Blakelands Country House

Blakelands House originally dates from 1722, the impressive Queen Anne house with its distinctive architectural features makes an impressive mark on the surroundings. But it is in the surrounding buildings where the main changes have been made, resulting in such facilities as The Maltings, a 120 seat Banquet Hall and the Lodge Restaurant, fine dining at its most relaxed, serving traditional English meals, freshly prepared and locally sourced. Management is in the capable hands of Paul and Heather Morgan who share duties between the Restaurant and Banqueting Facility, and since its opening in 1992, Blakelands has proved a real favourite with couples and families looking for somewhere special to celebrate, whether that is an intimate meal for two, a family celebration or their wedding. Overnight guests are equally well cared for, with two suites, one of which is The Corbett Suite, a sumptuous set of rooms which serves as the Bridal Suite.Elsewhere in the complex are a further twelve en suite rooms, five of them in Blakelands Lodge all with their own characters and décor, all beautifully fitted out, and with locally inspired names that reflect the strong ties of Blakelands with the neighbourhood.Blakelands Lodge menu’s are all embracing with a strong flavour of superior brasserie if a name had to be put, and dutifully seasonal. Local sourcing is practiced but not at the expense of quality, two menus run alongside each other, the Main Menu, runs all year with quarterly tweaks and features dishes that have established Blakelands as a firm favourite with many diners. Dishes such as Steak & Ale Pie with the gravy made with local Enville Ale, which is also available in the bar, and Fillet or Sirloin Steaks sourced from Martin Thomas Butchers in Pattingham regularly receive comments about them being the best guests have ever had.Alongside the main menus runs the Seasonal A la Carte menu, as the name suggests, changed every 4 months with the season, the current Summer version offering such delights as hand beer battered cod fillet, again featuring Enville ale in the Batter, served with another Blakelands staple – hand cut, twice cooked chips. The Chef team, led by Head Chef Richard Kenny, constantly work to maintain a high standard resulting in a menu that caters to the tastes of the whole family, making it very popular for special occasions, birthdays and the like.