When you think of Cumbria, you think of the Lake District. When you think of Carlisle, you think of that place you always pass, but never visit, on the way to and from Scotland. Farlam Hall Hotel and Restaurant however, is providing a reason for everyone to slow down and explore.
This year, its resident restaurant Cedar Tree received a Michelin star, a mere 18 months after Hrishikesh Desai took the helm as Chef Patron.
His innovative style of classic British cuisine with surprising twists has helped put this already beautiful hotel firmly on the map, being named the best foodie hotel in the UK.
With delicious food, stunning gardens and history on its doorstep, Farlam Hall is not to be missed.
Farlam Hall dates back to 1428 and has been in the Thompson family for its entire existence. Guests can stay in the main hall, or indulge in one of the converted stable suites, where family and friends can gather and enjoy the peace and tranquillity of having their own space within the beautiful grounds.
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The bedrooms in the main hall are warm and comforting, with some modern twists like a TV in front of the bath (not all rooms have this, but mine did and it was honestly a highlight of the trip).
Bedrooms at Farlam Hall. Credit: The Manc Group
As you may have guessed by now, Farlam Hall is home to the multi-award winning restaurant Cedar Tree, but it is also home to Bistro Enkel, their more relaxed and accessible restaurant for guests to enjoy from Sunday to Tuesday. The menu has many classic bistro-style dishes for guests to indulge in, but I’ll tell you more about that later.
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The welcome to Farlam Hall is second to none. You’re greeted like one of the family who has been away for a while and now you’re returning home.
We went to see what Farlam Hall is all about and why you should add it to your bucket list to visit.
Farlam Hall and Gardens
The grounds at Farlam Hall. Credit: The Manc Group
Coming up the drive to Farlam Hall is like entering a story book, everything is so neat and picturesque, like it has been illustrated into existence.
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The iconic cedar tree, which is seen in the Farlam Hall logo and from which the Michelin starred restaurant gets its name, stands proudly in the garden to greet you. There is so much to explore, with the hall set in six acres of manicured grounds, with a half acre kitchen garden, and guests encouraged to get out and wander around. The stress of the outside world seems to just melt away instantly.
To the rear of the hall and behind the stable suites, lies the kitchen garden. The space has been lovingly cared for and curated by the fantastic gardener Penny. Her passion and knowledge for her craft shines out of her like a warm sunbeam, you can’t help but want to bask in her, taking in all she has to say.
We got to pick ingredients from the garden to make some of their signature cocktails, whilst learning about the different produce and flowers growing in the garden and their purpose.
Hrishikesh and Penny are working towards becoming almost completely sustainable from the garden, with all fruit and vegetable waste being returned to the garden and as much fruit and vegetable produce coming from their own doorstep, whilst encouraging a whole host of wildlife to call their garden home.
Farlam Hall’s kitchen garden, featuring Penny the gardener. Credit: The Manc Group
There’s a large number of rooms to choose from at Farlam Hall, catering to all needs and budgets, everyone is welcome. We explored the homely stable suites, which have been impressively styled to be an elegant twist of modern and traditional. The private spaces are the perfect getaway for a family or group that want to enjoy their own space away from the main hotel.
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I was lucky enough to have a junior suite during my visit and it was divine. The bed was enormous and out of this world comfy. I had a pleasant seating area to enjoy a cup of tea and watch the Olympics (no no, not just the French pole vaulter on repeat, I swear) and a view of the surrounding gardens.
The bathroom was big enough for a whole olympic gymnastic routine and the bath… it had a TV in the wall in front of it! This innovation absolutely blew my mind, there was no awkward balancing of phones or laptops for me tonight, I’d be bathing in luxury.
I nipped back up to my room during dinner too, and someone had been in to close all of my blinds and curtains, turn down my bed and lay out my robe and slippers for me too. This VIP treatment for guests really sets Farlam Hall apart.
Bistro Enkel
Mozzarella and tomato starterInside the restaurant spaces at Farlam HallThe chocolate delice – it did not last longCredit: The Manc Group
Farlam Hall has two on-site restaurants, with Cedar Tree serving guests Wednesday to Saturday, and Bistro Enkel is available Sunday to Tuesday. Enkel (the old Nordic word for “simple”) has a more accessible menu for guests in an a la carte style rather than a tasting menu.
