turkey

It’s Christmas again, and as expected – there’s a slew of restaurants and hotels in Snowdonia peddling their Christmas lunches. We’ve spent the past few weeks sitting down to quite a few Christmas lunches (a difficult job, we know. But as the saying goes, someone’s got to do it!) and we’ve found more than a few options within the North Wales area which are seriously viable. However – all considered, we’ve certainly found one establishment that stands out from the crowd. The Lle Hari – Part of the Meadowsweet Hotel- a high quality Hotel in Llanrwst.

The Lle Hari in Llanrwst is an excellent option for any kind of dining, and to learn that such a very good restaurant (that we feel, could easily stand alone as an excellent place to eat) is part of a hotel in Snowdonia named the Meadowsweet Hotel is absolutely mind-boggling. Usually, we expect restaurants that are pretty substandard to be part of a hotel due to guaranteed business from guests, but the Lle Hari flies in the face of every single assumption we’ve ever had in that regard.

Situated on Station Road, Llanrwst, the Lle Hari offers traditional Welsh cooking with five star American service. Straight away as we entered we were offered drinks by the barman, without the need to even ask! As we review a lot of restaurants we normally allow a grace period of around 5 minutes between entering, taking a seat and expecting some sort of service, and the fact that our hosts were so attentive is of course a very good thing. We chose Snowdon, which was the ale on tap, and we found it full bodied and absolutely fantastic. One wasn’t enough.

Our Christmas Lunch starter had a great amount of choice, and we can very happily state that vegetarians are given a lot of choice, as well as meat-eaters. Our starters arrived promptly and the portion size was absolutely gigantic. We really got the see Lle Hari’s American and Welsh fusion done properly – everything was rather perfectly cooked and according to Welsh recipe, but the gargantuan portions were almost certainly where the American influence comes in.

For our mains, we weren’t disappointed either. We found our selections perfectly cooked and a wonderful amount of attention to detail on our plates – especially considering that we’ve reviewed quite a lot of Christmas lunches throughout 2016 and most have been reheated – we weren’t really expecting all that much. Imagine our delight when our mains came very quickly, and cooked with absolute perfection. This wasn’t reheated, slightly sticky turkey or overkilled roast potatoes. This was absolutely perfect, piping hot, and every single side imaginable was included.

As for the puddings? Divine. Personally, I’m not all that much of a pudding person, but my co-diner and colleague took the rather difficult task of taking on a pudding with a full stomach. The fact she finished her raspberry and lemon cheesecake, even while full, speaks volumes for the standard of cooking at the Lle Hari.

Our meal was superb value for money, in addition. Three courses cost us just £25 each, and we were even offered prosecco as part of the meal. Unfortunately, after getting a taste for Snowdon, we didn’t want to give it up. Our only complaint with the Lle Hari was that it’s open from Thursday to Saturday!  

Overall, this little restaurant in Llanrwst can provide a very substantial, excellent value, and truly delicious Christmas lunch for you, and your nearest and dearest.