First stop, the new and improved Kings Cross station. Masquerading as Charles de Gaulle airport, it was surprisingly impressive even at 8am on a cold, damp Saturday morning, before coffee.
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| The concourse roof, Kings Cross |
Three hours later, a brief shiver on the platform at York and I was in Harrogate. The place of many a Sunday lunch at my grandma’s house, memories of potted meat sandwiches and Songs of Praise.
The smell of pastry filled my nostrils and it must be said that I’m a true northerner as I love a nice bit of pastry. And so it was off to lunch with my two aunts for a good catch-up.
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| Yorkshire at her best |
A delicious lunch at the Timble Inn, the quintessential Yorkshire pub. Dry stone walls, Autumn colours, rolling fields and sheep. You don’t get much more Yorkshire than that. www.thetimbleinn.co.uk
Sunday morning saw us heading to a Yorkshire institution, Betty’s. www.bettys.co.uk Betty’s cafes are legendary in the north and growing up we loved going for a special treat. Sunday was no exception as I spotted one of my absolute favourite things on the menu, Yorkshire curd tart and so I indulged.
It’s hard to explain how delicious curd tart is if you haven’t grown up with it. A pastry shell, curd cheese, sultanas and a hint of lemon. I’m tempted to have a go at making it but somehow eating it south of Yorkshire just seems wrong.
www.greatbritishkitchen.co.uk
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| Too precious for online ordering… |
The weekend flew by and having seen all the important people, it was time to head back to the South.
London beckoned and I was greeted by engineering works on the Northern line, a common weekend occurrence and so, with a Marks & Spencer soup in my bag, I boarded the replacement bus and headed off to Chalk Farm for supper and bed.
It was an excellent northern weekend!
all about gem 