Tag: national trust

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Ploughman’s Lunch at Killerton House

Killerton House

My usual go to when eating at a National Trust property cafe is a cheese scone, or soup, or even both. On a recent visit to Killerton House in Devon, in the Killerton Kitchen Cafe they had a range of lunch items, including one I hadn’t seen before, which was a Ploughman’s Lunch.

I did like the sound of that, and I thought for £11 was good value for money for somewhere like a National Trust cafe.

I ordered my ploughman’s and took a seat. They had a buzzer system, which I have seen before, but rather than go and collect my food when it buzzes, they use the system to bring the food to your table. Yes, you could use wooden spoons, but this means you don’t need to wait around or hope no one nicks your table when you collect your food.

This was a large plate of food, and let’s get the initial disappointment out of the way which was the three pieces of celery. Not that for some people this isn’t an issue, I have never been a fan of celery, raw or cooked. I guess for most aficionados of the ploughman’s lunch (or even cheese and biscuits) celery is seen as a natural accompaniment. For me, no it isn’t. Well that’s leave that and see what else was on the plate.

There were two chunks of cheese, one cheddar, and one stilton. There was some sliced apple chunks, some sliced sausage roll (guess that was standing in for the pork pie), coleslaw, a few lost leaves of salad, red onion chutney, two pickled onions, and a pickled gherkin. Alongside was some bread and butter.

Ploughman’s Lunch

Overall I was pleased with the plate of food, well obviously not pleased with the celery, but the rest of it was looking good.

Both pieces of cheese were delicious, this was a lovely piece of mature cheddar and I also enjoyed the stilton. If you don’t like stilton then this isn’t going to be the best ploughman’s lunch for you.

The sausage roll was a good stand in for a pork pie and was full of meaty flavour. I liked the pickles and the fresh apple as well.

I probably could have done with some more bread, but that (and the celery) is my only criticism.

This was a nice plate of food and it made for a delicious lunch.

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Flat White at Hanbury Hall

Hanbury Hall

I stopped off at Hanbury Hall, a National Trust property for a break during travelling. The house was lovely, but afterwards I headed to the stable for a coffee.  I went with a flat white.

It was nice and I enjoyed it.

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Soup and a Scone

I was visiting Lytes Cary Manor, a National Trust property in Somerset. After visiting the house and walking around the garden I popped to the cafe.

I went with their soup and a cheese scone deal.

I think the soup was carrot and coriander, there wasn’t a sign, and I forgot to ask. The soup was nice and tasty. It was thick and warming.

The scone was fresh and also tasty.

My main complaint, was that the soup was served in a card pot, but the scone came on a china plate. I would have preferred my soup in a china bowl.

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Dyrham Park

Dyrham Park

We were visiting Dyrham Park, a National Trust propety, and after walking the grounds and visiting the house, we made our way to the stables for a cup of tea and something to eat.

It was half term, so the place was quite busy, and there was something of a queue. It would appear it was busier than expected, as they had sold out of a lot of their menu items, and it was only approaching one o’clock.

In the end the only items left were a vegan sausage roll, and a spicy cauliflower pasty. So we had one of each, mine was the cauliflower pasty. I also ordered for myself an espresso and a can of 7Up.

The pasty was served to our table, on its own on a plate. I wonder if they use to serve a salad garnish with it? I think it would have been enhance with a little salad on the plate. To be honest I might have even paid extra for some salad.

Well the pasty was nice and hot, the wholemeal pasty was excellent, and I really liked the spicy filling, the spices did somewhat overpower the flavour of the cauliflower, but I could still taste the cauliflower in there.

The coffee was nice.

This wasn’t a meal, more of a snack. Having visited a lot of National Trust properties this year (the benefits of membership) I have been wondering why the menu at these places are quite limited. As well as scones and cakes (naturally) the main menu items are pasties, baked potatoes, and soup. They sometimes have meals, but often the choice is only one or two. At Dyrham Park they did have a nice sounding Italian sausage casserole on the menu, but yes, you guessed, it had sold out.

I suspect that the menu has been derived from what sells, what was popular, and what makes money. Cooking a pasty and keeping it warm is much easier than cooking a meal. People are probably more likely to pay £4.55 for a pasty, then say £9.95 for a meal when visiting a property. I suspect the profit margin on the pasty would be much higher than the meal as well. Of course the profits from the cafe does support the property as well.

