Enterkine Hotel, Ayr

...hint that my enthusiasm over Enterkine Hotel is all to do with my stay being a freebie.
And my kindest friends will affirm - with some accuracy - that I would never have stayed there, if I had been required to pay the whole bill myself.

But let me assure you that this glowing report is an honest review of a great 3 day break we have just spent in this little piece of Ayrshire luxury.
It was so good, I'll go back as soon ...
...system. Talk of location in Enterkine terms, and you are talking a beautiful 1930's home set in acres of woodland and fields in the rolling hills of Ayrshire. You are talking about a hotel far enough from the road that not a car can be heard, except those coming up the long winding lane past the gate lodge building.
You are talking of a quiet location, so silent that you actually get to hear yourself think.
The only noises to disturb, ... more

My cynical friends will no doubt hint that my enthusiasm over Enterkine Hotel is all to do with my stay being a freebie.
And my kindest friends will affirm - with some accuracy - that I would never have stayed there, if I had been required to pay the whole bill myself.

But let me assure you that this glowing report is an honest review of a great 3 day break we have just spent in this little piece of Ayrshire luxury.
It was so good, I'll go back as soon as I can afford it.! - all contributions gratefully received.!

1 Location, location, location.
+++++++++++++++++++++++

Geographically, the hotel is located close to Prestwick Airport, a few miles from the town of Ayr, and within an easy hour's drive of Glasgow International Airport.

More technically, it is situated just outside of the village of Annbank on the road to Coylton.

Yet the location is much more than its place on our road system. Talk of location in Enterkine terms, and you are talking a beautiful 1930's home set in acres of woodland and fields in the rolling hills of Ayrshire. You are talking about a hotel far enough from the road that not a car can be heard, except those coming up the long winding lane past the gate lodge building.
You are talking of a quiet location, so silent that you actually get to hear yourself think.
The only noises to disturb, are the birds, the owls at night and the occasional plane heading in or out of Prestwick airport.

2 Style, style, style.
++++++++++++++

Some of my other reviews of accomodation have included the bog standard and the big chain cloned buildings, that offer a predictable sameness throughout the country and beyond. I am not despising them - they have served me well on business, and I will be back to them very soon.

But Enterkine is full of style.

The old house has been transformed into a five star luxury hotel with just 6 bedrooms within its graceful exterior.
But before you get near your room for the night, there are other statements of style to admire.

The steps up to the front door have been retained, creating a sense of dignified grandeur to your arrival. A lift has been provided for disability access and has been hidden away as best as can be expected.

Push open the door and the hallway you enter houses the reception desk. No laminate floors here.! - just stylish, traditional, wooden floors complemented by high quality carpet in all other areas.

A sense of homeliness strikes you right away. There are a couple of decanters of finest malt on the sideboard, a traditional table for the receptionist to work on and flower arrangements on display everywhere.

Move straight ahead, and you are in a lounge area seated with traditionally upholstered suites and fireside chairs. The bay window area is home to the dining tables, bedecked with white linen and genuine crystal glassware.

Straight ahead again, and you are in a lounge with comfy white settee and chairs - a perfect place to relax with coffee after dinner.
Or keep walking on, and enjoy Enterkine's library, with its leather seating, and vast selection of books.

It has been designed to exude style, comfort, warmth and taste - all that you wanted home to be, but could never quite afford.

3 Space, space, space.
++++++++++++++++++

I admit that I do not know what size a bedroom has to be in a hotel, for it to rank in the 5* category.
What I do know, is that each suite in Enterkine must rank at 5* and a lot more beside.
The rooms are massive.
We were given the McKay suite for our stay. Let me start with the bed - not because I spent a lot of time there, exactly, but because not every hotel owner seems to appreciate what is required for a comfortable sleep if you are 6' 2" and a tad over 15 stone.!
The bed was an extra King size, superbly soft and beautifully adorned with cushions and bolsters.
There was even a teddy bear beside the bed - how happy would Koshkha be! - or how jealous would Pooh get ??!!! - though maybe it was a soft dog rather than a bear.!? I actually do not like cushions and bolsters on beds, but staff remove these and the bed cover when turning down the duvet for the night.!
They also left us a wee box of local chocolates at the same time - indeed, one box each!

The room also boasted a dressing table, a chest of drawers a television, two arm chairs, a coffee table, tea-making facilities and a most unusual touch - two bottles of mineral water and crystal tumblers to enjoy it with.!

At one end of the room, was an ensuite bathroom, that was massive. I did not have a tape measure handy - I was on holiday after all - but I counted tiles while in the bath - and the bathroom must be close to 2.5 metres wide by 3.5 metres long.
Power shower, sink and toilet were up to top standard, even though the fittings appeared to be from an earlier era in the life of the house.
Towels and bathrobes were right up to 5* standard.

Still in the bedroom, there was another set of doors at the opposite end of the room. Here was space to hang clothes, leave shoes and store the ironing board, iron, trouser press and such like.
There was even a little wicker basket to leave your shoes in, outside the door, if you needed them to be cleaned for the next morning.

4 Food, food, food.
+++++++++++++++

Let me set the following description of the hotel's food in context.
I love eating - and at one time reached eighteen and a half stone
in weight as a result.
I eat anything offered to me, anywhere in the world. If I listed some of the 'delicacies' I have munched my way through in Peru, Kenya and Chad, the hotel chef would petition Ciao to have this review banned.
But you get the picture - I am not a picky, fussy eater.
None the less, I have eaten in style too. Rankin and Deane in Belfast, Incognico in London etc. So I know good food when I taste it.!

So what did I make of the food served in Enterkine?

Absolutely fabulous.!

The Chef is Paul Moffat, and he clearly deserves all the accolades he has received such as Finalist in the Scottish Rural Chef of the Year May 2005.
We were amazed at the menu itself, and then delighted at the extras which the chef sent from the kitchen during the course of the meals.

One of the extras, 'complimentsof the chef' was a pre-starter of frogs legs.! Another was a 'pre-desert' of elderflower jelly with trimmings.

Main courses which we enjoyed included red deer and fillet steak.
I cannot do justice to the food in this review, so will do a more complete review under restaurants in time to come.

Breakfasts were all served superbly too - and I sampled smoked salmon and scrambled eggs for the first time at breakfast, in my life. But, in short, the breakfast menu left no options uncovered.

Conclusion.
+++++++++

I had won the stay as a prize through Flybe - so felt even more special than normal.
But the hotel is offering a summer special of 2 nights bed, breakfast and dinner for £105 per person per night, which seems like good value for a 5* these days.

We were so impressed by all the little unusual touches - comfy leather seats in the library, chocolates at bed time - wellington boots to use if walking in the grounds - the chef's extras at meal times and the crystalware used all the time.
Staff were brilliant all the time, and seemed really keen to help.

Our only negatives - and this is being really trivial - there were very few other guests around. We were there ourselves, alone, on the first night, and I think there were only one or two other couples staying the second night. So I wondered whether staff would be able to give the same attention if all accomodation was full.
Some of the exterior is in need of maintenance, whereas interior was great.

So when we said our farewells, and said we would like to come back some time, it was sincere. I can heartily and entirely recommend a stay at Enterkine.

 

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