Valentine's Weekend
Me and my boyfriend, Harry, decided we wanted to do something a little different for Valentine's by going away for the weekend; although I recognise this may be the norm for other couples, for Harry and myself Valentine's is usually just a card (romantic, I know. haha).
Recently on the weekends we have been visiting sleepy villages in Yorkshire: Ingleton, Skipton, Settle to name a few, and we really enjoyed our days out browsing the shops and pubs! So we decided to try Harrogate as there seemed to be a bit more going on, perfect for Valentine's.
Friday Night
We managed to find some really good deals on Booking.com, however a lot of the hotels in our price range were fully booked, so we were lucky to stumble across a deal for the The Crown Hotel. The Crown Hotel is the sort of Hotel I LOVE. As you can see from the pictures below, it is an old hotel that has been around since 1626 (according to the website), inside the ceilings doubled, possibly even tripled the height of my own house's, the rooms were all very large, including our bedroom, but they was no issue with heating or feeling too cold, and the decor and theme of the hotel in general was beautiful and although the furnishings and paint were modern, they still reflected the origins of the hotel and were completely in-keeping with the hotel's overall grandeur.
It was around 8pm when we arrived at the hotel, so we went straight upstairs to our room, got changed and headed out to venture Harrogate in the dark!
We ended up walking around for about half an hour, until we became too hungry to function, so we wandered onto John Street and into La Tasca where we were seated by a massive window (which I loved because I got to people-watch). We ordered 3 dishes each, and a side of garlic bread which was surprisingly filling and very yummy!
After we finished our meal (and a couple of drinks) we visited the Pitcher and Piano which is a lovely, rustic cocktail bar/pub, but with a modern twist. The cocktails were made right in front of you, which I like because you can see what the barman/woman puts into it and whether it's made from scratch or a ready-made mix (this one was made from scratch, which I personally think tastes much better). As we walked back to our hotel, we visited one last pub/bar/club: Montey's Rock Cafe. It was dark and grungy inside, with Foosball tables and a small stage, but I really liked it; filled with friendly people who made great (strong) cocktails!
A few shots and raspberry mojitos down, and we stumbled merrily back to our room.
A few shots and raspberry mojitos down, and we stumbled merrily back to our room.
Saturday
I won't lie, we woke up with a slight hangover, so we pretty much raced to the dining room in anticipation of this self-serve Full English Breakfast and it did not disappoint! The dining room was so beautiful (just like the rest of the hotel) and the food was lovely, even managing to cure our hangovers. After breakfast, we went back upstairs and readied ourselves to hit the town!
From our nighttime pondering around Harrogate, we had a somewhat vague idea of where the shops were; think of a smaller 'York' when shopping in Harrogate! The town held a mix of the generic high-street shops like Topshop/Topman, New look, River Island, Miss Selfridge, Next etc, and some quirkier shops like Joules as well as those specific to Harrogate, which tended to be more expensive but had some really authentic, individual clothes in stock, which was nice to see.
After a few, somewhat expensive purchases, Harry and Myself decided a hair-of-the-dog was in order, we wandered across a bar called The Den, located on Cambridge Street, walked down the stairs which led to a deceptively large bar/café, it was cosy and buzzing with people watching the Rugby match. We sat ourselves on the high-stools and proceeded to drink and play a few games of pool. I love relaxing after shopping hours on end, and this was a perfect spot to do so, although you do lose track of time as it is a downstairs bar with no windows, so watch out if you ever go and have plans later on! Afterwards we headed back to the hotel to drop our bags off and as we had a few hours to spare before our meal, we changed into our new clothes and headed to Weatherspoons, just over the road, which by the way, is probably the poshest Weatherspoons I have been to thus far.
Our Tapas orders included:
We also had 'Italian meatballs, roast tomato & mozzarella gnocchi', and 'Crispy Salt & pepper king prawns, sweet chilli sauce'; the prawns were amazing, I just can't remember if that was the name of them and I was so busy enjoying it that I didn't take a picture
I won't lie, we woke up with a slight hangover, so we pretty much raced to the dining room in anticipation of this self-serve Full English Breakfast and it did not disappoint! The dining room was so beautiful (just like the rest of the hotel) and the food was lovely, even managing to cure our hangovers. After breakfast, we went back upstairs and readied ourselves to hit the town!
