'I stayed at The Beverley Arms and it had just as much charm and history as the Yorkshire town it's in, plus amazing food'

The Beverley Arms, which has been owned by Daniel Thwaites since 2016, has been welcoming visitors for more than 200 years - and after an overnight stay there I can predict it will be attracting guests for many more.

I enjoyed a weekend stay there with my partner, Callum, and we were very impressed with every aspect of the trip. The first thing to note is the superb location. It’s right in the centre of the pretty - but surprisingly lively - market town, in the Georgian Quarter, which means it’s walking distance to all the nearby tourist attractions, including many independent shops, cafes, bars and Beverley Minster.

Happily, one of the best tourist attractions Beverley has to offer - the majestic Grade I listed St Mary's Church - is directly opposite the hotel. We were also fortunate enough to be given a room at the front of the property which meant we were able to look out of our window and marvel at its stunning architecture many times throughout our stay. It’s an incredible view.

There is a car park at the back of the hotel, which is always handy for travellers such as ourselves, but once we parked we found we did not need the car again until departing as everything we needed was either in the hotel itself or right on the doorstep.

From the car park, we entered the hotel through an expansive outdoor dining area. There were a mixture of stand-alone tables with parasols and sheltered and cosy-looking booths. Luckily, the weekend we visited the sun was shining so fellow hotel guests and restaurant customers were happy to sit outside and no shelter was required, but it was good to see the hotel was prepared for any weather.

We could see that every table was full, including in the indoor restaurant which we also saw as we passed through to reception - a sign of the great hospitality we were able to receive. Food is available throughout the day for overnight guests as well as the general public, and the hotel is popular with locals and out-of-town visitors alike.

There are a total of 38 boutique bedrooms in the hotel; ours was a feature room. The room was spacious and sumptuous, with calming pastel colours and cosy furnishings.

All the rooms in the hotel are individually designed, so each one has its own identity, but they all offer the same high standard, luxurious feel, and a blend original features with modern design. In feature rooms like ours, there’s a super king sized bed, a flat screen TV, a sofa, a dressing table, a wardrobe, and plenty of table and cupboard space. In the bathroom, there’s both a bath and a stand-alone shower.

There was also all the usual amenities you would expect from a five star establishment such as tea and coffee making facilities, iron and ironing board, bottled water, and even The White Company toiletries. Oh, and I must say that I give The Beverley Arms the award for the softest, most comfortable hotel robe I have ever used.

I also really appreciated extra thoughtful touches which aren’t seen in many hotel rooms. There’s a teapot, not just tea cups - ideal for a tea lover such as myself who uses cups which hold almost a pint of tea at home so is rarely satisfied by the size of cups provided in hotel rooms. But, thanks to the tea pot I could make plenty of a tea and then sit and enjoy in the aforementioned hotel robe and feel truly relaxed. Guests are also offered fresh milk which means you can make a proper cup of tea.

There’s also two lighting options in the bathroom; the main light and a small mood light. I must confess at first I was confused why there was one single mood light placed low on the wall, but it soon became clear when I needed to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. This was useful for two reasons - it stopped me being confronted by a bright light when I was still half asleep, but it also stopped the bedroom being flooded by light and therefore stopped Callum from being disturbed.

Fresh milk and mood lighting are small things, but they make a big difference and just show how much care and consideration has gone in to the rooms and making every guest’s stay as smooth and peaceful as possible.

After spending some time visiting St Mary’s Church - which is famous for a carving of a rabbit in 1335 that is said to have been the inspiration for the March Hare in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland novel, a fact the writer in me loved - and also exploring the local shops and relaxing in our room, we dressed for dinner and headed down to the restaurant.

Guests can enjoy AA Rosette award-winning dishes in one of the restaurant’s many dining locations. Food and drink can be enjoyed inside the main restaurant or outside on the terrace, or there’s the bar area or lounges and private dining rooms if required. The menu is specially crafted by expert chefs and includes locally sourced, authentic Yorkshire dishes. Food can be enjoyed alongside refreshing ales, vibrant cocktails and a variety of local tipples.

The restaurant opens for brunch, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner, as well as cakes and sandwiches throughout the day, and of course breakfast for overnight guests. The restaurant itself is spectacular space, with huge windows, statement lighting fixtures and colourful artwork on the walls. It feels fresh and modern, and this is also reflected in the delicious food served.

For starters, I chose the asparagus, pea and mint mousse with goats cheese coulis, bloomer crouton, mint oil, while Callum had the tempura king prawns with blackened romesco sauce and spring onion.

My dish was one of the most beautifully presented plates of food I have ever seen, and even included a pretty edible flower. The combination of mainly green and yelllow colours symbolised spring perfectly, and the flavours were deep while the food was light. It was exactly what a starter should be, something to whet the appetite, delight and make you excited about the rest of the meal. I would say it’s one of the best starters I’ve ever had, and also not an option I have seen for vegetarians like myself before so compliments to the chef.

Callum was equally pleased his dish and found it to be cooked perfectly; with light, crispy batter and soft and tender prawns. The sauce provided a complimentary spicy edge which he thoroughly enjoyed.

For mains, I had the spinach ricotta ravioli with toasted pine nuts, spinach puree, ricotta balls and herb beurre blanc, which is a Beverley Arms signature dish. Callum opted to continue with seafood and chose the moules mariniere with skinny fries and fresh bread for dipping.

I can see why my dish is signature dish for the hotel as this is, broadly speaking, a dish I’ve had many times - but I’ve never had it like this before. Again, I must say that the presentation was amazing. It’s obvious from the look and taste of these dishes, and the local ingredients used, that so much pride goes in to everything that comes out of the kitchen.

Callum loved his moules and declared it to extremely authentic and just as good as moules he had previously had in France. He loved the creamy sauce and also the very generous portion. The dish was delectable and filling.

I’ve never had a spinach and ricotta ravioli that looked so fancy and tasted so fresh. The pasta itself was perfectly cooked and generously filled and the sauce was plentiful. The ricotta balls, which I have never seen as an addition to this dish before, were little mouthfuls of cheesy heaven. I would also say this is one of the best mains I’ve ever had, and I applaud the chefs for taking something which is so commonly on menus and making it unique and elivating it to a whole new level.

For desserts, it had to be the warm chocolate brownie with chocolate sauce and ice-cream. On the menu, it was listed as coming with salted caramel ice-cream, but that’s not a flavour I like so I asked for a swap and it was no problem for me to have vanilla instead. The brownie was warn, rich, indulgent and melt-in-the-mouth - a perfect way to end an outstanding meal.

After our meal, we took advantage of our central location and visited one of Beverley’s independent bars before returning to our lovely room for another teapot of tea and a restful nights sleep. Before check-out the next morning, there was of course time for brealfast - a full English for both of us, but the veggie version for me, which was another delicious meal.

Then, it was time to leave. The lady on reception, who was as cheery and friendly as every member of staff we had spoken to throughout our stay, kindly told us we were welcome to leave our car in the car park for a little while before heading home. So, we decided to have one more stroll round the charming cobbled streets and visit a few more shops before leaving.

This was our first visit to Beverley, but it won’t be our last. Neither will it be our last visit to The Beverley Arms. If we want another tranquil weekend away we will look for another overnight stay, and if we return to the town for a day trip we know exactly where we’re going for lunch.