Sunday 9 August 2009

Breakfast at Mallory Court Hotel

I firmly believe that there are few things in life more wonderful than a full english breakfast. I'm not ashamed to say I love them in their many varieties. When I lived in Bristol I was spoilt for choice - there were the many hangover-aiding breakfasts in Havana (Cotham Hill), the great-plan making ones with Rachael in the second-hand bookshop, Circles (Bedminster), and an amazing greasy-spoon breakfast (complete with endless mugs of builders tea), with Lee in the now sadly defunct York Cafe.

Hotel breakfasts are a different beast entirely. The big chains do big buffets but eggs, bacon and sausages are far from appealing when cooked in advance and left under bright lights to keep warm. Independent hotels are far better with breakfasts cooked to order. Rachael always insisted that the inclusion of hash-browns was of optimal importance in the breakfasts of the hotel she managed, and I agreed with her. But the quality can still be variable.

The breakfast at the Mallory Court, was quite possibly the best full-english i've ever had. Aesthetically it was beautiful, and the quality and flavour of the sausage, bacon, eggs and mushroom were quite amazing. The portion may look small, but the richness of the food made it the perfect size (even with the pictured fried bread swapped for toast). I'd opted for poached eggs after Graham inspired me by ordering some, and we both found one with a wonderfully runny yolk, and one with a harder yolk. The precision with which this had been accomplished made me think that this was done purposefully, but it is mere speculation on whether they did this to hedge their bets on the diner's preference.


From the moment we walked into the breakfast room, the service couldn't have been more attentive and professional. Being a huge fan of tea, I loved the ceremony that of having tea leaves and tea pots. All I needed was my cooked breakfast, but the continental buffet looked ample and well stocked. The addition of freshly squeezed fruit juices was also a very appealing touch.

Overall:

The quality of the food and presentation made this the classiest full english i'd ever had, and the attention to detail and professional friendly service, in lovely surroundings made for a rather wonderful breakfast experience.

10/10

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