After a few, somewhat expensive purchases, Harry and Myself decided a hair-of-the-dog was in order, we wandered across a bar called The Den, located on Cambridge Street, walked down the stairs which led to a deceptively large bar/café, it was cosy and buzzing with people watching the Rugby match. We sat ourselves on the high-stools and proceeded to drink and play a few games of pool. I love relaxing after shopping hours on end, and this was a perfect spot to do so, although you do lose track of time as it is a downstairs bar with no windows, so watch out if you ever go and have plans later on! Afterwards we headed back to the hotel to drop our bags off and as we had a few hours to spare before our meal, we changed into our new clothes and headed to Weatherspoons, just over the road, which by the way, is probably the poshest Weatherspoons I have been to thus far.
Valentine's Meal - Deano's Graze and Grill
Another swift outfit change (into something a bit more Valentine's-meal appropriate), and we headed out once again into town, this time to Deano's Graze and Grill. I'm so glad we planned ahead and picked this restaurant because it was amazing. As we entered we walked upstairs to the restaurant, it is small, literally like the upstairs of a terrace house with the walls taken out (apart from for the kitchen and toillets), but I loved that already it was something different. The atmosphere was superb, the staff had really made an effort to create a romantic feel, without it becoming tacky. The lights were dimmed, candles were lit, balloons were floating and small amounts of confetti were sprinkled on every table, all with a matching red colour scheme. We were seated just off of the middle of the room, but it all still felt very personal and private. The front wall of the building upstairs was floor-to-ceiling glass windows, which was really nice because it gave you the chance to look down the cobbled streets of Harrogate, and also into the neighboring restaurant across the road.
(Quick glimpse at our outfits from the night! I wore a Missguided dress, with River island heels, New Look Clutch and my brand-new Coat from Topshop).
The service was excellent and it just so happened that the co-owner of the restaurant served us and she was absolutely lovely! The menu was tapas, which surprised me as I had no idea despite looking beforehand that that was the menu choice. It was wonderful though, the best Tapas I have had to date, but I'm not surprised as the chef won the 'chef of the year' award and I can fully understand why!
< Goats cheese ‘brulee’ beetroot relish, granary toast
< ‘Paella’ risotto of prawns, chorizo sausage & peas
< Grilled Lamb Kofte, Mint Yogurt
< Our puddings were: Rhubard Crème brûlée and Sticky Toffee cheese cake.
The meal was so lovely, I would definitely recommend going if you are ever in Harrogate.
Once we finished up, we walked back to get changed (again), my heels were killing me and it was cold out! We carried on drinking until the early hours of the morning.
Sunday - Home time
Once we finished up, we walked back to get changed (again), my heels were killing me and it was cold out! We carried on drinking until the early hours of the morning.
Sunday - Home time
Yes, trying to get up in time for breakfast (9am) was a hard feat, but we managed; again, the Full English saved our lives!
For our last few hours in Harrogate we wanted to learn a bit more about the town's history so we walked to the Pump Museum, but it was shut, so we settled for walking around the village, looking at it's gardens and the architecture. Harrogate really is a beautiful place and was perfect for a weekend break; if I were to go again I would definitely take more time to investigate it's history because it is so beautiful and I really wanted to learn more about it.
For our last few hours in Harrogate we wanted to learn a bit more about the town's history so we walked to the Pump Museum, but it was shut, so we settled for walking around the village, looking at it's gardens and the architecture. Harrogate really is a beautiful place and was perfect for a weekend break; if I were to go again I would definitely take more time to investigate it's history because it is so beautiful and I really wanted to learn more about it.
If you've ever been to Harrogate, let me know what you think of it, and if you can suggest another place for me to visit please do!
Beth x
Beth x
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