Restaurant at Hotel Rudyard

The Restaurant at Hotel Rudyard, like the rest of the business, has recently undergone a major refurbishment inside and out, with its food offering now including quality local suppliers. Returning after many years away, I was pleased to discover that the current management seem set on realising the great potential of this venue in a stunning Staffordshire Moorlands location.

I don’t know how many times, since moving to the Staffordshire Moorlands eleven years ago, I’ve visited Rudyard Lake. Probably at least once a month. Built as a reservoir in 1797, then becoming a popular tourist attraction in the early twentieth century, the lake now draws over half a million visitors a year. They come for the boating, fishing or, like me, to walk in the beautiful landscape.

Although I’ve often gone, post-walk, to the lakeside Rudyard Lake Café for a sausage or bacon bap, I’ve only once previously stopped at the nearby Hotel Rudyard. And that was just for a pint and a packet of crisps about eight years ago. The truth is, the Hotel didn’t have the best reputation for food. Which always seemed a shame to me, given its fantastic location and the area’s popularity with locals and visitors. But all that has changed with new management who seem determined to realise its potential.

HOTEL RUDYARD

After starting to hear more good reports about the Hotel Rudyard, including an acquaintance tipping me off about recent changes, I did a bit of research. I discovered that new managers had taken on the lease back in 2019. There followed over £500,000 worth of investment (much of it done during lockdown that came shortly afterwards), including refurbishment of guest rooms, improving the grounds, and a new food offering featuring local suppliers like the highly recommended Dunwood Farm.

One of the new additions was a coffee shop added to the rear of the hotel. And it was that news which initially drew me back. It’s dog friendly, so other half and I decided to try it for brunch after a walk.

Thoroughly enjoying what we ate (you can read more in last month’s eating out recommendations), it convinced me that the restaurant at Hotel Rudyard definitely warranted checking out too.

So, a couple of weeks later, I booked a table for dinner for partner ID and me.

RESTAURANT AT HOTEL RUDYARD

On arrival, the first thing you’ll notice are the three futuristic-looking pods on the terrace overlooking the impressive grounds. They seat up to six people and can be booked for private dining, working breakfasts, etc.

Entering the hotel from this side, you’ll pass through the bright, dog friendly bar.

When I’d visited for brunch I’d had a look at the modern-looking restaurant and assumed we’d be eating there. But I now saw there were several different places to eat. We were shown to a room just off the bar. What I thought was the restaurant had quite modern décor, this looked more like a traditional hotel dining room. From our table by the window, we had a good view of the terrace with people enjoying a drink on a pleasant summer evening.

MENUS

The breakfast menu we selected from in the coffee shop is also available in the mornings in the restaurant at Hotel Rudyard. At lunchtimes, a Light Bites menu of sandwiches and flatbreads takes over (available until 5 pm) plus the main menu. There’s also a children’s menu, a gluten free menu, and a Sunday carvery too.

The evening or main menu, with a choice of seven starters and almost thirty main courses, featured lots of familiar favourites.

Starters included soup of the day (£6.95), crispy whitebait (£7.95), and chicken liver pate (£7.95). Mains ranged from £15.95 for gammon or scampi, through vegetarian truffle and mushroom risotto (£16.50), to slow braised beef in red wine (£18.95) and pan fried sea bass (£19.95). There’s also a range of burgers and pies (mostly £16.95), salads (£13.95), items from the grill (e.g. Dunwood rump steak and all the usual accompaniments for £19.95), plus giant Yorkshire puddings with various fillings, mash, veg and gravy (£14.95).

As it was a Friday, in addition to the main menu we could also choose from a Fish Fridays menu. This brought together the three fish main courses from the main menu plus three specials.

The full range of usual soft and alcoholic drinks is available from the bar. However, there’s no wine list. My large glass of Rioja was £8.50, ID’s Sauvignon blanc £7.80.

STARTERS

For my first course I chose Sun-Dried Tomato Arancini (£7.95). Considering this was a starter, the portion was extremely generous with three large specimens of the Italian rice balls traditionally made with leftover risotto.

The dish looked very appetizing. The crisply fried, deeply golden colour of the breadcrumb coating lived up to the English translation of arancini as ‘little oranges’.

Inside was plump, tender rice stuffed with melting mozzarella, chopped sun-dried tomatoes and lots of fresh basil. The seasoning was perfect, and the contrast between crispy outer layer, soft, creamy rice and flavourful, lightly acidic tomatoes and basil was very good. There was enough pleasantly stringy cheese in there too, without overwhelming the other flavours.

