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We are off to Northumberland on Thursday next week for a few days, leaving West Yorkshire late morning. We'll be stopping for lunch on the way, but I don't know the area at all. Can anyone recommend any decent small towns or pubs for lunch around Newcastle which are not too far from the A1?
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I'm sure you'll find a nice little chef somewhere on the A1 ;-)
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Can't speak so much for round Newcastle so it depends how far up into Northumberland you are going for your visit.
I can certainly recommend the food at the Blue Bell in the Market Square in Belford which is 15 miles to the north of Alnwick.
Again its a bit further north but if you are going anywhere near Seahouses on the coast then the Old Ship by the harbour is recommended particularly for seafood, just don't mention Spanish trawlers or EC fishing policy when you are in there though.....
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We are staying north of Alnwick, so wanted somewhere about halfway to break the journey. We can't have the keys to the accommodation until 4pm so lunch will fill some time.
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If you are going to be staying north of Alnwick then I recommend the following visits:-
Alnwick Castle and Gardens ( get to the garden early and watch the fountain display)
Bamburgh Castle and Seahouses. At Bamburgh the butchers sell sausages and Scotch pies to die for - I found them long before Rick Stein recommended them.
Lindisfarne - beware of the tides and try the Mead.
Cragside near Rothbury - Home of Lord Armstrong as the first house powered by electricity. It may be a little early for the rhododendrons and azaleas in the garden to be at their best
So much to do - Enjoy yourselves and wrap up warm.
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On the A1 towards Alnwick,look for Newton on the Moor - literally 200 yards from the A1 is a lovely pub called the Cook and Barker.
Not cheap, but excellent food and good beers (for the non-driver of course)
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To add to helicopter's note, Seahouses, Warkworth Castle, Craster and Amble are places that stick in my mind from late 70's / early 80's.
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I would not recommend Amble but certainly Warkworth Castle is worth a visit,and then try Alnmouth , just up the road.The Schooner used to be a reasonable place for food but I have not been there in a couple of years.
Craster is also good for seafood - the Craster Kipper is world famous and the pub ( the name escapes me )there will do you excellent crab sandwiches.
Another castle worth visiting is Dunstanburgh , very near to Craster.
If you go to Seahouses and the boats are running , take a trip to the Farne Islands but make sure you keep your head covered as
thousands of sea birds tend to make a lot of mess.
You should see plenty of grey seals from a boat trip and Grace Darlings lighthouse on Longstone .
Yes - I have heard that the Cook and Barker is a nice pub as well although I have not been in there for years.
Enjoy yourself.
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If you go to Seahouses and the boats are running , take a trip to the Farne Islands but make sure you keep your head covered as thousands of sea birds tend to make a lot of mess.
Seconded. But take a clothes peg for your nose, too.
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So far, many backroomers have come up with some locations which I would agree on and are well worth a visit. Although I agree with some views that Amble is a bit of a one horse town with very little in it. Also, Hj's trip to Piercebridge and Corbridge is a bit off the beaten track, but if you have some time to kill, why not?
If you don't want to stray too far off the A1 (if you are pushed for time perhaps) turn off the A1 at Seaton Burn, which is the next exit after the turn off for Gosforth and the newly built 'Great North Park'. At Seaton Burn, take the second exit (the first being for the holiday inn) and continue on this road (A1068) for about a mile. After a short but straight stretch of single carriageway, the road becomes dualled again just before a sweeping right hand bend. Take the next left, because here you will find a pub called the snowy owl. The food is nice and reasonably priced (or at least it was the last few times I?ve been, living not too far away).
This is not too far away from the A1, as only takes a couple of minutes to get to.
My parents also suggested stopping off at the Sun Inn, on the edge of Morpeth, which is a nice town in itself. Take the Clifton/Morpeth turnoff from the A1 and follow the Signs for Morpeth on the A197. After a time, you?ll come into a residential area. Here, go over the painted/mini roundabout, and continue to follow the road ahead. As you enter Morpeth, you?ll see a church on your left and the Sun Inn will be next to that. This takes a little longer to get to than the snowy owl, but only by a few minutes.
