Rosie McGlade makes an impression at Langley Castle
Langley Castle makes a huge impression as you round the bend and turn into the drive; a fairytale castle hidden in wonderful Northumberland woodland, its romantic qualities on a fairytale level. I’d like to say we made an equal impression ourselves, and we possibly did, though not quite in the same way.
I was given the key to possibly the most spectacular room in the castle, complete with Rapunzel window and four-poster bed. Unfortunately, I wasn’t sure my husband could make it up the stairs, having just developed sciatica. “We do have a service lift?” the receptionist offered. “Think about it and we’ll have someone come out for your bags.”
The person who came for the bags was lovely. Our dog was with us though and what with my husband messing with the bags, she escaped. After the city, it was just too much for her, being in the spring countryside, you see, and she had joy in her heart. I’d never seen peacocks fly, and it seems that neither had the dog. The guy with our bags looked on calmly as she bounded over to the tree where the peacocks had landed, barking loudly, my husband limping wildly across the immaculate lawn after her. Later, I watched from our window seat with some awe as other couples arrived without drama, as if they did this sort of thing all the time, holding hands and all dressed up ready for dinner. It’s a treat to stay over, but you don’t have to be a resident to eat here, and with chef Daniel Grigg (pictured above) now about year in post after cutting his teeth at The Samling it’s well worth the 40-minute trip from Newcastle.
We chose the tasting menu (£65 per person, £40 with a wine flight). There’s also a four-course table d’hote menu at £49.50.
We were impressed with the amuse bouche – a wild garlic veloute with a quail’s egg and purple heritage potatoes. There were lots of trendy ingredients throughout the meal, served on boards and glass trays and some rather beautiful plates. Foie gras isn’t for everyone but if your conscience allows, it’s absolutely delicious when the quality is this good. The plate was stunning, with curls of parma ham and dainty shavings of the foie gras artistically balanced, and a dusting of Blumenthal-esque ‘ham powder’ on the side.
There was a salt cod take on a korma, and poached trout on butter beans with crispy morel sprinklings. The venison that followed (we were supposed to have Herdwick mutton with lobster wonton, water chestnuts and miso broth, but my husband won’t eat sheep) was delicious and, like the foie gras and parma ham, I’ll remember it for ages. It came with a lovingly crafted sort of venison sausage roll, lentils, sauerkraut and chocolate sauce. Cleansing our palate was a creamy cucumber jelly, with dehydrated cucumber garnish over frozen gin ice, and that was gorgeous, as was dessert – toffee apple pannacotta with a tangy bright green apple sorbet, dotted with tiny cinnamon buns.
A feast, yet we still took the additional cheese course – a great selection with lovely accompaniments, and well worth the small supplement. Taking it to our beautiful room and eating it overlooking the fountain outside in the fading June light, we felt very, very special. I barely heard mention of back pain. Breakfast was tremendous, my husband had the traditional cooked, while I, unable to make up my mind, had a half portion of eggs Benedict and a half of Canadian pancakes with crispy pancetta and maple syrup. We had to go back to bed to accommodate it, but then leaving that room was always going to be difficult, so we thought we should enjoy it for a little longer.
It’s nice writing reviews like this because you live the experience again, and our castle sleepover was a lovely experience. I just hope those peacocks have made it down that tree.
