Cock a doodle doo! (Principal Hayley Kenwood Hall)

Member Name: jo@145

Product:	Principal Hayley Kenwood Hall
Date:	09/10/08 (128 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: City hotel with lake in grounds

Disadvantages: Cockerol woke us up early in the morning

Imagine staying in a city hotel, close to the centre but with a lake in the grounds. Impossible? No, I stayed at the Kenwood Hall Hotel in Sheffield recently and although I had walked past the entrance many times when I was younger I didn't realise what lay behind the gates. The original gates are now closed and a larger entrance is just up the next road, there is plenty of parking and even room for a bus! We had the "pleasure" of having a football team staying the weekend we were there but they were very well behaved and didn't cause us any bother.

The original hall is still used but the more modern building has been sympathetically designed to fit in with the older building. The 12 acres of parkland including the lake gives the hotel a restful feeling, and we were lucky enough to have good weather and enjoyed a walk around watching the squirrels and the ducks. There were seats and tables outside and even in September it was warm enough to enjoy a drink in the sun.
This is also a conference centre and has several rooms for meetings and parties and dedicated staff who deal with this side of the hotel.

Once a Swallow hotel, it changed to Marriott but now is part of the Principal Hayley group.

*Reception*
The reception has a revolving door as well as a glass swing door, I noticed most people preferred the swing door when they had cases! As we walked in we were immediately welcomed and registration was quickly dealt with. The reception often had two members of staff dealing with guests, and although we didn't need help with our case it was offered. There was plenty of seating in the reception and adjoining bar area, stairs led up to function rooms and lifts were through the swing doors. It was modern and very clean.

*Rooms*
Altogether 110 rooms, I was lucky enough to have a room overlooking the garden and lake. There were six in our party so I got to see 3 rooms and although the twins were similar the double was more like a suite with separate lounge area, and large armchairs.
The twin beds were very comfortable with white duvets and deep burgundy throw and cushions. Curtains were in gold material and carpet in green, gold and burgundy pattern. There was no central light but 3 large lamps gave off a reasonable light, although had I been a business guest with work to do at night, I may have struggled to see clearly. The other furniture was typical hotel type with case rack, trouser press, small table with 2 padded chairs and a desk/dressing table with mirror. The television was in a cupboard unit with drawers underneath and in a small alcove was coffee and tea making equipment. It did look as if there had been a mini bar in an earlier life, but this luxury didn't exist. The built in wardrobe had an iron, ironing board and fan. Also a hair drier was in one drawer. The bedside table in our room also had a clock/radio and a very clever lamp with two switches, allowing one person to turn off their side of the lamp whilst the other person could have their side on.

The bathroom was a good size and had nice toiletries and large bath sheets. One thing I did find strange was there was only 1 hand towel and 1 bath towel in the bathroom, so I asked at reception if we could have another set but was told it would be in the wardrobe! I was able to pass this on to the others who hadn't discovered them either! There was internet access at a charge, but the reception area was free wireless access. There was room service if you preferred to eat in your room or have breakfast in bed, and papers were delivered if requested.

*18/10 Restaurant*
Sheffield is famous for steel and the name of the restaurant is taken from a type of Stainless steel. We booked a table but although the hotel was quite full it wasn't too busy. Several of us had the Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato soup at £5.95 which was delicious and quite filling - or maybe it was the warm rolls and butter, which was replenished that filled us up! The Smoked Haddock rarebit looked lovely too. For mains some had Duck and Spicy Noodles, Giant prawn and Pea Risotto and Braised Steak and Roasted vegetables these cost around £14.95. I couldn't manage a sweet but those who did had Chocolate tart, Pavlova with Lemon curd and Coulis costing £5.95 and the Cheese Plate which was £6.95. Everything was cooked well and well presented. They advertise that they serve traditional food with world wide influences. Wine was about average price for this type of hotel. Service was quite good and we had a little time between courses which if I'm not in a rush I like. At both ends of the room was a small raised area with a few tables which allowed a larger group to be away from the main dining room.

The restaurant was also used for breakfast and then had a buffet set up behind the table area. I was pleased to see linen napkins were in use at breakfast as well as at dinner. There was a choice of cereals, plenty of fresh fruits, yogurt, fruit juices, cold meat and cheeses, plenty of hot dishes, bread, rolls, Danish pastries and waffles made to order. Small jars of jam and marmalade were already on the tables as was milk, and pots of tea or cafetierres of coffee were left on the table to help yourself.

*Lounge Bar*
We ate in the bar on our second night as we only needed a light meal, there was a choice of various sandwiches, served with crisps and salad from about £6.25, Quesadillas, Classic Burgers with fries etc. Wine was £5.20 a glass, beer £3.30 a pint and Coke £2.35. The only difficulty was there wasn't enough room to put all our plates on the table but our knees worked OK!

*Other Facilities*
For guests who like to be active there was a small pool and Jacuzzi and a small gym with weights and cardiovascular section. Also a Spa, but I'm afraid there wasn't time to sample this. It did seem to be well used though.

*Cost*
We paid £75 per person for the two nights for bed and breakfast, it is advertised as £79 per double room but offers are available, and you can get a reduction for online booking.

*Verdict*
A great place to stay in Sheffield, because it is quite close to the city and the shops, museums, theatre etc, but with plenty of parking. Excellent food and beautiful surroundings. Where else can you stay in a city and listen to an owl hooting at night and be woken by a cockerel in the morning?

Summary: Good hotel, lovely food, plenty of parking, close to city.