McCoys on the Tontine: Hard to get into, difficult to leaveNo need to have a credit card handy when booking a room at McCoys at the Tontine, near Northallerton. 'Just give me your name and we'll see you when we see you,' says a cheery soul.
Sadly, she's not around when I pitch up at this quirky landmark in North Yorkshire, just off the A19, built in 1804 shortly after the Yarm to Thirsk turnpike was opened. No one is around. After a few calls of 'is anyone home?' I go down to the basement, where stragglers are finishing lunch in the restaurant, imaginatively called Bistro.
A man called Philip promises: 'I'll sort you out, no bother.' And he does, too, taking me back upstairs and handing over the key to room three on the first floor with good views of the southbound dual carriageway.
'And can I get you something to eat?' he says. Good idea. I skipped lunch.
'How about some soup and a crab salad?' he says. Perfect - which it is.
The McCoy brothers, Eugene, Tom and Peter, set up business here in 1976. Bistro is one of those places beloved by chefs who bang on about the joys of simple food, but who specialise in la-de-da dishes in their pricier joints.
Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White have both eaten here (sadly not at the same time - now, that would have been tasty!) and both have said how much they love it.
There are seven rooms. Mine is big, with two tall sash windows, a sleigh bed, an attractive desk, Narnia-type wardrobe. The bathroom doesn't know if it's country cottage or city slicker. A free-standing bath occupies pride of place under the window, a separate shower in the corner.
Mount Grace Priory, the best preserved Carthusian monastry in Britain, is half a mile from McCoys and is a joy to behold. This band of brothers lived as hermits in two-up, two-down cells and had food passed through a hole in the wall.
Rather different to eating at Bistro - which takes on the air of a bordello at night, with low ceiling, candles, swags and boho bits and bobs. Yorkshire Moulin Rouge.
The menu is big on meat: rack of lamb, saddle of rabbit, venison and steaks galore. I start with huge seared scallops, followed by a £13 rib-eye, which arrives with a fried egg on top. Music is The Beatles, replaced by The Who in time for the cheese course. Great atmosphere.
In the morning, breakfast is served in the upstairs dining room. A cat is sitting on a stool by the grand piano. Light floods the room, illuminating the floral wallpaper that makes a William Morris design look tame.
Such pretty cups and saucers. Such reassuringly dainty pots of jams. Proper butter dish. And a full fry-up, including flat mushrooms that taste like they were picked that morning.
'How long have you been working here?' I ask the friendly waitress.
'About 25 years,' she says. And Philip? 'He came as a pot washer 20 years ago and never left. Others have worked here and gone away - but they always seem to come back.'
It's not difficult to see why. This is the real McCoy.
Travel Facts
McCoys at the Tontine
Staddlebridge
Northallerton
North Yorkshire
DC6 3JB
Tel: 01609 882671
www.mccoystontine.co.uk
Doubles from £130
source: dailymail
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