After a day exploring Darlington and spending an afternoon in the Spa Garden at Rockliffe Hall (read my hotel review of Rockliffe here) we headed further north in to Newcastle and Gateshead to Jesmond Dene House.
Located just outside of the city centre Jesmond Dene House is an independent luxury hotel just 10 minutes north of Newcastle city centre sitting perfectly in the midst between countryside and city life. The hotel overlooks the wooded valley of Jesmond Dene, an attractive and popular residential area. The hotel’s main focus it to make you feel at home from the moment to step through the door, and we certainly felt comfortable as we were checked in and seated in the Drawing Room with our complimentary drink whilst our room was prepared.
A little bit of history for you: The Grade ll-listed Arts and Crafts building was once one of Newcastle’s most celebrated addresses. Bought in 1871 by Captain (later, Sir) Andrew Noble, a partner in Lord William Armstrong’s mighty shipping and armaments company, the house was enlarged several times as Noble’s wealth and fame increased. Royalty and celebrities stayed here and were lavishly entertained, and now us!
Once we had finished our drinks we were shown to our room, a junior suite located next door to the main building. We were slightly disappointed our room wasn’t in the main hotel as we had been so blown away by the stunning building and interior design. Our room was situated across the car park in what looked like a business centre. Odd, but we were impressed with the room so managed to look past the exterior. The bedroom was a uniquely decorated, contemporary room with beautiful bathroom with heated floor, upscale toiletries, whilst our bedroom had Egyptian cotton linens, a flat-screen TV and free Wi-Fi, plus stocked minibar, fresh fruit and water. The room was massive and had a lot of space which was great, and out the back we even had our own little garden (although it was freezing so we didn’t make the most of this!)
After nipping out for a few hours in to the city we returned and got ready for dinner in the restaurant in the main building of the hotel. We had booked dinner in the hotel’s restaurant as we had been recommended by our friends at Eat Sleep Love Travel and couldn’t wait to taste the food!
The restaurant has a range of seasonally-changing menus and used both fresh and well-loved favourites to create a menu that pleases everyone. Executive Head Chef, Michael Penaluna, and his team use classic techniques but a contemporary approach to produce Modern British dishes that are light, fresh and flavoursome.
To start I indulged in the Pearl Spelt + Parsley Risotto with Mushrooms + Pickled Carrots (£ 7.50) which was divine and made me realise my love for spelt even more after having it at Rockliffe the night before as well. The pickled carrots added just the right amount of kick to a dish that otherwise wouldn’t have been as delicious! I then opted for the Northumberland Venison Saddle with smoked bacon, parsnips, figs and the most incredible crispy kale (£28.00). The venison was perfectly cooked and the flavours were so punchy alongside the bacon and figs. Then as if that wasn’t enough me and Theo then shared a pudding, going for the Dark Chocolate Sphere with Salted Caramel, Peanuts, Caramel Ice Cream (£10.50). Overall dinner was to die for and our waitress was also lovely!
However, our stay then ended on a bad note was a mess up at breakfast and over an hour wait for our food to be served. I won’t go in to it, but it did put a bad end to our stay and we left feeling a little disappointed simply by the way it had been dealt with, alongside the long wait.
Regardless, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Jesmond Dene and we will be visiting again soon next time we are in Newcastle!
JESMOND DENE ROAD, NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, NE2 2EY
*I was provided with a complimentary stay at Jesmond Dene House with breakfast and dinner, however, as always all opinions are my own and I would not endorse anything I did not enjoy!
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