who would want to walk it. It was clearly meant to be, so we booked immediately and organised taxis to and from the vineyard. Well, we wouldn’t want to clog up the roads with walkers would we?
After a glorious drive through the beautiful North Yorkshire countryside we arrived in the picturesque village of Nun Monkton which dates back to pre-Viking times and centred around a priory, hence the name, which still remains as the village church. It is only half an hour away from Harrogate and York and, if that isn’t enough, it is also home to the tallest maypole in the country.
The Alice Hawthorn has been in the village for more than 250 years but was previously known as The Blue Bell Inn. Locals will tell you that, in the 1840s, a local girl, of the same name, helped to deliver a foal in a nearby field and the owner was so grateful he named the horse after her. That horse went on to win the Doncaster Cup and Queen’s Vase so the pub was renamed in honour of both girl and horse.
Fast forward several decades to 2013 and it was bought by Kate and Richard Harpin. Both were determined to keep the pub open for the village but, having a population of less than 300, Kate and Richard knew they would need to attract people from further afield if the business was to prosper. And prosper it did which allowed for refurbishments and renovations to take place with the bar extended and the kitchen moved and improved.
In 2017 current Head Chef, John Topham, and his wife Claire became business partners, and the venture has gone from strength to strength not only in terms of the building and facilities but the food as well to the extent that The Michelin Guide says:
“This smartly modernised dining pub sits on a large village green where, as well as a duck pond, you’ll find the country’s tallest maypole. Hearty, well-presented dishes have classical roots and showcase local and garden produce. Welcoming service and smart bedrooms complete the picture.”
On arrival at The Alice it is clear that the right balance has been struck between modernising the venue but maintaining strong links to the history and tradition of the pub and the area. A prime example is the glass corridor which links the main building to The Barn, a private dining area which can seat up to 30 and can also be used for weddings and other events. Furnishings are luxurious but with a “scandy chic” feel. Terrible phrase I know but it fits.
The dining room looks out over the village’s expansive green and duck pond and don’t be surprised to see cows grazing on the green, or standing in the road, staring you down as you wait (patiently) for them to get out of your way. There is also plenty of outdoor seating to take advantage of what passes for summer these days. The view of the green, the ducks or the cows is guaranteed to be uninterrupted as you cannot park in front of the pub or on the green. Worry not though as there is a large car park at the back.
The rear is where you will find eight of the pub’s 12 rooms (the other four are in the main house). Newly built as recently as 2019, the garden rooms are made of sustainable materials such as UK grown Douglas Fir as sustainability is very much at the core of the business, even down to installing a ground source heat pump. One of the blocks is known as The Stables and they feature large, comfortable beds, an enormous TV and an en-suite with a walk-in shower. As with most hotel rooms there are tea and coffee facilities (with actual milk, not those awful UHT cartons) and an ironing board but there are also umbrellas and a radio with Bluetooth connection.
A word of warning though, and if you take nothing else away from this review take this away or you WILL panic on entering any of the rooms in The Stables. You enter and admire the décor and clean lines and then those clean lines draw your eyes up to the ceiling where a sense of dread kicks in because it looks like the dividing walls stop before they meet the ceiling so, like a set of stables, they appear to be open to the adjoining rooms. Fear not though, this is a clever design trick because what appears to be the ceiling of the room next door is, in fact, a reflection of the ceiling in your own room, reflected in a large mirror. If you’ve forgotten this review by the time you stay, well, you can’t say we didn’t warn you.
Our tour at the vineyard had us back at The Alice Hawthorn by mid-afternoon so we had plenty of time to sample some of the drinks on offer, purely for the purposes of reporting though. A pint of the local blonde ale and a rhubarb gin and lemonade set us on the way. I was then dispatched to the bar by Mrs Punter who had tasked me with finding the cocktail menu. I couldn’t see one so I asked the tall young man behind the bar if he had one. He looked me dead in the eye and said, in a manner of which Judge Dredd or Walter White would be proud, “I am the cocktail list”.
This young man, Dan, quickly became one of our favourite people on the planet as he crafted four wonderful cocktails for us – the pick of which were the Kamikaze and the Black Widow, both of which were aptly named as they could be deadly if too many were consumed.
To ensure that we were still in possession of most of our faculties by dinner we backed off the cocktails and went on to soft drinks, well, a sparkling wine from the nearby vineyard, which we enjoyed in the sun in the gardens around the back.
On to the evening meal then. John Topham, formerly of The General Tarleton at Ferrensby and The Angel at Hetton, has crafted a menu which is small enough to allow the kitchen to focus on quality but big enough to allow for plenty of choice. Vegetarian dishes are dishes in their own right rather than versions of the other dishes with a random veg substituted for the meat.
Seared scallops with crispy belly pork, camembert risotto and a sherry vinegar dressing for me, goat’s cheese croquettes with broad bean houmous with an apple, beetroot and walnut salad for Mrs Punter – both served with a smile by the very welcoming Will, son of John. Will also allowed us to sample a couple of the wines before deciding which bottle to go for. Somewhat predictably we ended up going for the Gavi.
I carried on the pork theme for my main, an Iberico pork pressa with a black pudding bon bon (which was my favourite part of the whole meal), courgettes, apricot puree and crispy confit potato. Mrs Punter eschewed her usual vegetarian option and chose to chew on a chicken supreme (that’s breast to most people) filled with what could be Mrs Punter’s food heaven, a mushroom and truffle mousseline and if that wasn’t enough they also loaded up her plate with pretty much all her favourite foods – leeks, girolles and an outstanding dauphinoise.
In what turned out to be no shock at all, we were, once again, spent by the time desserts would ordinarily be served. We were, however, true to our usual form and manfully found room for dessert wines. There was a Tokaji, a Sauternes and the pick of the bunch was a Black Muscat.
Somehow we made it back to our room and were grateful for the large and welcoming bed. We were also grateful for the large and powerful fan that had been placed in the room to make up for the lack of air-con. A good night’s sleep was had by both.
Refreshed, and now hungry again, we headed off for breakfast and the breakfast menu was similar to the evening menu, simple but varied. Mrs Punter’s creamy yoghurt was topped with a crunchy granola and fruit compote. My hearty porridge was topped with banana, toasted walnuts and honey. I had my usual full English (no tomato, I don’t have salad for breakfast) and Mrs Punter went for grilled haloumi with harissa tomatoes, mushrooms and egg. Somehow we both managed to finish both courses but settled for orange juice instead of dessert wine this time.
Overall the Alice Hawthorn is a warm and welcoming pub with staff to match. The dining areas and rooms are elegant but homely and the food is well deserving of its entry in the Michelin Guide. If you’re after a weekend showcasing the best of what Yorkshire has to offer, the combination of The Yorkshire Heart vineyard and brewery and The Alice Hawthorn is pretty hard to beat.
To find our more about The Alice Hawthorn, including the menu, room rates and to book, visit thealicehawthorn.com
For information and booking details for the Yorkshire Heart Vineyard & Brewery, visit yorkshireheart.com