Add to that the robustly flavoured, slightly smoky tomato sauce the arancini sat on, rocket and scattering of Parmesan-like cheese, and this was a very good dish. In fact, if you added a salad from the Sides menu, I think this would make an excellent vegetarian main course.

For his starter, ID chose Smoked Mackerel Pâté which was also £7.95. This came on toasted sourdough with a dressed fresh salad garnish.

I loved that the mackerel had been kept in chunky, satisfying pieces rather than made smooth. As well as the smoky fish in its lightly creamy coating, there was a balancing flavour of lemon too.

After relieving him of a sample bite so I could tell you about it, I did feel a bit sorry for ID though. Compared to the lavish size of my starter, his two smallish pieces of bread, albeit a good amount of pâté on, did seem a little meagre. He was happy with it, but I wondered if a third piece might have been better.

MAIN COURSES

There were three choices of pie on the menu, all £16.95 and served with veg, gravy, and your choice of chips or mash. I went for Steak & Ale Pie with chips. The other pies were Chicken Bacon & Leek, and a vegetarian Spiced Sweet Potato & Spinach.

Here we were back in generous territory again. A decent sized individual shortcrust pastry pie, a pot stacked with fat chips, a jugful of gravy, and three types of vegetable.

Cutting into the pie, I could see it would be nicely moist even without the addition of gravy. The pieces of meat were small to medium rather than chunky, but there were plenty of them, as well as little bits of diced carrot. The steak wasn’t fall-apart tender, but it certainly wasn’t tough either. The flavour was good, although the ale wasn’t particularly noticeable. The pastry was perfectly crispy. Apart from giving ID a taste, I ate the whole pie.

Even with help from ID dipping them into the gravy, I didn’t manage to eat all the very good chips though. The vegetables (carrots, green beans and Savoy cabbage) were all cooked well, neither stubbornly crunchy nor too soft.

For his main course, ID chose one of the Fish Fridays specials. If I’d been in the mood for seafood, this would probably have been my choice too. Baked Cod on a bed of squid ink risotto (£17.50).

This was a striking look dish. As you’d expect, the rice was deep black thanks to the squid ink. On top was a rolled fillet of cod, white against the dark rice. Being quite thin at one end, the fish was a little overcooked in places. But ID enjoyed it, along with the flavour of the rice.

He also liked the three pieces of battered and deep-fried squid (I can confirm these were tender) and the garnish of crispy leeks atop the cod. The only thing he thought might improve the dish, to his taste anyway, was if the risotto had been a little wetter.

DESSERTS

There was a choice of six desserts, plus scoops of ice cream, all at £7.50. I went for Lemon Meringue Pie, ID for Bakewell Tart.

Mine was a perfectly good, simple pudding. Not something you’re going to rave about, but it met my requirement for a sweet finish to the meal.

There was plenty of lemon flavour, the pastry was crisp, and the vanilla ice cream nice. For me, the meringue was browned a little too much. I didn’t think the drizzle of fruity sauce, more appropriate to a 99 ice cream cone, was necessary either. But these are just quibbles.

ID’s Bakewell Tart had good almond flavour, including lots of flaked almonds on top as well as cherries. It came with plenty of hot custard and, like my dessert, the pastry was well made.

Also making an appearance again was that unnecessary fruit sauce, although it didn’t spoil what was another pleasing, simple dessert.

NEW LIFE AT THE RESTAURANT AT HOTEL RUDYARD

After many years away, I’ve been pleased to discover that the full potential of Hotel Rudyard now has a chance of being realised. Set in a stunning lakeside location in the beautiful Staffordshire Moorlands, it deserves to be more widely frequented by the many visitors to the area as well as locals.

Along with the coffee shop that’s great for a stop after a walk at the Lake, I’m happy to also recommend the restaurant at Hotel Rudyard too. The menus are designed with enough familiar favourites to satisfy most people, along with a few more imaginative dishes. Everything I ate was tasty and enjoyable, with the arancini dish being outstanding.

For the current climate, I think prices were reasonable. Without drinks, the food bill came to £65.35 or under £33 per head. Service was friendly and ran smoothly.

Whether you’re visiting as a tourist or are local to the area, I think that the new Hotel Rudyard deserves a look.

PRICES AND MENUS CORRECT AT TIME OF WRITING

EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED, ALL PHOTOS © MOORLANDS EATER & NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT PERMISSION

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