Dinner And Stay At The Sprowston Manor Hotel In Norwich
Published On Friday 11 Apr 2025 by Sticky Beak
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It’s been a busy couple of months for His Nibs in his ‘day job’ role, and we’ve literally travelled the length and breadth of the UK! This final week of our excursions sees us at Sprowston Manor Hotel, Golf and Country Club on the outskirts of Norwich in Norfolk, and boy oh boy does this place have serious curb appeal.
There is plenty of on-site parking at the front of the property, with a further, large overflow one to the rear. We’d arrived a bit early to check in, though we would’ve been able to if the room had been ready. Instead, we moseyed into the spacious hotel lounge and sank into one of the beautifully squishy Chesterfield sofas. Lunch was being served at the bar, so His Nibs picked up a menu and we soon decided to have warm Panini’s [Med Veg for me, Ham and Cheese for Him) with an extra bowl of fries to share – the Panini’s come with ‘Slaw and Crisps as standard and were £9.95 each. Jolly nice they were, too.
Like Dalmahoy Hotel in Scotland (where we stayed on our first time away from the nest), there were wheeled luggage trolleys for us to stack The Man’s work kit on and take it into our room. Thankfully we were on the ground floor, though we did have to navigate seven steps up to the room which meant we had to lug the kit about a bit...saved me a session in the gym though, so it wasn’t all bad.
The room itself was lovely and spacious; as you walked in there was a double wardrobe one side, the bathroom (with shower-over-bath) the other. We then walked further in and saw a bed the size of Derbyshire, it seemed – no chance of any roll-together here, that’s for sure! There was a fridge next to the large writing desk, complete with large TV on it, and plenty of storage for clothes which, given that His Nibs packs like a day equates to a week, was certainly going to be very handy. In the corner of the room was a comfy chair and lamp, and there was also a two-seater sofa and coffee table. As I said, a really nice room.
As is our custom, when we’ve unpacked and got our bearings, we like to head down into the Spa for a bit of R&R. No chance of that – it was like a crèche; now, I know it was half-term but, it was more like Butlins than a Country Club! To make matters worse, the Steam Room was out of action, and the jacuzzi was hot enough to turn you lobster red in a few minutes – no small task when about one third of the bubble jets weren’t working either (which apparently isn’t uncommon, according to a club member I got chatting to). The next day the jacuzzi was considerably cooler, then the day after was lobster-inducing again! I did like the fact that towels were provided though, and I hadn’t got a £1 coin for the locker so the team lent me one – thank you for being life-savers.
Feeling a bit deflated, we went back to our room to freshen up before heading down to the hotel restaurant for dinner. The staff team were lovely and soon got us sorted with drinks and then left us to look through the menu. Whilst I was deciding on what to eat, I had a little gawp around the restaurant; lovely high ceilings and impressively large windows with fancy pelmets and drapes certainly gave ‘country house’ vibes. Warm tones had been used to keep the vast space welcoming, and the amber glow of the chandeliers added to the cosiness. On a personal note, I loved the trio of ornate mirrors that decorated one wall, they looked very fancy.
Anyway, back to the food... Now, no-one’s going to pretend that the menu is going to set the world alight, but it wasn’t too shabby by any means. To start, I chose the Sun-blush Cherry Tomato and Rosemary [homemade] Focaccia with Olives and Balsamic/Oil dip (£7.95), and His Nibs opted for the Chicken Liver Pate with Toasted Ciabatta, and Pickled Cucumber and Carrot (£7.95).
Both starters were nicely presented, and The Man certainly got a good wodge of Pate. I would’ve liked a second bit of Focaccia, but in the end it turned out to be a nice size starter. The Focaccia was delicious and had the unmistakeable fruity note of Olive Oil on the palate, and the Olives were accompanied by Garlic and Red Pepper. I was in heaven, dunking the bread into the Balsamic – you all know I like a bit of a dunking sesh!
Across the table, all I could hear was ‘crunch, crunch’, as The Man tucked into the thin slices of toasted Ciabatta that he’d loaded up with rich, smooth Pate. The deep flavour of the Pate was marvellous, but it was the contrast between it and the of sharpness of the pickled Carrot and Cucumber that really made this dish so great.
Our main courses were Pea Risotto with Parmesan Shavings, Herb Oil and Pea Shoots (£16.96, The Man) and Warm Tuna Nicoise Salad with New Potatoes, Tenderstem Broccoli, Salsa Verde and Boiled Eggs (£16, my choice). Like our first course, the mains were presented very nicely and looked nice and colourful.
