Sunday, September 2, 2012

Yorkshire Arms



The York Arms
Once we packed and cleared out of Oxford, we spent the better part of the day driving to Ramsgill in Nedderdale, Harrogate, North Yorkshire. Try finding that on the GPS. Our destination was the York Arms, a Michelin starred restaurant and inn. We discovered the Arms while watching The Trip, a British comedy film about restaurants in the north of England, and put it on our agenda. The last miles of the trip were along narrow, stone-walled roads big enough for one Peugeot (our car) or 2 smart cars. Needless to say there was a lot of nail biting and breath holding.  But we did arrive unscathed.   The Inn is nestled among fields of grazing sheep, along side a bubbling brook, down from a reservoir, adjacent to a vine covered English cottage; you get my drift? We walked in past tables filled with chattering, laughing people having tea in the sunny front courtyard. The clerk showed us to a lovely room. After walking around the area a bit, we returned to the room. Wayne read, and I went out to draw the lovely vine covered English cottage. Drinks were announced for 6:30, dinner at 7:00. At cocktail hour it was so quiet we asked about the other guests. Seems we were the only guests in the inn. This made for a jolly evening filled with undivided attention from all. After a dinner of grouse, we retired to the lounge for espresso and a visitation from Chef Francis Atkins. She explained the grouse we had was locally hunted, feeding off heather, which gave it the flavor. We talked about Scotland, where she last worked, and Scotch whiskey. We got good advice about touring there. This is a day and meal that we will long remember.More photos at Flickr.