There are many bistro classics like the prawn ‘Marie Rose’, smoked ham hock and chicken terrine and featherblade steak, but still have Hrishikesh’s signature twists and creativity to keep it interesting.
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I opted for the mozzarella and tomato starter, with the tomatoes having travelled a mere 10 metres from garden to kitchen. Their freshness was sublime and the dish was light on the palate.
I was fortunate enough that a member of our party didn’t want dessert, which meant I could indulge in the cheese plate AND the chocolate delice. The cheeses were all British farmhouse cheeses, carefully curated so one never overpowered the other. The chocolate delice however was a gut punch of chocolate deliciousness with a smooth texture that envelopes the tongue like a wave of cocoa nectar. It did not last long.
The surrounding area
Talkin Tarn Country Park is a short drive from Farlam Hall. Credit: The Manc Group
After a quick indulgent breakfast (I treated myself to the rarebit on toast with poached eggs and highly recommend you do the same), we went for a walk around the lake at Talkin Tarn Country Park. This beautiful mix of woodland and farmland is just a short 10 minute drive from Farlam Hall and the perfect spot for a gentle stroll to soak up the surroundings and work off some of the food we had been consuming endlessly (and with glee) since we arrived.
Karen Baybutt, who joined Farlam Hall with Hrishikesh after they both left the Gilpin, joined us for a natter and a potter around the lake, chatting all things Farlam. It was obvious that Karen lives and breathes Farlam and it was so pleasant to hear of all the different ways she is getting involved in her new community and sharing what Farlam Hall has to offer.
Our walk was led by the magnificent Min. She spoke with such knowledge and fervour about her surroundings and the local area that I couldn’t help but have a smile on my face. Being in the company of such passionate people whilst visiting Farlam was quite invigorating for the soul. Min has plenty of suggestions for places to explore while you’re visiting the area, with plenty of walks to enjoy and the historic Hadrian’s wall is a mere 15 minute drive from the hotel.
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The Cedar Tree
Long-horn beef Wellington. Credit: The Manc GroupThe Farlam Hall Garden Tomato. Credit: The Manc GroupParts of the playful menu at Farlam Hall. Credit: The Manc Group
The piece de resistance of Farlam Hall is of course the Michelin starred Cedar Tree restaurant. Found in the same room as Bistro Enkel but with a slightly different layout and table setting, you can feel the step up in luxury.
The kitchen is of course headed up by Hrishikesh Desai, the Chef de Patron, and his menu is playful with signature twists that he has become to be known for. There is certainly no stuffy feeling about what we are about to enjoy.
We start the afternoon in the bar, a comfortable and relaxed space to unwind with a glass of fizz and enjoy our first two courses (of eleven if you include the petit fours).
We are served a warming cone of garbanzo bean chaat to begin, transporting us to the streets of India before jetting off to where I assumed was the Mediterranean but my senses are unsure. We are served Hrishikesh’s ‘olives our way’, which at first glance appears to be a tasty looking olive in a delicate pool of hay-coloured olive oil. However what I had seen and what I was tasting were entirely different. I don’t want to spoil it for you by over describing the dish, but I was both confused by and pleased with what I was eating.
The chilli butter that made me want to move in
We then moved into the dining room, where the staff were calm, personable and relaxed. Hrishikesh himself came and explained each dish to us, his knowledge and love for his craft and ingredients added some extra seasoning to the food which made everything taste just that little bit better.
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There were stand out dishes, like the Gazpacho made from herbs from the garden; the ‘Farlam Hall Garden Tomato’ stuffed to the brim with, you guessed it, tomatoes from the garden, all impressively presented like an actual tomato on a bed of spiced tomato jelly that turned into a consume as you eat it; the long-horn beef wellington with a tandoori spiced fillet of beef that had been cooked on charcoal before being delicately wrapped in pastry (this was enough to make this vegetarian of 25 years jealous); and the chilli butter. THE CHILLI BUTTER. There aren’t enough words in the English language to describe the magnificence of this chilli butter. Poets will write about. The butter even looks like a chilli, encased in chilli from Hrishikesh’s home in India. Honestly, I’d have moved in just for the butter.
