Hammet House Supper & Sleep Review

Last month I shared with you a brief photo diary of our stay at Hammet House, now I’m here to tell you a bit more about it.

We were invited to stay and review dinner by the new head chef Ashley Chapman at Hammet House:

Taking the reins in 2015, Ashley Chapman brings a youthful drive & uncompromising passion about excellent food to lead & inspire the kitchen team. Ashley’s experience encompasses a variety of notable kitchens, including Stephen Terry’s The Hardwick & Goodwood race course.

“Heading our kitchen with an inspirational passion for amazing food, Ashley creates our fine dining dinner menu, house menu & event menus. His style is modern British fine dining, drawing upon the excellent range of local produce we have available to us, together with the finest ingredients from throughout Wales, the UK & abroad.”

Let’s start with a little information and history of the building:

Hammet House is a luxury country house in beautiful Pembrokeshire. In glorious landscaped grounds the house sits on the famous river Teifi right on the Pembrokeshire Ceredigion border. A luxury bolthole set in secluded grounds, Hammet House is a hidden escape that nestles discreetly amongst Pembrokeshire’s glorious coastline and countryside, and Ceredigion’s spectacular beaches and heritage.

Built in 1795 by Sir Benjamin Hammet, the grade II listed Georgian house has been brought bang up to date with a clear focus on modern luxuries, great service & ultimate relaxation.The 15 Bedrooms are packed with contemporary style & luxuries, with Egyptian cotton on the beds, flat screens on the walls & indulgent Ren products in the bathrooms. In the bar & dining room you’ll find cool contemporary spaces to unwind, relax, eat & drink in, all brought to you with our easy-going yet impeccable service. Hammet House is recommended in the Michelin Guide 2015.

There is sense of calm to the building and the surroundings. Although there were other guests staying at the hotel and a large party enjoying High Tea it felt like we were the only ones there. The staff were warm and friendly but totally unobtrusive. They were the perfect mixture of constantly on hand whilst being blissfully discreet in the background.

Checking in was simple and quick, we had a brief tour of the hotel including the function room which would make for an amazing wedding and the library with its roaring open fire where we enjoyed probably one of my favourite ever hot chocolates:

Then it was up to our rather spectacular room or should I say fabulous? Our room is one of the “Fabulous” rooms and certainly lived up to its name. From the crisp modern bedding, to the tea pigs selection and home made flapjacks, every aspect of the room seemed perfectly considered. A balance of luxury, clean lines and pampering.

The gold sofa in the room was both comfortable and amazing to look at…

The bathroom products were perfectly sized and were all from the REN Beauty range:

Before we headed down to dinner we went for a walk around the grounds and did a little stone skimming .. there is something so beautifully calming about the sound of water and nothing else.

Our dinner menu looked like this:

Pre-dinner cocktails & wine with the meal

Custard Tart Martini

Mojito

Red Wine – Domaine de Braum, ‘Pure’ Pinot Noir

Amuse Bouche

Fish, Chips and Peas ‘scallops, pea purée, game chips’

Served with a mixture of breads (whole all with walnuts, brioche & focaccia) and butters – salted, unsalted, paprika and yoghurt strained butter with mixed herbs:

Starters

Quail, celeriac textures, crisp pancetta and red currants
Salad of baby beetroot, goat cheese & truffle tortellini and shaved walnut:

Intermediate Course

Smoked haddock & leek risotto, slow poached quail egg, charred sweetcorn and basil

Main

Fillet of Celtic Pride Beef, Braised Oxtail, Potato & Truffle oil pressing, parsley root, salsify salad:

Dessert:

White chocolate & passion fruit cylinder, exotic fruit, caramelised white chocolate and white chocolate ice cream:

Apple bavarois, caramel, cinnamon ice cream:

It would be fair to say dinner was incredible. Every mouthful was utter bliss. Dishes that I wouldn’t normally have chosen such as the smoked haddock risotto and the scallops were my favourite parts of the meal. There was not a single speck of food in our entire meal which I didn’t enjoy – the quail egg was a delight for the senses. By dessert I was a little too full and worried I wouldn’t be able to finish but I made a huge effort and ..I’m very glad. The caramelised white chocolate was incredible and the passion fruit cylinder was sweet and refreshing.

The restaurant itself is modern, with dim lighting and gorgeous art:

Up to a long bubble bath in the huge bath followed by a relaxing sleep..bliss.

The next morning we woke to glorious sunshine and the most incredible hotel breakfast:

Along with homemade yoghurts, jams and sauces with cereals, pastries and fresh fruits there were also hot menu choices. I chose the Penderyn Whisky glazed porridge and Andrew had the Welsh breakfast:

Sometimes a hotel breakfast can feel rushed, maybe a little stale and normally with bacon and sausages left on hot plates. This was the polar opposite of that. My porridge tasted like sweet nectar and the cooked breakfast looked as good as it tasted. Nothing was too much trouble and I may have had another hot chocolate instead of a cup of tea 😉

Checkout was again simple and easy. I was a little sad when we drove away. I would stay there again in a heartbeat.

For a relaxing, intimate and totally perfect stay I cannot give Hammet House a higher recommendation. I promise you won’t regret booking to stay.

* We were invited to stay and review the hotel for the purpose of a review. All opinions are my own.