A village pub should be many things, all of which should embed it in the local community. Social hub, place of refuge, venue for community groups, destination for visitors, provider of employment and (most pertinently here) somewhere to eat and drink. The Tiger Inn Coneythorpe has had a turbulent few years – an extended closure…
It’s hard work opening a hospitality business at the best of times, let alone downstream of a global pandemic, Brexit, worrying levels of inflation and “global political uncertainty” (wasn’t sure how to best phrase that without profanity). Still though people persist, for which I’m enormously grateful as should the rest of York be as the…
It’s been a little while since I was tempted enough by anywhere to make the journey to Leeds but when I heard Bobby Geetha had a new opening to take a look at, it didn’t take me long to start looking for a slot in my diary. With appearances on Great British Menu and Masterchef:…
(ad – pr) Sunday Roast is such an institution in this country that visitors from other nations sometimes struggle to believe we, as a nation, are so dedicated to it. On a weekly basis I feed Yorkshire Puddings to guests on my food tours and explain their background, history and current place in our cuisine.…
(ad – pr) Don’t you hate it when you get beaten to the punch? I’ve been flat out for a few months and have been struggling to find time for writing here. Way back in August I was kindly invited to sample Tharavadu Leeds, which has been on my radar for years, so I arranged…
(ad – pr) York has plenty of landmark buildings to mark your way round the city, many of which are gradually being repurposed away from the intended purpose toward more modern applications. Most recent amongst these is the former post office building on Lendal which has been sadly out of use for a good few…
(ad – pr) Another week, another country estate to familiarise myself with… life certainly has its moments! This time it’s Swinton Park up the A1 near Masham and Ripon with its formidable reputation to check out. My main prior knowledge of this place comes from a friend who assisted Rosemary Schrager in running the cookery…
(ad – pr) I have a surprisingly small range of favourite places to eat in London. For a city so blessed with restaurants, markets and street food I seldom have the opportunity to indulge in a meal. If I’m there for judging with The Great Taste Awards then a large meal is generally furthest from…
(ad- pr)Yorkshire Tapas is a semi-ironic concept that I’ve seen rolled out a few times, notably at my local pub where licensee Paul regularly trots out the same jokes when asked if they do food with his description of Yorkshire Tapas as pork pies, pickled eggs, crisps and Scampi Fries. All admirable enough products in…
Before I became a parent I didn’t really give much, or indeed any, thought to the concept of soft play. I’d been a few times with friends who wanted to entertain kids, but the idea of an extended visit only became reality as my daughter became more ambulatory. In my experience they vary wildly in…