Hotel berhampiran The Abbey Gate, Bury St. Edmunds

We stayed here for two nights for my wife’s birthday. We have been here several times before but the last time many years ago. Room was lovely. A heritage room in the wool Hall end of the hotel. Lovely size. Fully equipped with tea and coffee, hot chocolate and biscuits. TV and desk. En-suite bathroom and shower and a built in wardrobe. Huge bed and a sofa and chair along with a coffee table. If you do stay here you are entitled to two hours a day free in the spa. If that’s your thing. We sat in the airman’s bar at lunch time on the first day. We hadn’t eaten so we had sandwiches as a light lunch. My wife had salmon with whipped cream cheese and I had a Ruben, both served with crisps and a side salad. All very nice. The barman Dave is a real find. Very good at his job and very knowledgeable. An excellent asset to the hotel. A real treat for us was honey roast chilli nuts on the bar. We ate far too many but they are very moreish. The only let down was the Gallery restaurant menu. Not a great selection of food. My wife didnt really fancy any of it and I wasn’t bowled over with enthusiasm so unfortunately we didn’t eat in there which was disappointing as we were looking forward to it. We had breakfast served in our room in the morning. There is an extra charge for this so be aware. Breakfast was wonderful. Fill in the menu at night, it’s picked up by the night shift and delivered at your chosen time. Food was really good. Full cooked English breakfast, cereals and juices. Tea and coffee, toast and preserves. All hot food was hot and all very fresh. Our stay was very relaxing and we really enjoyed the experience. The only down side was the restaurant menu. Sadly not our taste at all and we do eat out a lot so maybe a wider selection needed.

Booked one night to enable us to go on a 'stable tour' the next mornig - absolutely everything was first class... friendly and helpful staff, lovely room with all that you could possibly want in it and one of the best breakfast choices that we've seen in a long time. Will definitely use again...