Afternoon tea at the Midland Hotel, Morecombe, Lancashire
When we were planning our trip up to Carnforth I had a look to see what was around in the area that we could enjoy. One of the places that popped up when trawling through searches on the internet was this hotel in Morecombe. I hadn’t heard of it before and I probably wouldn’t have noticed it for in my view from the outside it looked pretty boring but we do like to visit quirky places that offer some sort of interest and so we popped it on the list of things we might do while we were in the area.
The hotel is an art Deco four star hotel right on the sea front in Morecombe, near the Tourist Information centre and the lighthouse at the end of the stone jetty that was the railway terminus for Irish and Scottish ferries.
The Midland to quote its own literature, “curves gracefully along the North West coast. Sleek, unique, it isn’t just any hotel. It’s a hotel with a history, a hotel with a past, an internationally renowned Art-deco classic.”
The hotel was originally built in the 1930s and it is architecturally of that time. It reminded me of my Halls of residence in Lincoln where I trained as a teacher; it is block like from outside with round curves and large metal framed windows. In my personal opinion 30s architecture is not that great externally but I do quite like Art deco stuff with curving staircases and swirls, bright coloured leather seats and the like. It was designed by architect Oliver Hill and had friezes by Eric Gill inside. It first opened as a railway hotel in 1933 and over the years it went through many changes and then fell into disrepair but luckily a few years ago it was rescued and restored so we can enjoy this little gem once again.
This hotel became a favourite with the rich and famous at the time and celebrities such as Coco Chanel, Wallis Simpson and Laurence Olivier have all stayed in this hotel in its heyday. It has been recently restored and although many of the historical features have been kept while others have been modernized in keeping with its Art deco image. The hotel now boasts 44 boutique style bedrooms where you stay and live as the rich and famous but at a price. I did notice that the website has an offer at the present time and you can stay for £169 for a two-night stay for two with breakfast which is apparently worth up to £576. I might go for the special offer but no chance at full whack!
The hotels other claim to fame is that it once featured in an episode of ‘Poirot’ and also in the series ‘The Coast’ but I admit I have not seen either that I am aware of.
AFTERNOON TEA
They advise booking but in reality when we were enjoying our afternoon tea there were only two other tables occupied so I would say that out of season you are pretty safe to just turn up. In the summer and at busy times I would suggest you do book.
They offer two options for afternoon tea. The first is a cream tea where you have either tea or coffee and a couple of scones per person with jam and cream for £8.
50 a head. The second option is the ‘Afternoon tea” which includes finger sandwiches of salmon, ham, egg and cream cheese and cucumber, two scones each with jam and cream followed by a selection of cakes including chocolate éclairs, fruit flans, sponge cake . Once again you can choose a cafetiere of coffee or a pot of Emeyu tea. This second option costs £15.50 a head which we thought was a little pricy but might be worth it for the experience and ambience of the place.
OUR EXPERIENCE
We went along to the hotel in the morning to check it out and see if we thought it was special enough to warrant the £15.50. From the car park it looked nothing special but in we went to ask about what was being offered in case it was different from the deal on the internet. It was no different, same menu and same prices so we asked where the afternoon tea was served as we didn’t want to be stuck in some pokey back room. The young girl showed us the room which was like a conservatory with views over Morecombe bay and so we thought we would book and return later.We opted for the early time of 3pm as we knew it would be dark by 4pm. The teas are served from 3pm till 4.30 so we thought we would be able to enjoy the view in daylight and also probably see the lights coming on as it got dark.
When we came back at 3pm we went to the bar area and gave our names then we were taken over to our table. We had a great view of Morecombe Bay as the room where we were eating at was once the sun lounge and the entire front was a long curving wall of glass and we could just about see right across to the other side when we first arrived but as the huge dark clouds came in from the sea the rain fell and all was obliterated in the down pour which was a little disappointing but you can’t order the weather and it was December so we can’t really complain.
Smart stainless steel cutlery , white china and freshly ironed linen serviettes on white table cloths gave the impression of class and quality while the sounds of 30s jazz and band music gently played in the background so we could ignore the fact that we were wearing jeans and trainers and imagine we were in cocktail dress and black suit and tie garb. We were asked if we would like tea or coffee and we chose tea. A small pot of this special Emeyu tea arrived in the ‘English Breakfast tea’ variety and it was very fresh and tasted good. We finished that before she returned to ask us what we would like to order so we asked for a second pot and opted for the ‘Afternoon tea’ option rather than the ‘cream tea’ one.
Service was not speedy but I was quite happy thinking that the sandwiches would be freshly made and we could enjoy watching the rain traverse across the bay. We saw the other table of four ladies receive their afternoon tea and were looking forward to ours arriving.
The food arrived on one of those three tiered plate things. At the bottom were the finger sandwiches, the next plate up had the cakes and finally at the top were the scones, jam and cream.
The sandwiches were beautifully exact fingers of white bread sandwiches for the ham and the cream cheese and cucumber sandwiches and then brown bread for the smoked salmon and egg sandwiches. They were arranged in alternate stripe patterns, one white bread, one brown and so on which looked really simple but effective.
They were all very fresh and tasty, I didn’t try an egg one but hubby said they were good. We had at least two of each sort and that was plenty for both of us.
The scones were two plain and two fruit scones. They were delicious with a crisp crust but light and really tasty, not at all heavy and stodgy as some can be. The cream was very thick and rich but the jam was jam, nothing special it seemed to me but it did the job.
The cakes looked really yummy but we had given up by this time and asked for a doggie bag. They happily wrapped them up in foil and popped them in a little paper carrier bag. We then had to sign something to say we had taken them away for some reason!
We will be enjoying these at home with a cup of coffee when we get home so I will write about these after we have eaten them.Well they made the journey home and we enjoyed one with a coffee when we got back. The others we had with our afternoon cup of tea and finally the fruit flan we had for dessert so we did very well with them. They were all delicious and the fruit flan/tart was particularly nice with peaches and lovely bright redcurrants adding colour and flavor.
We sat for some time with the bill on our table as we were not told that we had to take it to the bar to pay. Finally we asked if that is what we had to do and were told that, yes that is what we had to do.
I took the bill and credit card to the bar and they had a little machine to put in my pin number and all was done. We thanked them but we were not asked at any time if we had enjoyed our meal, they did comment on the fact that we had given up and got a doggie bag but that was all.
I would say that the service was adequate rather than good. The food was beautifully presented and tasted good but I do think that for the price I fell that they could have come and checked if we were happy with the food and asked us if we had enjoyed it when paying but maybe I am expecting too much for my £15.50.
WOULD I RECOMMEND?
Well it was good tasty food in a lovely place but it was a good price too. I wouldn’t say this was a bargain but it was a nice experience and a chance to sit where the rich and shameless had once cavorted in the day, without spending a small fortune.
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©Catsholiday
Posh Tea where Wallace Simpson and Coco Chanel spent time! 
