We were travelling from afar and decided to stop for the night once we’d had enough driving. We found the Duke of Gordon Hotel on Google and the website sounded ideal for a reasonable price. Unfortunately, our experience didn’t quite match what was advertised.
Parking was the first challenge, as access to the car park was blocked when we arrived. Inside, we were greeted by a lovely member of staff who explained they were short‑staffed and that dinner service was finishing soon, so we needed to commit to eating straight away. We completely understand staffing pressures, so we dropped our bags and headed straight down.
At the bar, the young lad serving seemed overwhelmed and didn’t acknowledge the queue. A more senior staff member stepped in and took over, but she handled the glasses by the rim, which isn’t great practice. Drinks were reasonably priced, though.
The dining room itself is huge, yet all diners were squeezed into one small area. Every table had bread already placed on it, even when no one had been allocated to sit there. We chose the £27 three‑course menu. Starters were tomato soup and a ham and pea terrine. The soup was bland and lacked seasoning, and the terrine came with two stale crackers. Mains were sausages, which were okay, though the gravy was very watery. Desserts were the biggest disappointment: the lemon meringue was overpowered by raspberries and inedible, and the apple sponge was smothered in jam, lukewarm, and didn’t taste of apple at all.
Heading back to our room, we noticed how unclean the communal areas were — cobwebs on light fittings, dust on surfaces and ledges, and threadbare carpets. We hoped the room would be better. At first glance it looked clean, but again, the higher surfaces were dusty. The TV was positioned so awkwardly that darker scenes were almost impossible to see. On a positive note, the bed was very comfortable, the water was hot, and the building was warm throughout.
The staff truly were the highlight — friendly, polite, and doing their best under pressure. Sadly, that’s the only real strength at the moment. The whole experience felt a bit like Fawlty Towers, which is a shame because the building itself is beautiful and could be wonderful with some updating and a thorough deep clean.
Both of us work in hospitality, so we always try to be fair and understanding, especially knowing how much reviews can impact a business. We don’t enjoy leaving negative feedback, but we also feel it’s important to be honest. With some investment, better cleaning standards, and more support for the team, this hotel could be so much better.
