The Best Of York, England

With summer quickly approaching, we have been reminiscing last summer's European adventures. We have great news that we will be back in the UK this summer for a Scotland/Northern England expedition! Between now and the end of July, we will also be posting travel blogs on the lovely cities of Chester and Liverpool. So stay tuned for more awesome UK cities!

Last summer we spent a day in York wandering the historic Shambles and cobblestone streets. The weather was so very "British" that day and we were so cold (and wet) that we actually bought hats! Besides the typical English weather, York was completely charming. This was not our first trip to York as we have thoroughly enjoyed visiting a few times before! We put together some of the best places to stay, eat, drink, and play for you all to check out!

xxx Ivy & Eve

Map of some of Yorks best from The Perky Peacock http://perkypeacockcoffee.co.uk

Stay:

The Royal York Hotel - $$$$: This five-star hotel is the perfect place to enjoy a luxurious stay in York. Book a spa treatment for extra R&R time. 

Hotel du Vin & Bistro $$$: If you're looking for a great hotel, but not looking to completely splurge on a room, this is the place! Hotel du Vin is located down the street from the York train station and just out of the busy hustle and bustle of downtown York. We love the tasty smorgasbord breakfast buffet, beautiful bar, and in-room Nespresso machines!

The Trembling Madness Apartments $$-$$$: If you are looking for somewhere to stay in the city center and are up for a spooktacular night, we recommend trying one of the apartments at the Trembling Madness (not all rooms are claimed to be haunted). Bonus: they have a lovely pub and bottle shop attached to the building! See the Eat & Drink section below for more! 

Holiday Lets $-$$$$: There are some amazing deals for holiday rentals in York like this apartment with beautiful views of the Minster. These flats are perfect for families or groups traveling together. To get you started: Holiday Lettings, York Boutiquelets, Skyes Cottages, and Visit York.

Eat & Drink:

The Perky Peacock - $$: After our hour train ride from Manchester we wanted a little pick-me-up and stopped in this cute coffee shop. Situated right along the river in a tower, there are only a handful of cafe tables inside. If the weather is nice they have tables along the river to sip espresso and nibble on a toasted and buttered teacake (or more substantial breakfast items) before heading off for some York mayhem. They also have adorable logo mugs and totes available for sale!

Bettys Cafe Tea Room - $$$: Bettys is famous in York for your classic afternoon tea experience, however you have to make reservations in advance and it is very expensive. We opted for the Bettys Cafe Tea Room just down the street for a more casual, less crowded experience. We also ordered cream tea (this is tea, scone and clotted cream) since we wanted to go grab lunch later and a full afternoon tea leaves you stuffed for hours. Tip: We find a full afternoon tea is simply too much food. We suggest ordering cream tea and bubbly for the fancy effect of the afternoon tea without feeling overly stuffed. 

Trembling Madness $: For a late afternoon lunch, we stopped in this medieval pub. Also known as Delirium Tremens (DT's), this pub has been open since drinking became a thing, and it has seen its fair share of disaster and death within its walls. The rear end of the building was first built in 1180AD, people were drinking there 312 years before Columbus sailed over our way. We were pleasantly surprised with how cool this place was! On the first floor of the building is a bottle shop where they sell beer, scotch, cider and more. On the second floor is the pub. We hunkered down in an alcove off to the side of the main dining area. The interior of the pub was fun with mounted animal heads mounted all over the place, and other hidden preserved animals (a baby alligator) were around the room. The beams of the pub are from an ancient ship that last set sail over 800 years ago! We ordered some hardy medieval inspired fare of a classic cheese board (cheese, bread, and assorted accouterments), and a steak and ale pie, all washed down with real ale and some cider.

The Refectory - $$$$: Looking for the fanciest place to dine for dinner? Then look no further than the Refectory. They serve dishes made from delicious local ingredients and delightful cocktails made to order. They also serve a magical Champagne Afternoon Tea that includes a glass of our favorite bubbly...Lanson.

Love Cheese - $$: This cheese shop has a large selection of Yorkshire, British, and Continental cheeses for sale. In their shop they also have cheese boards available to pair with a glass or two of wine. 

No. 88 Walmgate - $$: Located in Hotel Indigo this bar serves up amazing York inspired dishes and some crazy cocktails. This bar is famous for its "Freakshakes" concoctions. These Freakshakes are loaded with anything from Kit Kats to gingerbread men.  

LICC (Luxury Ice Cream Company) - $$: For a bit of heaven, head to LICC for some divine "lux" ice cream. You won't be sorry!

Perky Peacock

Bettys

Trembling Madness

Play:

York Jorvik Viking Center -$$ : This museum tells the story of York's rich Viking history. This is truly an immersive experience where you smell the odors (good and bad) of a Viking town, sample the food they ate, and even get to try your hand at blowing a Viking horn!

Shambles Market - free: Wander York's most famous street- the Shambles, and visit its market full of local produce, goods, and souvenirs. 

