The Rambler Inn & Holiday Cottage

Everything! Great room, great food, great location

It was all good

very good just what is needed before a day in the hills

A truly friendly staff and management, a great team, I've been coming here to eat, normally after a walk, for 15 years and it's been a consistently good pub grub pub all that time. This time I booked a couple of nights for a weekend away/ photo shoot and was rewarded with an enthusiastic welcome, a bonus of a steady stream of fantastic automotive material, and so much more. The whole team there were so accommodating, the food was fantastic, it isn't cheap, but then nowhere is these days, the quality however certainly justified the price, as did the staff, it was busy and there was a wait on our first night but Dapo was so friendly and apologetic we quite enjoyed the wait! Room 5 was great, massive soft bed, two other beds in the room, views over towards Hollins Cross over the front lawn terrace, nice ensuite with a very good shower with both rainfall and wand outlets, and big enough for two! A special shout out for the Breakfast Team, great ambassadors for the establishment and the breakfasts were great, we had the full English with poached eggs breakfast one day, and scrambled eggs and smoked salmon the other, the eggs were outstanding on both days. My only possible suggestion might be for a thicker cut of bacon but perhaps I should have asked for it slightly less cooked? But I know a lot of people like it that way, but it was such a trivial matter when weighed against the quality and size of the breakfast, all freshly cooked and served to order by a happy and helpful team! The Sunday Lunch is epic! Go on, you know you want those sides of cauliflower cheese and pigs in blankets! As I'm sure you can tell, any expectations I might have conceivable held, were easily surpassed, sometimes the hotel really does make the whole mission work so well and I couldn't have asked for more from The Rambler, thank you.

I know some will complain about a wait at the bar during exceptionally busy periods. The sun was shining all weekend and it was packed, including all the extensive garden seating, having spent some time here though, I can see that it simply doesn't make commercial sense having a staffing level that can cope with that with no waiting at the bar, when if it had been pouring it down, there'd be barely half a pub full and it would be a complete loss. And by 9.30ish, there is only half a pub full, that said I think they're looking for staff so if that was them being short staffed then they managed to pull off a terrific job! All the staff we spoke to said it was a great place to work, and it shows through, so no, I don't think there was anything I didn't like, no wait...fix the toilet roll holder in room 5, there you go, something else to do!

Comfortable bed. Handy location for local walks. Friendly staff. I left before breakfast started, but a lovely lady setting up let me take a couple of bits for the road. The nice man let me in before it formally opened so I could leave my bigger bag there and avoid carrying it on my 16km walk.

The evening meal in was poor. When I checked in around 6pm I asked what time they stopped serving food. I was advised they served food for another 2hrs+ but to come earlier than their last orders. I ordered by 7pm and at that point was told multiple of the main dishes were no longer being served. I tried to order three times, each having sat down and then approached to say that item was also unfortunately no longer available. The penultimate dish I tried to order (I can’t remember what it was now), I was told it had been taken out and appeared to be gone off, so evidently wasn’t being made fresh on site. I ended up having a vegetable pie, which was fine but average. I was quite cold by the window so tried to order a hot chocolate before returning to my room, but was told they didn’t actually do hot chocolate and he said he didn’t know why it was listed on their menus.

My stay was absolutely fantastic. From the moment I arrived, the staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming, making me feel right at home. The room was so comfortable, I drifted off to sleep with ease. After a long day exploring the outdoors, stepping into the Ramblers to find a roaring log fire and a refreshing cold pint was pure bliss. And the food? Simply amazing. Every meal was a treat. I honestly couldn’t have asked for more – it was the perfect getaway.