Overall I did enjoy our snack and drinks.

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Not all scones are equal

One of the interesting things about visiting National Trust properties is that though there appears to be commonality and consistency across their cafes, the reality is that they are dependent on who is in the kitchen, more than most. As a result, one way to compare the different experiences is to look at something that is common across many of the menus and compare them. Once such common item found on lots of menus is the cheese scone.

On a recent visit to Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire I stopped for lunch and had a leek soup and a cheese scone.

Kedleston Hall is one of the finest and most complete examples of an 18th-century show-palace and parkland in Britain. Step inside and discover the Curzon family’s collection of fine art, furniture, and Asian objects.

The cafe is in, what was the kitchens of the Hall. I do like it when the cafe is in the main buildings, rather than a converted cow shed. I really liked how Chirk Castle’s cafe was in one of the towers for example.

The service was friendly, you placed your order and then your food is brought to the table.

The scone was lovely and fresh, soft, and delicious. It was full of flavour. I really liked it, so much that I nearly ordered a second scone.

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Chirk Castle Coffee

Chirk Castle

I made a visit to the National Trust’s Chirk Castle close to Wrexham. Partly to have a coffee, but also to see the castle.

A 13th-century Marcher castle, that from 1595 became the home of the Myddelton family for over 400 years.

The castle was an English castle (now in Wales) that became a family home. Swapping sides during the English Civil War, it  sustained serious structural damage from a parliamentary force in 1659 and underwent a major rebuild.

Chirk remained in the Myddelton family until it was transferred to the National Trust in 1981.

The cafe is located in the castle’s historic kitchens, and when I headed to the additional seating I really liked the environment. The additional seating room was in one  of the towers.

The flat white was expertly made, and really good. It was a lovely place to sit and drink coffee.

flat white coffee on a table

It was nice that the cafe was in the heart of the castle, many time when visiting National Trust properties the cafe is more often than not, in one of the outbuildings, usually the stable.

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The Vyne

The Vyne

I made a quick visit to the National Trust’s The Vyne in Hampshire. Partly to have a coffee, but also to see the house.

A former Tudor powerhouse turned 17th century family home, set in gardens, woodlands, and wetlands.

The house was an interesting mix of medieval cellars, Tudor palace, and a 17th century family home.

After visiting the house and walking around the grounds I headed to the café for a coffee and something to eat. I went to the café, with the intention of having lunch, but the choice wasn’t inspiring. I didn’t fancy the cream of celeriac soup either. As celeriac, tastes like celery, and I really don’t like celery I knew I probably wouldn’t enjoy the soup.

So, I had a flat white and a cheese scone. The coffee was expertly made, and it was really nice. I enjoyed it. I was pleased it came in a proper china cup. The scone was okay, a little small I thought, but it was certainly cheesy.

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Time for a flat white

We were visiting the National Trust’s Wightwick Manor in the West Midlands.

Victorian half-timbered Manor House which was home of the Mander family, with a world-class art collection and Morris and Co. interiors.

After visiting the house and walking around the grounds we headed to the cafe for a coffee.

I ordered a flat white, but wasn’t tempted by the cakes.

The coffee was expertly made, and it was really nice. I enjoyed it. I was pleased it came in a proper china cup.

 

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Hanbury Hall Espresso

I stopped off at Hanbury Hall, a National Trust property for a break during travelling. The house was lovely, but afterwards I headed to the stable for a coffee. I went with a double espresso. It was nice and I enjoyed it.

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Katsu Fish Finger Bap

I stopped off at Baddesley Clinton Hall a National Trust property in Warwickshire, partly to see the house and gardens, and partly to have lunch.

I had planned to have some soup, but looking over the menu, I decided I would have the Katsu Fish Finger Bap. I placed my order, picked up my coffee and headed to sit down.

A little later the Katsu Fish Finger Bap arrived. It was a seeded bap with three fish fingers, lettuce, pickled slaw, and some Katsu sauce. It was served with lettuce and slaw on the side.

It did look rather nice. The flavours were excellent. I did think that the fish fingers could have been a lot crisper, then were a little soft. I also think it could have had a little more Katsu sauce as well.

Overall it was a nice snack for lunch.