The Owl Hawnby Nr Helmsley, North Yorkshire

Found this lovely old character Inn ideally placed for walks & booked a Superior Double Room, which generally means a bigger than standard double. Nowhere did it state that the room was a converted outbuilding over the road & not in the main Inn. The room was tiny & dark ( due to just one very small window) no character at all, one of you had to sit on the bed whilst the other was getting ready as no room to move ( see photos). I was having a pleasant conversation with the owner (the wife) expressing my dissatisfaction in a very polite manner, when her husband sprung up out of his Chair & told my very abruptly that he didn’t want me there if I was disappointed & I should pack my bags & leave, he followed it up by saying he wouldn’t be able to please me so I should leave, he was very rude & intimidating he then lectured me that just because I was disappointed with the room didn’t make me right, he said he had supplied all the basics including the double bed. In addition the room lacked finesse, there were no shelves in the en-suite or shower to put toiletries on, no spare toilet roll, the tea & coffee wasn’t topped up, the carpet was grubby, the woodwork needed painting & the leaking radiator was reported on our arrival & still leaking when we left 2 days later. No welcome information, pub not open for lunch. Breakfast had no continental option and the cooked breakfast was luke warm. We had the fillet steak in the evening, one was completely overcooked & both were tasteless ( probably due to the Chef also having to wait tables, serve at the bar as well as cook). To top it all when we checked out they added 2 bottles of wine to our bill (£51)that we hadn’t had.

Very friendly welcome when we arrived on one of the hottest days so far. Lovely views, lots of outside tables and really good bar and restaurant areas. Food was excellent we had the sharing charcuterie platter and then I had mushroom pasta which was delicious.

The owner has been declared bankrupt and is in the process of being struck off. We booked on a late deal the night before arrival and didn’t find out the place was closed until arrival. There is a post from the liquidator on the back door to the kitchen. I hope that it can be bought out as we would really like to stay there. There’s a number to call on the front door for a chap who lives across the way. Thankfully we were able to get a full refund.