Surrey

<p>It seems lovely. I would come there for ever, to work with my art, if I could afford it. Thanks for the invitation. I remember having visited Guilford once but it was night and could not see much. I went to a disco with  friends Barry and a friend of his.  It was nice this period now it s not. Deslina</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_afternoon-tea_lead-720x480.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-27523" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_afternoon-tea_lead-720x480.jpeg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_afternoon-tea_lead-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_afternoon-tea_lead-150x100.jpeg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_afternoon-tea_lead-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_afternoon-tea_lead.jpeg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure>



<p>Fun fact: Afternoon tea became a thing when a grumpy Duchess, and close friend of Queen Victoria, couldn&#8217;t make it from lunch to supper without an afternoon snack. What started initially as tea with bread and butter, soon became tea with cakes and sandwiches. </p>



<p>But I must say, the most recent afternoon tea I&#8217;ve had the pleasure to indulge in also involved gin cocktails. Who knew that gin paired so well with sweet treats?</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_34-720x480.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-27518" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_34-720x480.jpg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_34-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_34-150x100.jpg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_34-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_34.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">THE LOCATION</h2>



<p>Barnett Hill Hotel is a gorgeous Queen Anne style mansion house in the Surrey Hills at Wonersh, just a few miles out of Guildford. The setting is everything. Long sweeping driveway and beautiful manicured gardens which flow down into woodland. The estate is on 26 acres, perched atop a hill, and there&#8217;s a real feeling of being miles from anywhere.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_33-720x480.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-27517" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_33-720x480.jpeg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_33-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_33-150x100.jpeg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_33-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_33.jpeg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">THE VIBE</h2>



<p>This is a cool country mansion house that&#8217;s in recent years has been primped and polished as part of a multi-million-pound renovation. And while the interiors are gorgeously traditional and ornate &#8211; think dark timber panelled dining room, lavish hand painted wall papers and ornate cornices and ceiling roses &#8211; it&#8217;s far from stuffy and staid. </p>



<p>There&#8217;s a busy and buzzy vibe to the place &#8211; even with Covid restrictions in place. It was one of those &#8216;it may rain&#8217; kind of days when I visited, so we dined in The Library. Almost all of the tables in the library were taken. But there were also a two or three tables of people staunchly taking their afternoon tea outside on the terrace.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">SCOFF &amp; QUAFF</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex"><ul class="blocks-gallery-grid"><li class="blocks-gallery-item"><figure><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09-720x480.jpeg" alt="" data-id="27511" data-full-url="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09.jpeg" data-link="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/?attachment_id=27511" class="wp-image-27511" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09-720x480.jpeg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09-150x100.jpeg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_09.jpeg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure></li><li class="blocks-gallery-item"><figure><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08-720x480.jpeg" alt="" data-id="27510" data-full-url="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08.jpeg" data-link="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/?attachment_id=27510" class="wp-image-27510" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08-720x480.jpeg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08-150x100.jpeg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_08.jpeg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure></li><li class="blocks-gallery-item"><figure><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10-720x480.jpeg" alt="" data-id="27512" data-full-url="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10.jpeg" data-link="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/?attachment_id=27512" class="wp-image-27512" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10-720x480.jpeg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10-150x100.jpeg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10-768x511.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_10.jpeg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure></li></ul></figure>



<p>The combination of Silent Pool gin cocktails and afternoon tea is utterly brilliant &#8211; and I may never be able to go back to a simple Champagne or Prosecco afternoon tea again. Well okay, that might be step too far&#8230; but the gin was certainly a brilliant addition.</p>



<p>The first cocktail was a classic gin and tonic, served with a twist of orange peel. It paired very well with the sandwiches &#8211; cucumber and cream cheese, poached salmon with lemon and parsley, ham and mustard and egg mayo and cress &#8211; all served on flavoured and crustless soft bread. There were also some dainty pea and mint quiches, in a vivid green that looked great and tasted fresh and zesty.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="480" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_20-720x480.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-27515" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_20-720x480.jpeg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_20-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_20-150x100.jpeg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_20-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill__gin-afternoon-tea_20.jpeg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure>



<p>Moving onto our second cocktail &#8211; a Silent Pool rose expression gin and tonic &#8211; another refreshing long drink. The rose is delicate and subtle, and the cocktail was lovely sipped against the richness of scones piled high with raspberry jam and clotted cream.</p>



<p>The long drinks force you to take things slowly, which is lovely. When faced with plates of gorgeously presented sweet bites, it can be tempting to just keep popping them in your mouth. (Or is that just me?)</p>



<p>But we finally moved onto the final drink, and between slow sips of the Silent Pool Blackberry Fizz we enjoyed the cardamom and lemon madeleines, blueberry and raspberry tart, peach macaron and &#8211; my favourite &#8211; the mojito choux. All dainty, sweet and delicious. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KID FRIENDLY?</h2>



<p>Well kids and gin generally don&#8217;t mix. But having said that, I don&#8217;t see any reason kids wouldn&#8217;t love to scoff some of the cakes and scones.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">OUT &amp; ABOUT</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="720" height="474" src="https://surrey.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_external-720x474.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-27520" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_external-720x474.jpg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_external-300x197.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_external-150x99.jpg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_external-768x505.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2020/08/Barnett-Hill_external.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /></figure>



<p>The gardens at Barnett Hill Hotel are lovely, and they flow down into the woodslands where there are marked walks. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">THE MUDDY VERDICT</h2>



<p><strong>Good for:</strong> This is a lovely way to catch up with the girls, great for multi-generational get-togethers, and also couples.</p>



<p><strong>Not for:</strong> If you&#8217;re not a fan of gin, go for the Champagne afternoon tea instead!</p>



<p><strong>The damage:</strong> £50 per person.</p>



<p><em>Barnett Hill Hotel, Blackheath Lane, Wonersh, Guildford GU5 0RF</em><a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="alexanderhotels.co.uk (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.alexanderhotels.co.uk/silent-pool-gin-afternoon-tea-experience/" target="_blank"><em>alexanderhotels.co.uk</em></a></p>


Review: Gin cocktail afternoon tea

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