York Minster - $$: Visit the largest Gothic cathedral of Northern Europe. This place is visible from many points in the city, seemingly popping out from around each corner.

Antique Shopping - Free: There are a bunch of lovely shops to fix your antique needs. We really like the Red House Antique Center  right across from the Minster. 

W. Hamond - $$$-$$$$: If you're looking for a pretty souvenir, we suggest heading to W. Hamond. This jewelry shop on the Shambles is tiny but packed with lovely treasures. Whitby Jet is one of the local stones of Yorkshire (found on the coast) and W. Hamond has a great selection of the slightly Gothic yet completely chic stone jewelry. 

York Museum Gardens - free: If you like English gardens, then the York Museum Garden is the perfect place to visit. Surrounded by St. Mary's Abbey, these gardens are filled with botanical wonders and over 30 species of birds. Be sure to stop in the York Museum as well which is rich with some of England's most precious archaeological treasures. 

The Original Ghost Walk of York - $: This tour claims to be the first of its kind in the world! Held nightly, this tour will surely satisfy anyone's appetite for scary stories as York has been named the most haunted city in England, and possibly Europe! 

York Pass - $$-$$$: If you are planning to visit more than two of York's attractions in a day, then the York Pass is great bang for your buck. With this pass, you have complete access to over 30 fantastic attractions in York (York Minster, Clifford's Tower, Castle Museum, York Brewery, York Art Museum, or York Dungeon to name a few) and includes some great discounts on a number of other places. 

Seemingly, all roads lead to York Minster

Eve wandering the Shambles

One of the Gatehouses of York

Exploring one of the many tiny passages

Part of the Roman Wall surrounding York City

Cambria Girls' Weekend

We are so excited to announce we are Cambria Ambassadors! Thanks to the great people at Visit Cambria, we were able to take another girls’ weekend getaway a few weekends ago. 

On this trip to Cambria, California, we stayed at the lovely J. Patrick House. Tucked away in the pine forest above the town, this B&B was the ultimate cozy base for our Cambria adventures. The hosts, Linda and Ron, were extremely welcoming and gave us a quick tour of the place before showing us to our room, the Dublin, where we happily called home for the rest of the weekend. The J. Patrick House is wonderfully decorated with antiques Linda has collected from all over yet still has a nice contemporary feel to. This is NOT your grandma's B&B. Another feature we loved about the J. Patrick is that each guest room has its own fireplace. We found ourselves turning it on every time we went to our room. There is something so comforting about a fireplace, don't you think? After we settled in, we joined the other guests for happy hour in the main house (more on that later) before whisking away for our first seafood dinner of the weekend!

On our first night, we enjoyed dinner at the Sea Chest Oyster Bar and Seafood Restaurant.  We wanted to eat here the first time we visited Cambria (read about that here) in December, but they were closed for their yearly break, making us even more determined to visit this time around! The Sea Chest doesn't take reservations, and we have heard that a line starts to form outside the restaurant even before they open!

We lucked out as we went there around 7:30, so the dinner rush had died down a bit. We put our name on the list, grabbed a glass of wine from the bar, and waited outside by their giant fire-pit. Before we finished our first glass of wine, they had called our names, and we headed in for a smorgasbord of seafood.  We love oysters, so naturally, we ordered half a dozen and decided to try their escargot as well. For mains, Ivy chose the seafood linguine, and Eve went with the cioppino. Everything was delicious, and we had to practically roll ourselves out to our car.

FYI: This is also a cash-only restaurant, so bring cash or your debit card (they have an ATM) and be prepared to wait for a table. Definitely worth the wait!

In the morning, we dinned at the J. Patrick House. We were warmly greeted by Linda and Ron and the smell of freshly brewed coffee. The first course was a delicious fruit bowl with thinly sliced apple, red berries, homemade granola, and yogurt. We could have eaten 12 bowls of their fruit salad!  The main course was the JP blueberry pancake, mini banana muffin, and sausage. SO DELICIOUS!!!

After stuffing ourselves, we headed for a guided tour of the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve. We went on the Bluff Trail walk led by Docent Gil. They offer three different tours in the springtime on Saturdays (for more info, click here).

The weather couldn't have been more perfect for a walk along the coast.  While we walked, we listened to Gil as he taught us about the property's history, the importance of the ocean for the people and animals that call this coast home, and identified plants and animals along the trail. We even did some bird watching and saw some ancient mortar holes from the Playano tribe. We couldn't imagine a prettier place to grind acorn flour and prepare meals. 

After all the walking and learning, we had quite an appetite, so we headed to Indigo Moon for lunch. We sat on their covered back patio and ordered their artisan cheese plate, which had a trio of cow's milk cheeses (Midnight Moon, Cotswold, and Mahón) accompanied by caramelized walnuts, and pears. We enjoyed a refreshing glass of wine while discussing what we wanted to do next.