Farlam Hall Hotel & Restaurant is an absolute gem of the north filled with passionate, lovely people and fantastic food. You can find out more and book your stay here.
10 of the best green spaces around Greater Manchester
Daisy Jackson
Greater Manchester doesn’t have the leafiest of reputations, but if you know where to look there are a LOT of green spaces to be discovered in our region.
As the city expands upwards and outwards and glassy skyscrapers spike up into the skyline, most of us are just wandering the streets yearning to touch some grass.
Over the last couple of months, our team here at The Manc have been heading out of the office in search of the best green spaces around Greater Manchester.
And over that time, we’ve fallen back in love with some local favourites as well as discovering some really underrated spots to unwind and reconnect with nature.
The list below ranges from pockets of green in the city centre all the way out to rolling country parks, along with some super accessible beauty spots.
Here are our top picks.
Sale Water Park, Sale
Sale Water Park is one of the best green spaces in Greater Manchester
Peaceful walks, waterside views and a bit of sunshine (if we’re lucky) – there are plenty of hidden corners to explore at Sale Water Park.
After a long day at work, there’s nothing better than heading down here for a paddleboard, a walk by the water, or just a bit of calm away from the city chaos. You can dive into watersports, bring your own board, or keep it more low-key with a stroll and a coffee from the cafe.
Just a short hop on the tram or an easy drive down the M60, who knew views like this could be so close to Manchester?
Fletcher Moss is a firm favourite with Mancs in all seasons – in summer it’s an explosion of colour and flowers, in winter it’s transformed into a Narnia-esque landscape with eerie mist and twinkling frost.
Woodland walks, peaceful picnics, the river sliding past, flower gardens, coffee huts, boardwalks, and loads more.
Green spaces in Greater Manchester don’t get much better than Fletcher Moss, especially on a spectacularly sunny spring day.
Ancoats Marina gets a bit of stick these days as it’s swallowed up by luxury residential developments that are way out of reach for most of the residents who’ve called it home for generations.
But for those who live in the city centre, the greenery around the marina itself is a godsend and shows how good it is when neighbourhood preserve a bit of outdoor space.
As the years have gone on, the waterside neighbourhood has become home to top local indies like Pollen Bakery, Flawd wine bar, and Cask craft beer bar.
It’s a perfect escape from the concrete and high-rise everywhere else.
Where can you go on a walk where you get streams, lakes, woods, rivers, aqueducts, meadows, flower parks, playing fields, animals, mountain biking, great views of the city, and loads more?
If you thought we were about to send you all the way into the Peak District, think again…
Drinkwater Park, which also links up with Prestwich Clough, Philips Park and Waterdale Meadow (and all the way to Clifton Country Park if you fancy a big walk) is a really varied spot to go for a big walk, and way underrated compared to Heaton Park across town.
Bramhall Park, Stockport
Bramhall Park, Stockport
There’s a massive Tudor manor that dates back to the Middle Ages just down the road in Stockport – and the park it’s in is a bit of a stunner too.
Bramhall Park is home to all sorts of gorgeous corners to discover, from a community garden with fresh herbs, The Stables Kitchen, open fields, streams and lakes.
As for Bramhall Hall itself, the stunning wattle and daub structure that stands tall on the top of the hill may currently be undergoing restorations, but that’s only so the rich history and culture can be kept intact, so keep an eye out for tours.
After a hectic week of hustle and bustle in the city, there’s nothing better than a nice stroll with views of a very impressive open water space.
Hollingworth Lake is one of Rochdale’s most impressive routes, and even has a cafe perfectly-positioned half way round too, on hand to whip you up an ice cream or two.
There’s plenty of green spaces throughout the region, but this spot is one of Rochdale’s most easily-accessible walking routes and the perfect idea for your next day out.
Heaton Park is no secret to anyone living within Greater Manchester, but sometimes it’s easy to overlook just how fantastic it is.
