IN MARCH 2024 MR AND MRS PUNTER INVADED YORK TO EXPERIENCE THE CITY’S HISTORY, ATTRACTIONS, HOTELS AND FOOD AND DRINK SCENE. HERE’S WHAT THE SAVOUR MAGAZINE WRITERS GOT UP TO ON DAY TWO OF THEIR 48 HOURS IN YORK
Fresh from being petrified at the York Dungeons we set off to The Grand Hotel, York hoping for something to reduce the pulses to something less likely to result in a visit to the local A&E. The ultimate result of our stay was that our pulses were lowered to the stage where our Fitbits kept enquiring if we were still in the land of the living.
The Grand, York was originally built in 1906 for the North Eastern Railway as a “palace of business” which explains why it is within a stone’s throw of York’s magnificent train station. It remained that way until as late as 2007 when it was bought and renovated into the Cedar Court Grand Hotel and Spa. Even so, the hotel still retains the legacy of its railway heritage including a vast safe built into the walls of one of the corridors. The hotel then passed into the hands of its current custodians, Splendid Hospitality who refurbished and expanded it in 2017-18.
Many things are given names that promise much but fail to deliver. When you have a hotel which is called “The Grand” expectations are set pretty high. Fortunately for us, The Grand really does live up to its name.
On arriving at the valet parking, the façade of the grade II listed building is impressive and stands tall against the skyline of York. Although it was a chilly day, we were warmly greeted by the doormen and the wonderful Wayne in particular made us feel like family – the type of family you really like.
That welcoming continued into the actual reception which is situated in front of one of the many ornate and sweeping staircases. We were allocated a room in the new wing of the hotel and the move from the old to the modern takes places seamlessly with the décor echoing and respecting the past but without being afraid to adopt the styles and furnishing of today. A perfect example is the carpets leading from reception towards the bedrooms where the pattern of the carpet matches the pattern of the original tiles in the main entrance.
Our room was a Classic Room which, in other locations, would be described as a “standard” – but it was anything but. The entry corridor takes you past the ample storage and the bathroom which was well-equipped and well stocked with Molton Brown toiletries. We did wonder why, in such a modern room, there was a traditional non-slip bathmat. We later found out that the music from the TV can be played through a speaker in the bathroom, so the mat was clearly there for misguided fools like us who think that dancing in the shower is something approaching a good idea. You will be pleased to know that there is no pictorial proof of either Punter shower dancing.
The rest of the room was spacious with a large desk which converted into a dressing table and a good-sized in-room fridge. A nice touch was that the wine glasses for the room were placed in the fridge ensuring that chilled liquids stayed chilled when poured, for those people who allow liquids to remain in glasses for any length of time anyway.
There was a large smart TV on the wall facing a bed which was impressive in terms of both size and comfort. We were also relieved to find that the air conditioning was not only easy to use but actually did what you told it to.
Giving our feet a rest from pounding the cobbled streets we went for Afternoon Tea which was taken in the main dining room, The Rise, which is reminiscent of a classic train carriage, but in a good way. There are dark tones and lush fabrics offset by rich wood flooring and pared-back lighting.
To say that afternoon tea was generous is about as much of an understatement as you may make. There were five savoury elements including a sweet paprika croissant, Yorkshire Brie with tomato and pesto on sourdough and my favourite which, you will not be surprised to learn, was the black pudding sausage roll with apple gel. Mrs Punter’s vegetarian version included a balsamic glazed beetroot with gem lettuce and a caper-raisin gel. Her version of my sausage roll was a Portobello mushroom and celeriac Wellington.
We then had two scones (each!) one plain and one sultana, along with clotted cream and strawberry jam. Fortunately, we Punters both agreed on the cream before jam on first issue so there were no afternoon tea-based domestics.
As if five savoury offerings and two scones wasn’t enough there were then four sweet offerings. There was a traditional Battenberg and a delicious, fudgy craquelin with gold leaf. Mrs Punter and I disagreed on which of the two remaining puds was best. Her favourite was a delightful mango tarlet with tonka bean custard, mango mousse and a burnt meringue.
My favourite pud, and my favourite part of the whole afternoon tea, was a Greek yoghurt cheesecake which had a yuzu gel centre and topped with candied pecan and strawberry. I was glad that I was almost entirely full when I ate it because it meant that I actually ate it relatively slowly and could savour the experience instead of my normal Scooby Doo method of eating almost the entire meal in one bite.
As dinner wasn’t booked until 8.30pm, we then had time to kill and we still had numerous options available on the Visit York Pass. Should we choose The York Museum? The Van Gogh Immersive Experience? The National Railway Museum? In the end, we decided that going back to the room to re-charge was the best approach.