For our main dishes, Eve ordered the pistachio-crusted goat cheese salad with greens, ruby grapefruit, chicken, cucumbers, and a lovely Meyer lemon champagne vinaigrette. Ivy ordered the grilled chicken sandwich with brie, onion jam, apples, and focaccia. This is sure to become one of our go-to spots for lunch. Everything is so fresh and delicious!

After lunch, we stopped by our favorite shop, JunkGirls! We met the owners and masterminds of the JunkGirls shop - Jenny and Melissa. These ladies are seriously amazing people, and we could have spent many more hours with them sharing stories and wandering the nooks and crannies of the shop. We knew we wanted to bring home at least one of their unique creations, and we ended up leaving with custom spoon rings Melissa made for us and a set of ladle board wall art pieces designed and created by Jenny! We especially loved picking out our spoons and watching them do their magic to create us unique, beautiful rings. Nothing is impossible for the Junk Girls!

After perusing the other shops, we headed to Cutruzzola Vineyards for some afternoon wine tasting. The tasting room is located at the very north end of town, right off Highway 1. They had a lovely variety of wines to taste, and we bought the 2015 Chardonnay and 2013 Gloria Estate Pinot Noir to bring home and share.

That evening, we headed back to J. Patrick House for their happy hour (which should never be missed!). Linda and Ron have a fantastic selection of local wines (red, white, and sparkling) to pick from to enjoy while chatting with the other guests. They also have appetizers set out for you to snack on before you head off to dinner.  Our first night featured an Italian appetizer selection, while the second night was Mexican! We loved the happy hour because it was a great time to meet the other guests, get recommendations on where to go, and enjoy a glass of local wine. 

Update: Due to Covid, JP happy hour is on hiatus. We hope it comes back soon!

After enjoying a little downtime at happy hour, we were ready for dinner at Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill. Like Sea Chest Oyster Bar, they do not take reservations, so make sure to plan ahead. They have a large beachfront patio with plenty of heat lamps as well as inside dining. We ordered half a dozen oysters and fried jalapenos (very spicy!) to start. We think their oysters are some of the best we have had on the west coast; that's saying something because we love oysters! Ivy had the New York steak served with a side of smashed potatoes and a garlic cream sauce, while Eve had the Moonstone's Best Catch served with Spanish rice and a delicious lobster shrimp cream sauce. The food was delicious, and the service was superb! We definitely see ourselves coming back and enjoying a glass of wine, oysters, and more on the patio at sunset during the summer. 

The following morning, we had another lovely gourmet breakfast at J. Patrick House before our morning Flow Yoga class at GYM 1 with Kristina. For breakfast they had a beautiful (and delicious) fruit bowl with grapefruit, tangerines, and blackberries. The fruit was dressed with Linda's family poppy seed dressing recipe. It went perfectly with the sweet berries and citrus fruits. For the main dish, we had a personal skillet breakfast with eggs cooked any way we wished. We had our eggs sunny side up, and they came with delicious homestyle potatoes, a side of bacon, and toast with delightful bacon jam. After breakfast, we reluctantly packed our bags, said goodbye to our lovely room, and checked out. We were sad to leave but know we won't be able to stay away for too long! We left our hearts at J. Patrick House!!!

After yoga, we headed to Moonstone Cellars for some much-deserved wine tasting (yoga is hard!). Moonstone Cellars is located just behind the main street in downtown Cambria. We enjoyed their wine flight because they have some exciting varietals like the Gewurztraminer, which does not typically grow back home in Monterey County. We bought their Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Sauvignon Blanc to bring home. 

Before heading home, we decided to stop at the Cafe for some lunch. The Cafe was an impromptu stop but so worth it! We decided to try it out because, over the weekend it was hands down the most recommended place to eat. We are no sandwich connoisseurs, but this place is GOOD! We had their famous hot pastrami sandwich, which came with a side of coleslaw, a pickle, and a pickled pepper. The Cafe is seriously delicious and completely lived up to the hype!

After enjoying the Cafe, we headed to our last stop, Linn's, for their famous olallieberry pie. Freshly baked every day, this pie is truly dreamy. It is served with whipped cream and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. We sat in the sunshine as we devoured our slices, reminiscing on the weekend's adventures. It was the perfect ending to our lovely girls’ weekend in Cambria. 

We also wanted to mention a new company we recently discovered, Brakitty. With all the traveling we do, it's great to have a case to hold your bra's and undies without crushing them. Brakitty cases are super cute and really well made (they are water-resistant too). We brought them on our trip to test them out and ended up loving them and know we will be using them on our upcoming trips. Not only do we use them to stash our bras and undies- but we also keep our jewelry and other small things that would get lost in our bags. We have the Pastel Supernova and Vintage Florals (on sale right now!). Buy your own Brakitty here!

There is so much more to explore in this little beach town we can't wait to visit again! Have you visited Cambria? Let us know about your trip!

xxx Ivy & Eve