A feast fit for a prince at luxurious Granary Lodge
THE invitation to be one of the very first guests at the new luxury accommodation within the grounds of the Castle of Mey was not one to be missed.
Last Tuesday evening I drove along the far north coastline just as a haar came in to create an atmosphere of eerie elegance as it shrouded the ancient edifice.
After various documents assured the police and security officials present that I was a genuine Groat and Courier reporter, I was allowed to proceed through the ring of steel, past the castle itself and drive across a low bridge at the rear.
My destination was the all-new Granary Lodge, a bespoke bed-and-breakfast that officially opened for business on Monday this week but which I was allowed the honour of previewing several days in advance.
The Castle of Mey was the property of the Queen Mother from 1952 until 1996, when she gifted it with an endowment to the Castle of Mey Trust. The castle and adjacent two-acre walled garden represent a five-star visitor attraction from May to September that last year attracted over 30,000 visitors.
With the Granary Lodge, there is now another gem to add to this princely pile upon the Caithness moors. As it says on the tin, the 17th-century building was once used to store grain – confined to the upper floors, while below were stables and storage facilities for agricultural implements such as carts, ploughs, harrows and the relevant tackle.
Garages were added by the Queen Mother and the complex of granary buildings was, until 2016, home to an animal centre which has now been relocated.
The refurbishment and transformation of the buildings into its present form has obviously come at a price. High quality does not come cheap, and no expense has been spared by the Prince’s Foundation to work tirelessly and with great attention to detail in creating the luxurious Granary Lodge. However, the building itself does not ostentatiously poke its nose too high in the air and its profile remains subservient to the surrounding landscape and the famous mother-ship lurking close by. Nor are the prices ludicrously high, starting at a reasonable £145 for a room.
Fellow journalists had gathered in the drawing room and were treated to champagne and canapés as they relaxed around a crackling log fire. Several had been forced to drive the last leg of the journey from Inverness after flights to Wick were cancelled due to the ever-increasing fog – at one point the lodge seemed to sit on an island of its own, with little visible beyond 30 or 40 yards.
Royal recipes may have you thinking of roasted swan or suckling pig turning on a spit over a huge fire, but my dietary requirements go in a completely different direction. Being strictly vegan is getting easier and easier as many shops, cafés and restaurants will carry at least one option, but how would this all-new facility shape up?
The Granary Lodge did not fail to please, I'm happy to say, and my evening meal was a splendid vegan gnocchi presented with pesto, roast butternut squash, coconut, broccoli and vine tomatoes. The blackberry cheesecake that followed would have fooled any dairy-lover with the intense richness of flavour – all created without a drop of dairy.
The following day there was an equally delicious cottage pie made with Quorn mince and dairy-free mash as an appetiser for the royal visit.
At the official opening, Prince Charles – who, strictly speaking, is the Duke of Rothesay while in this neck of the woods – was ushered from one room to another. As a photographer and reporter for the paper, I was stuck between the opposing worlds of image-hungry paparazzi and the more sedate and mild-mannered lifestyle journalists writing for The Times and Tatler. It meant I had to forsake the royal handshake while the prince did his rounds of the great and the good of Caithness society who had gathered.
My royal moment did eventually come, however. The prince was being shown the various rooms and I saw him go in and inspect room number four – the room I had stayed overnight in.
Had I left something embarrassing within? Perhaps used towels in the bath, or an unflushed loo? I snapped a picture as he exited with Lord Thurso and said: "That was my room last night, sir."
"I hope you found it comfortable?" he replied.
Then, noticing the John O'Groat Journal credentials clipped on my lapel along with my name, His Royal Highness remarked: "Ah, the John O'Groat Journal, I see. We do love 'e Groat."
Prices for a night's B&B at the Granary Lodge start from £145. Evening meals are expected to be introduced soon with food, where possible, sourced from local suppliers.