Sounds like a bit of a cop out but us Punters are not getting any younger and the thought of falling asleep in our desserts was not a pleasant one. As it turned out I would have been quite happy to end up face down in my dessert, more on that later.
We had hoped to try out The Grand, York’s fine dining restaurant, Legacy, for dinner. It is already in the Michelin Guide and is aiming for another star for the City of York. Unfortunately, it was fully booked. We had tried to book in January, but they were having a well-deserved break. We are, however, determined to get there this year and will report back when we do.
We headed back to The Rise which is headed up by Executive Chef Kevin Bonello who, prior to heading to York, had been culinary director at the Michelin-starred De Mondion in Malta. Kevin also oversees Legacy and the hotel’s cookery school. We went for the set menu which, for a venue of this quality in a major tourist destination, was a very reasonable £65pp for three courses.
I kicked off with very large Orkney scallops and extremely crispy pork belly served with a roe powder seasoning, Jerusalem artichoke, black garlic aioli and a passionfruit dressing. That was all polished off in short order.
My main was The Grand beef Wellington with mushroom, Roscoff onion, black garlic aioli, hand-cut chips and two sauces – a Béarnaise and a beef jus. It was grand in name and nature and, frankly, enormous. That, for me, was a good thing as it meant I could enjoy it for longer.
My final course was, hands down, the best thing I had eaten during the entire trip. It was a miso sponge with a passionfruit, caramel and coconut ice cream. I absolutely could not fault it. There were flavours which danced across the palate accompanied by variations of texture which made each mouthful different.
Mrs Punter enjoyed a salad of crushed burrata – which was of such a size that it appeared to have been made with a whole cow full of milk. It was served with heirloom tomatoes, pistachio, figs, fig leaf oil and toasted focaccia. Her main was a sumptuous wild mushroom and onion tart tatin with pickled heritage baby carrots, kale, crushed new potatoes and the ubiquitous black garlic aioli.
Like my main, this was a really healthy portion. The dessert option for Mrs Punter was a mille feuille with a pistachio crémeux, wild berries and a yoghurt ice cream.
As per the law of gastronomy, we felt compelled to sample the dessert wines and our favourite was the Muscat which was an absolute knock-out.
Once again we managed to get back to our room without the assistance of a porter’s trolley and settled into a well-deserved, and peaceful sleep.
Breakfast in the morning was a grand as the previous day has been. Tea, coffee and fresh juices were in plentiful supply and there was a splendid array of continental fayre along with cereals, pastries, toasts and the like. For hot options there was a cooked breakfast menu and a buffet range of all the ingredients to put together your bespoke Full English, eggs fried or poached to order for freshness.
We had to leave York by lunchtime as grandparents cannot be late for their duties so we decided not to go back into the centre but went on a tour of the hotel instead.
So other than the fantastic food, great service and luxurious rooms, what else does The Grand, York offer?
Firstly there is the spa which features a 14m pool, whirlpool, steam room, sauna, relaxation lounge, and a state-of-the-art gym for those odd folk who enjoy exercise. There is also a full range of spa treatments and the spa is not limited to guests as customers can buy day passes too.
The Grand, York is a spectacular place to hold weddings and events. The two main rooms are The Grand Boardroom which was the actual boardroom for the railway company. It features beautiful oak panelling and traditional fireplaces and there are also huge foldaway blackboards that timetables would be drafted on.
The other room is The Chairman’s Suite which is the original Chairman’s office and links to the Boardroom so the two rooms can be configured in a number of ways.
We also managed to have a look around Legacy. It has a limited number of seats which allows focus on quality. Although Chef Kevin oversees the hotel, the head chef at Legacy is Ahmed Abdulla who brings his own twist to Yorkshire produce. Sommelier Derek Scaife is on hand to curate drinks tailored to the individual and, unlike many high-end restaurants, not only is the team at Legacy able to accommodate dietary requirements, they welcome it as a challenge.
The final stop on our tour was the Cookery School which was developed when the new wing was opened and is run by Cookery School Director Marc Williams. Each guest has their own station and it is fully accessible with specific stations for wheelchair users or smaller guests. Cookery School mentors have also had training in BSL so that the school can be enjoyed by the deaf or hard of hearing. There is also a focus on sustainability and it is 99% plastic-free.
As with the spa it is open to non-staying residents and also makes a great team-building experiences for companies. Companies who really, really like their employees could send them to the Cookery School and put them up overnight in the hotel too before a day’s workshopping in the meeting rooms the next day.
The grand tour filled the time between breakfast and check out but left us with a stark realisation. It turns out that 48 hours in York isn’t enough to sample all of The Grand, York let alone all of York. All the more reason to come back again, and again, and again.
Mr and Mrs Punter spent 48 hours in York courtesy of Splendid Hospitality. For their review of the first 24 hours in York, visit here.
