Beechers Restaurant

As far as restaurants go, this is a pretty standard one if I’m being honest. You see the reason is very simple. Thistle are good at what they do in the hospitality industry, their restaurant however is a classic example of an after thought restaurant. Restaurants housed in hotels are a rare breed anyway. There are few that stand out on their own and attract non guests to dine. By God do they try, with offers left right and centre.
Sure this place looks the part but the food unfortunately doesn’t blow you away. I am unapologetically of the view that dining out is about one thing and one thing only. The food should inspire you, every single time. This isn’t much to ask, because I am a big fan of «its not worth doing, if not done right». If I owned a restaurant, you can bet your bottom dollar I would make sure that I hire the best chef to cook up the most amazing dishes imaginable, or what is the point. Life without passion is not life. Life without hunger, drive is not fun! So you can imagine how I feel about anything done half heartedly! Take the lamb with parmentier potatoes. More effort would have gone into making chips in my opinion!!! Parmentier potatoes!!! for those of you not in the know this basically means chop potatoes in a few pieces throw it in a pan with some butter… oh no that’s it!!! Were you expecting something grand! Oh I’m sorry I forgot yes you sprinkle some chopped parsley on top! Wow!!! The decorum is nice the food is ok! My issue is I have been to hotel restaurants that have stood out because they made the effort. This place falls a bit short, that’s all!

Situated in landscaped grounds not far from Haydock racecourse, the purpose-​built modern hotel has a Georgian theme to it. Beechers restaurant sits within the hotel. There is also the lounge bar and conservatory bistro. On two levels, the white walls and stately columns of the restaurant are enlivened by vibrantly patterned chairs and curtains. It is certainly somewhere posh enough for an important occassion, with beautifully crisp white table cloths and napkins. You just know that you are going to get good service. Dishes you are likely to come across include saddle of lamb with parmentier potatoes, sea bass fillet with avocado and prosciutto ham, rustic terrine of marinated pork with winter vegetables, roast duck breast served on onion and red wine jus and peppered strawberry mousse with mango sauce. I would recommend booking!

Welcome to Haydock! And Penny Lane, to be exact, just to fuel our Beatles obsession further. And it is also the name of the ‘band-​aid’ played by Kate Hudson in Almost Famous.
Trivia over, if you find yourself in the Penny Lane vicinity you’d do well to pop into the recently refurbed Beechers Restaurant with its lovely white and red décor, very smartly dressed staff who are very polite and just the right amount of attentive and fabulous wine list. The menus offer a great variety of choice, they’re more than happy to customise things to your personal tastes and with the bar next door open for snacks, lighter meals and drinks, the environment is very pleasant. Just like Penny Lane itself. Or herself. Excellent.