The Peacock at Rowsley

From the moment we stepped through the door we were treated like royalty. We had the warmest welcome from Laura who greeted us at the door, showed us to our room and settled us in. Our room was tastefully decorated with a massive super king size bed, small bathroom but its not purpose built and a beautiful period property. We came down and enjoyed drinks by the fire in the afternoon in the bar. This must be the cosiest bar we have ever sat in. We had dinner in the restaurant. We enjoyed pre drinks and canapes in the lounge and was welcomed by James who recommended some fabulous cocktails created by Jack. Dinner was outstanding, three courses and even a pre dessert. The menu was bang on season serving the best Venison from the Haddon Estate. My husband had the turbot which he thoroughly enjoyed as well. Excellent recommendations for wine from Valantine. The whole team really did make our stay. Shout out to Poppy on breakfast, nice to actually see smiley happy people working, you can tell there is great comradery within the team who apparently have worked together for years. The Christmas Market at Haddon Hall has to be one of my favourite, stunning to have a market running through all the rooms inside, so special and we had complimentary tickets because we booked direct. Definitely a winning formula, do not ever change and we can’t wait to come back from my birthday! Hopefully, you will have a Michelin star by then!!

We had a fantastic lunch at the Peacock today. We opted for the lighter lunch menu which is a full size starter and dessert and a smaller portion main course. Delicious starters - we had a pork terrine which came with a Waldorf salad and a rosti with mushrooms and a herb sauce with a poached egg. Beautifully presented and very tasty. We both then had venison with a pumpkin mash and toasted pumpkin seeds. It was a stunning dish and a perfect portion. For pudding we had a caramel / apple parfait and a little Bakewell tart. The fixed price lunch was c£38 per head and we felt it was excellent value. Excellent service and the ambience in the bar was very nice, log fire etc. All in all an excellent way to spend and afternoon and we will certainly return.

Booked as a family with older children whilst visiting the peak district to expose them to fine dining as a treat. Atmosphere was lacking. Decor was traditional as expected but not plush. Price for the 3 course menu seemed to have gone up. Food was a great disappointment. Amuse bouche lovely but nearly every single course lacking in flavour. Presentation of food was good however. The service was outstanding with good wine knowledge which is why we have given 3 stars. It would have been nice for someone to say goodbye to us. We were the last family there and after we paid everyone disappeared! We showed ourselves out! Overall has potential but not worth the nearly £500 for 5.

The staff and The Peacock, Rowsley looked after us all really well. Charming, friendly and incredibly efficient. Our stay went without a hitch. Food in the restaurant was beautifully presented and absolutely delicious. I would definitely recommend this lovely hotel.

Good food, excellent service and lovely ambience. Friendly greeting on arrival and we were quickly taken through to the bar area to wait for our friends where an open fire warmed the room. Lovely traditional feel and efficient members of staff. Once everyone arrived we were given a choice of menus. Traditional a la carte or lighter bite menu (standard size starter and pudding and half size main). The lighter bite menu was chosen by most of our group. Once we were taken to our table in a lovely light room an excellent meal was had by all. The staff were very good, there if needed but not hovering. Never felt rushed to leave the table even though we chatted long after we had finished the meal. There is a nice seating area for coffee if you don’t want to stay at the table. Would definitely recommend and will be visiting again

My wife and I had the vegetarian gnocchi dish. It comes with 4 very large gnocchi and a lot of beans. The gnocchi was very unpleasant with a floury doughy texture and we ended up leaving some. The beans were nice enough but a plate of beans for the price of this dish is far from good value. We had a starter (goat cheese ice cream and tomatoes) which was okay, a large glass of wine and coffees. The bill came with 12.5% service already added which made it over £200 for 2 people. I would expect fine dining at the level of a Michelin Star or Bib level for that price and this was nowhere close.