Yorkshire Picnic at Doubletree by Hilton, York

Last week’s half term holiday was our most successful to date that is down, in part, to a midweek meet up with some blogging buddies, their children and a Yorkshire Picnic at Doubletree by Hilton, York.

York is definitely one of my favourite places to visit for a mooch around and a bottomless brunch but as we were playing out with kids, the more ‘sedate’ afternoon tea type affair was the plan.  York is a lovely place to stay and I’d definitely recommend some of these lodges with hot tubs.

I’m going to be honest, that morning, before we boarded the train to York, I gave my children a strict talking to
“This is a nice place we’re going to, no running around in the restaurant. Today we pretend we’re normal”
To be fair to my children, they are normally good in restaurants but this was a nice hotel and I wasn’t entirely sure they were prepared for seven children dining with them.

It turns out my fears were unfounded and unnecessary, obviously ALL the children there behaved impeccably and the Courtyard Cafe, where we had our picnic, was perfectly family friendly.

A beautiful, airy space with high skylights, the garden cafe felt like sunshine despite it being grey outside. The Courtyard Cafe, also has a completely contained outside seating area, which would have been perfect had the sun been shining.

We were led to our table, complete with astro turf for the true picnic vibe, where our drinks orders were swiftly taken. The tea was bought out in iconic Yorkshire Tea teapots, the children were bought glasses of squash and I was bought my coffee.

Now, before we’ve even got to the food, this place has my seal of approval.
Why?
Well, normally any establishment offering a hot drink will bring a POT of tea or a CUP of coffee.
Doubletree bought a POT of coffee just for me.
Be still my beating heart.

Afternoon Tea for Northern folk. 

Then came the food…in wooden crates and in abundance.

Round 1 saw slate platters with a variety of sandwiches – cheese & chutney, ham hock & mayonnaise and smoked salmon with creme fraiche, all served on brioche baps – and homemade (still warm) sausage rolls that were not only tasty but also MASSIVE. A point to note here is that they went and made some ‘plainer’ sandwiches for the children who were a little fussy.

Despite being almost defeated by the savoury, it was time for the sweet.
Platters including small bowls of Eton Mess, homemade scones with chantilly cream, brownie bites and carrot cake bites were bought out.

They looked almost too good to eat…almost.

We gave it a good go though!

Once we had finished (and after checking for allergies) all they children were given a ‘famous’ gooey Doubletree choc and nut cookie which was a nice touch.

At £13 a head for the Yorkshire Picnic, it is definitely fantastic value for money. They quality and quantity of the food far exceeds that in opinion.
It’s a glorious space to take a break after enjoying a day exploring York

Visit my fellow picnickers Yorkshire Wonders, And Another Ten Things and Raising Moonbows to see what they thought of the Yorkshire Picnic.

We received a Yorkshire Picnic in return for a review, all opinions are my own.