Hayward's at the Grasmere

I was treated to afternoon tea at Haywards, and what a lovely afternoon it was. The tastes, presentation and service were spectacular. One person in our party couldn’t eat gluten, so we were a little nervous about what her tea would be like. No need to worry: it looked almost the same as ours, and she said everything was delicious. Thanks to everyone.

The Sunday lunch was delicious and the portions were generous, but the service needs work. When we arrived, nobody greeted us and it wasn’t obvious where the restaurant was, so we stood around looking lost for a few minutes. Our waitress said she’d be back with something we didn’t catch. We thought she meant the cauliflower and leek gratin from the menu, but nobody checked on us during the meal, so we couldn’t ask. When we paid, we were told it wasn’t available that day. I’m vegetarian, and although the wellington was delicious, the extra gravy was meat-based so I couldn’t eat it. Our table was beside the bar in the front room, where we could hear waitresses complaining about another table. The food took a while, but it was busy, so that was fine. We live nearby and had been looking forward to eating here.

All 19 of us enjoyed the menu at our big family gathering in the bar area. Every course was delicious, and the service was very friendly. We’d definitely recommend it.

The room was quiet and the bed comfortable, and breakfast was lovely with very friendly service. I hadn’t seen any advance notice that the hotel would be unmanned, though I may have missed it when booking through Nectar Hotels. There’s space for only about eight cars, and the lot was full when I arrived at 6, so I parked on the roadside around the corner. The restaurant and bar were closed, though there were plenty of places nearby, so I can’t comment on them.