AN INSPECTOR CALLS
His mission: To test hotel hospitality to the limit
DRIVING west through the Tweed Valley from Melrose to Peebles is inspirational at any time of year.
Add in a setting sun, plus the expectation of a gin and tonic in the gardens of Cringletie House Hotel, and life can hardly be sweeter.
What’s more, this Scottish baronial home (built 1862), with its turrets, towers and all the trimmings of north-of-the-border Victorian grandeur, is a privately owned, one-off hotel in the hands of an elderly Dutch couple who live in a bungalow in the immaculate grounds.
There are 17 rooms. Mine is on the top floor with two small parapet windows that look out on to craggy hills. It’s not chic, but nor is it stolid.
There is no free-standing bath trying to make a statement, no huge telly with satellite channels. Nothing flash.
Someone has just been in to turn down the bedcovers, which is an unexpected luxury at such relatively low prices.
Down in one of the public rooms, a young couple from New York are about to have a whisky tasting. Various drams are lined up on a table.
It’s tempting to ask if I can join them, but dinner awaits in the grand dining room with its handpainted ceiling and ornate fireplace. My fishcake starter topped with a poached egg and sitting on wilted spinach is superb.
‘It’s a breakfast dish, really,’ proffers the waiter.
Much thought has gone into the wine list. A candle flickers, each table has fresh flowers, conversation is animated, everyone feels safe. We’re only half an hour south of Edinburgh, but the pace is slow, the atmosphere relaxed.
Not everything is perfect. The towels are ridiculously small, there is only one bright light in the bathroom and I never think a teddy adds much.
A few old portraits would improve the decor in the public rooms and members of staff — who are mainly from Holland — are woefully ill-informed about the history of the house and the surrounding area.
A properly cooked haggis at breakfast with a fried egg is a treat of the highest order.
It is executed so perfectly that I request one of the Dutch waitresses if she can ask the chef what is his secret.
She comes back a few minutes later and says: ‘ He puts it in the oven.’ Cringletie House Hotel, Edinburgh Road, Peebles EH45 8PL Tel: 01721 725750,
cringletie.com Doubles from £109 B&B