The Castle Inn

Room one was superbly furnished and tastefully decorated, especially the stunning restored copper bath. We stayed two nights and the manager made us feel very welcome, with a great suggestion for places to visit. We ate in the restaurant both nights, and the meals were delicious. The haddock and chips with homemade tartare sauce are well worth recommending. A lovely weekend at the Castle Inn, ideally placed for the lakes and west coast. A little gem for a break in the north of England.

Our daughter gave us an afternoon tea voucher for Christmas, and this turned out to be a very disappointing present. We’d booked about a week ahead and arrived half an hour early, but the booking only had my name and arrival time written down. The assistant manager, who took it, hadn’t noted that it was for afternoon tea or included a contact number. The assistant on duty was lovely and checked with the chef to see if they had the right food. We ordered wine and beer, and they kindly made the beer free because of the mix-up. Then the assistant went out to buy cakes. The sandwiches were nice, ham, tuna and cucumber, though cucumber sandwiches felt odd. The cakes were all Mr Kipling, not homemade as we’d expected, and the ones we tried were awful. We left every one. We had to ask for cream and butter for the scones, and the dessert was a sort of Eton mess that was so icy cold we couldn’t eat it. There was no decaf tea, so I had decaf coffee instead. Nobody asked if we were enjoying anything. The full price for this thrown-together meal was an astonishing £30 per couple, and we presume the voucher was for less. The two women on duty were very apologetic, and seemed embarrassed by the assistant manager’s incompetence. The free beer was a nice gesture, but the whole experience was a letdown.

We tried eating at the Castle Inn for the first time last night and had a great meal. The food was delicious, there was plenty of choice on the menu, and the service was great. It was lovely and clean inside too. We’ll definitely go back and would happily recommend it.

I’ve been a few times with my family. The staff are friendly, the food is good quality, and there’s plenty to choose from on the menu. I’ll be back again soon.