My Tuna steak had been cut in half to reveal the super ombre effect of the pink centre blending into a cooked Taupe at its periphery. Flavour-wise, the fish was delicious and is a lot subtler than you would first think; His Nibs hates Tuna [thanks to the tinned stuff] and, despite me telling him otherwise, says it’s too strong and ‘fishy’. Oh well, more for me! The New Potatoes were lovely and warm, with chopped herbs coating their surface that added even more flavour to their inherent nuttiness. One of the things I hate most is over-cooked, soggy veg, so I was thrilled to discover that the Tenderstem still had a delightful amount of bite left to it. As far as boiled eggs go, these were the bees-knees; perfectly unctuous, soft-boiled yolks nestled at the heart of pearly whites, and the flavour was wonderfully rich and creamy. This is a fairly simple dish, but when done right [as here] is absolutely delightful.
His Nibs’ Pea Risotto was certainly plentiful; the bowl was brimming! Flavour-wise it was lovely too, but it did lack texture, there’s no doubt of that. The risotto rice was still al-dente and the dish had a wonderfully creamy texture, but there could’ve been some whole Peas (and maybe even a bit of Broccoli in there) to add ‘chew’ interest. Herb Oil gave a great ‘ping’ on the palate and the Pea Shoot garnish provided a welcome bit of crunch in the mouth. Neither of us particularly got the Parmesan’s influence, nor could we see the shavings; presumably, they had melted? So, this wasn’t a top-notch offering from the kitchen, but not an outright flop, either.
We didn’t bother with dessert as we’d got some Shortbread rounds and Viennese Whirls to tuck into back in the room, along with some teas and coffees to sip whilst we watched some TV. Throughout the evening, the serving team had been great; check-backs were done at each course, table water had been offered without being asked for, and a close eye kept on our drinks to see if we needed more. Not an altogether unpleasant evening and we headed back to the room with full tummies and smiles on our faces.
We slept like babies!! Talk about a supremely comfy bed, and even better once we’d grabbed another couple of pillows.
Breakfast was served in the restaurant where we’d dined the previous evening, so we knew where to go. A lovely lass took our room details and then said to seat ourselves where we fancied and, whilst I went to grab some juices, His Nibs did the hot drinks. Next up was to find the cold counter morsels we wanted: bowls of natural yoghurt for 2; mine topped with Grapefruit segments, Prunes and Granola, The Man’s with Granola and Grapefruit. There weren’t any seeds to be had, which was a shame as we’d liked those at previous venues. However, there were super-fresh, mini-Croissants and Pain-au-Chocolats. I also spied fresh Bagels and bread for toasting, and there were butter, jams, marmalade and Nutella sachets to help yourself to.
The Hot counter was fully loaded with all the usual suspects and His Nibs said that the Sausages were a really nice sort; I tried a nibble and no repeat factor in sight. Black Pudding slices were good quality, too, and the Back Bacon was nicely cooked with crisp edges. The Man smiled as he spotted the golden Hash Browns and was pleased to discover that they had crunchy outers and soft inners. I grabbed some grilled Mushrooms, herbed-and-grilled Tomato halves and some Scrambled Egg, and they were all nicely done. I should just mention that Scrambled- and Fried- Egg is standard for breakfast, but you could order Poached Eggs, which His Nibs did for the rest of the week. As we left the breakfast room/restaurant I naughtily grabbed a bagel and some Nutella to have as a post-workout snack – always thinking ahead, me, especially when food’s involved!
Breakfast over, we went back to collect His Nibs’ kit for the day and headed out to the jalopy in the car park. I waved The Man off like the good wifey I am, and then got changed into my gym gear and headed back to the leisure suite and down the stairs to the gym. Compared to the other hotels we’ve stayed in, it isn’t the largest, but it’s sufficient. The weight machines are exceptionally snug (it took a bit of manoeuvring to select weights and adjust the seats), and there is a sign to say that time is restricted to 20 minutes in the gym at busy times – what??! I probably wouldn’t pay membership for this gym, but I got a decent enough workout in to work my muscles and that’s what matters; after all, it was only for one [working] week. There were two racks of free-weights, but only two adjustable benches and not enough floor space to utilise them if there were more than a handful of bodies in. With a bit more thought [and space], this could easily be a really good facility. Needless to say, I didn’t head to the pool afterwards – I’d spied lots of children in there, already!
House-keeping isn’t offered on a daily basis, and is a bit of a weird one, if I’m honest. If you need fresh towels, toiletries or your bin changing then you have to leave said items outside your room door. Now, call me uptight English, but there’s no way I’m leaving my bin outside, in case some random goes rooting through it! The Man nipped down to reception and asked if our towels could be replaced, and the toilet roll and beverages be topped up. We did have to chase this up as it didn’t happen until very late in the day, and it was the receptionist that did it when her shift finished. To be fair, the staff are all lovely at Sprowston Manor; they certainly made us feel very welcome. Other than some maintenance which needs to be done around the venue, we were quite happy with our accommodation at Sprowston Manor Hotel, Golf and Country Club near Norwich, given that we only stayed 4 nights.
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