The full circle and the full package.
Regular readers may have spotted pub owner, Alice Lawson in the August edition. Alice described taking over The Northumberland Arms with her partner Jack Brown as a ‘full circle moment’, having worked behind the bar of the beloved Felton pub from the age of 17.
Now she is at the wheel, Alice is committed to driving the reputation of the pub forward and continuing to attract visitors whilst retaining the warm, comforting, community feeling that has made it the beloved local of many Feltonians.
Visiting The Northumberland Arms again was somewhat of a full circle moment for myself and my wife Lisa, too. This was our third stay, after we first fell in love with the pub back in 2021, just after the end of the second lockdown. I remembered the solace and comfort that the cosy pub had provided back in that difficult time and set off on the short journey with high expectations that it would do so again.
Those of you familiar with Northumberland may recognise the iconic white building from trips up and down the county. If you’ve not yet had the pleasure, the pub’s location, just a mile East of the A1 and halfway between Alnwick and Morpeth makes it the ideal stop off point for weary travellers in need of refreshment or a well-appointed room for the night.
On arrival. we were greeted by General Manager Trevor and were immediately ushered (not entirely against our will, admittedly) towards the beer garden for a couple of cold drinks in the bank holiday sun. The garden offers charming views of Felton Old Bridge, which crosses the River Coquet right next to the pub. We reminisced about the old lockdown days, when such simple pleasures were not possible.
After one or two rather agreeable beverages, we checked into the same room that we had stayed in first time round. Room 1 is adorned with thick curtains, freestanding wooden wardrobes and wide, plush beds give the rooms a soothing feel. The tiled bathroom, complete with walk-in shower and free-standing tub, is the perfect place to unwind.
The pub offers six boutique, en-suite rooms all recently renovated and with luxuries such as complimentary robes and The White Company toiletries. Alice’s vision of cosiness is certainly accomplished here: if a comfortable pub room has the feel of a comfy pair of slippers, the rooms at The Northumberland Arms are pipe, slippers and rocking chair entwined.
The plan was to change and head down for dinner. Lisa fancied a soak in the bath before we did so. One can always judge the quality of a hotel bath by how long his wife stays in there.
A mere three hours later, thoroughly freshened up, we made our way down to the charming conservatory for our evening meal. The picture windows let in a beautiful light whilst allowing a view of the greenery outside. With Winter approaching, I thought of our last visit, when we had sat in the conservatory and the snow had fallen on the village of Felton and left a fine blanket on the surrounding flora. I could not help thinking that sitting here in the conservatory, with its traditional wooden flooring and comfy armchairs, would be equally as pleasant in the winter months as in summer.
The Northumberland Arms prides itself on local, high-quality food grounded in pub culture. The extensive menu offers pub classics such as beer-battered haddock and chips to summer vegetable linguine.
I started with cauliflower pakoras followed by fillet steak while Lisa enjoyed burrata to start before the cornfed chicken. All was wonderfully cooked and presented and left us with the satisfied, relaxed feeling that The Northumberland Arms guarantees.
The only thing for it was to head to bed, where we slept like babies through until morning. One last walk-in shower, one last complimentary Rington’s tea and it was time to check out until next time. Our full circle was closed.
As for Alice’s full circle? Well, the goal of creating a welcoming, inclusive space for locals and visitors to feel right at home in, has been well and truly accomplished.
For more information, northumberlandarms-felton.co.uk