This is the largest municipal park in Europe county’s biggest park, home to farm animals like Highland Cows, a boating lake, play areas, loads of fields, the historic tramway, and a magnificent 18th-century country house.
This really is one of the best green spaces in Greater Manchester – just maybe wait for Parklife to get out the way before you visit in June.
Mayfield Park, city centre
The opening of Mayfield Park was major news for Manchester city centre, as the city’s first new park in more than a century.
It’s hard to believe there was space for such a vast amount of greenery within the inner ring road, but here it is – a 6.5 acre public park, home to 142 trees, 120,000 shrubs and plants, a kids’ play yard with six slides, and beautiful meandering paths.
As the park was built, parts of the River Medlock were also uncovered, and the mighty river now slices through this pristine park.
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Castlefield Viaduct, city centre
Castlefield Viaduct
It’s not the greenest of green spaces, but there’s something magical about Castlefield Viaduct and how it marries together an industrial landscape with nature.
The Victorian-era steel viaduct, way above our heads in Castlefield, is slowly being transformed into a green ‘sky garden’ by the National Trust.
It’s free to visit, and from here you can wander along a section of the viaduct admiring plants and staggering views of the city centre, with plenty more still to come in the charity’s plans.
Don’t judge, don’t walk away, just hear us out here – Piccadilly Gardens, justifiably, has a rotten reputation in Manchester. It’s a hotspot for petty (and more serious) crime, plagued by flocks of pigeons, and gets completely flattened into a muddy pit by the Christmas Markets every year.
BUT the improvements that have happened here in the last few years are quite remarkable – pop down there on a sunny day right now and you’ll notice a chunk of the Piccadilly Wall has come down (yep, you can see the sky again), the grass is actually alive, and there are usually hundreds of people sprawled out on their lunch breaks.
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As city centre green spaces go… it’s not the worst.
A historic Stockport pub has officially become a listed building
Danny Jones
The Angel Inn pub in Stockport has officially become the thriving Greater Manchester borough’s latest listed building.
Being granted Grade II-listed status following an extensive visit and survey by Historic England (HE), Stockport Market Place’s Angel Inn may have had a lick of paint amidst the ‘Old Town Revival’ over the last decade or so, but the pub itself was erected back in the 16th century.
Reopened as one of the area’s most beloved boozers back in 2018, whilst still maintaining key fixtures and that feeling of authenticity, it harks back to the town’s Cheshire roots and taps into a deep vein of local culture.
The assessment, which was completed earlier this month, means that Angel Inn has been recognised as having special architectural or historic significance – i.e. the definition of a listed building.
Writing in a post on social media, the government-backed English heritage organisation detailed that while the inn predates the Early Modern/post-medieval period, the Angel‘s frame is comprised of wood from the 15th century.
But it gets even more interesting than that…
As well as being one of a select few surviving, traditional wattle-and-daub structures in the UK – nearby Bramall Hall being another (and a technique that had died out by the 18th century) – a close inspection of the internal floorboards unearthed something truly fascinating.
It just so happens that tests by HE proved that one particular plank of flooring “was cut from a tree alive in 1086, the year the Domesday Book was completed: the oldest government record held in The National Archives, commissioned by William the Conqueror.
How bloody cool is that?
It’s also worth noting that it’s genuinely a brilliant boozer and one of the most popular watering holes you’ll find in the town centre, promising a cosy interior, an intimate little outdoor area out back and serving plenty of regional ales.
You only have to glance at the exterior to clue into its age, let alone what there is to be found inside.Way back when.Credit: Historic England (handout)/Stockport Archives
Although they say it’s likely that the floorboard in question was originally cut for an earlier building situated in the same location, it still goes to show how old this particular North West settlement is.
“The name ‘Angel Inn’ dates from as early as 1769, though the site’s hospitality roots extend further, with references to “Cotterell’s inn” used for sequestrators’ meetings in the 1640s, who met to organise the confiscation of property of supporters of King Charles I during The English Civil War”, HE went on to add.
Angel Inn is one of only a handful of venues like this in Greater Manchester and Cheshire; safe to say a lot of time, effort and money are being put into preserving these links to the past.
Kristen MacGregor-Houlston -
15th August 2024 