I hope you enjoy your stay and come back soon.
P.S. Only the soft Southerners need to wrap up warm ;-)
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Food : take a break in Newcastle and find some food on the quayside, a surprisingly nice place to be.
Visit : all of Northumberland is great, but Warkworth is well worth a visit as is Barter Books in Alnwick -great coffee, cookies & open fire!
The Sun Inn is nice, but you're most of the way there by then.
If you fancy a snack after an hour, Quernhow services on the A1, after Boroughbridge and before Leeming is a proper truck stop with splendid Bacon butties.
And finally, if you want to stop near Darlington, there's a good pub on the A167 towards darlington (turn right off the motorway on the A167 and at the top of the short hill (about 300 yards) on your left is the pub. Used to be run by a mad Irishman but the food is really nice.
Have a good time, you can't beat the North East - best avoid Sunderland though...
Lee - (ex-pat Geordie)
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You can pre order at the Sun Inn. This can be advisable as it gets busy with people from County Hall at lunchtimes. I live only a few hundred metres from this place and can vouch for it. Henri's, which is also in Morpeth is also very nice. The Granby which is at Longframlington is also a nice spot. As is the FBI at Boulmer/Alnmouth (approximately 8 miles from Alnwick).
Enjoy your break. And it's not really that cold here.
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I know Henri's - iirc it's still run by the eccentric (old-ish) couple. Good food too!
-- Lee Having a Fabialous time.
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Ramside Hall Hotel. Good weekday hot buffet, easy to find and easy parking, about 20 mins south of Newcastle
www.ramsidehallhotel.co.uk/location.htm
Bay Horse pub, Catterick Village. Friendly village pub with Jennings beers. About 35 mins south of Newcastle.
snipurl.com/e8oq (links to multimap)
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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-P.S. Only the soft Southerners need to wrap up warm ;-)-
Don't believe it daveyjp - I was brought up there and I can vouch that the wind up there is so lazy it goes straight through you !
I an constantly amazed by the lack of clothes worn by the locals in the North East, especially the young ladies with tiny crop tops and showing a bit of dental floss under a skirt no bigger than a large belt... Thongs aint what they used to be in my days up there.
Hang on while I take my heart pills....
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Beware Barter Books in Alnwick. One of Britain's biggest second hand bookshops. Also one of the most expensive. Find the book you like, then go to the internet cafe end of the bookshop and visit www.bookfinder.com I've just this minute paid USD70 incl. postage for a book for which they want £85.
Tankerville Arms in Eglingham does superb food & beer and is jolly reasonable.
The Star Inn, Netherton is worth visiting just to see how an untouched 1950s pub still looks. As is the Bridge of Aln, on the A697 near Whittingham.
Whereabouts are you going?
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Thanks for all the replies - the thread will be printed off and used as our unofficial guide to the area!!
We are staying near Ellingham - home of the Pack Horse which is supposed to be a decent boozer.
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Just got back from the far north east after a great weekend. We stopped at The Sun in Morpeth, an excellent recommendation all four of us enjoyed the fare.
Did the usual sights - Seahouses, Bamburgh, Berwick etc. Alnwick Gardens are fantastic and a must for anyone in the area - the treehouse is one hell of a construction. We had dinner there on Saturday evening - food not bad, but quite expensive, you are definately paying for the novelty! Didn't make it to Lindisfarne as the weather yesterday was foul - monsoon conditions for most of the day, we have saved that for next time.
It was also my first trip in the new A3 as I managed to pick it up last Wednesday. Done 600 miles now so it's virtually run in and so far it's faultless - the DSG gearbox is excellent and brisk in gear acceleration can get you from pootling about to illegal speeds very quickly! Filled up after doing 450 miles and it needed 42 litres (48.6 mpg) needless to say I'm very happy with that figure.
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