- Play Hard
- 25th Sep 2026
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You’ll love Hadrian’s Hotels new luxurious rooms, tasting menu and Sunday lunch in Northumberland
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Hadrian’s Hotel in the Northumberland village of Wall has reopened newly refurbished for 2026, and it’s quickly becoming one of the region’s most complete countryside escapes.
New owners Jack Brown (owner of our Heaton favourites NEST, Flight and the former Hide) and Alice Lawson took over the coaching inn earlier this year, bringing together a proper village pub, 14 individually designed bedrooms and Willow, an elegant fine-dining restaurant, all under one roof.
“We always wanted to do something a little bit bigger,” Jack explains. “Within 20 minutes of viewing it, we could see the potential. It was very much about the fact that we could have three different elements: the fine dining, the pub, and having bedrooms on top.”
Just half a mile from Hadrian’s Wall itself, it makes a compelling case for a slower kind of autumn getaway.
WHERE HISTORY MEETS HOME COMFORT
Wall sits deep in the Northumberland countryside, close to the Hadrian’s Wall Path and the wider UNESCO World Heritage Site that runs through the region.
As soon as you pull up, you’re greeted with views of rolling hills and countryside, an instant escape from city life. Roman forts, milecastles and museums are scattered across the surrounding landscape, all on your doorstep. The building itself has been beautifully refurbished, with natural light, exposed brick and rich wood furnishings throughout.
Each of the hotel’s 14 recently refurbished rooms, whether kingsize, super king, twin or double, brings contemporary accents and a fresh, chic interior. Every room feels like a home away from home featuring a coffee machine and kettle, fresh towels and complimentary toiletries, and several look straight out over the surrounding Northumberland countryside.
A cooked breakfast in Willow is included with every stay, which makes the mornings almost as good as the walks.
A VILLAGE PUB DONE PROPERLY
Downstairs, the pub is exactly what a Northumberland local should be: wooden interiors, cosy corners and a fire worth sitting by with a pint of something local. The regular menu leans on hearty wholesome classics like fish and chips, homemade pies and steak, alongside more considered plates, backed up by a well-kept range of ales, fine wines and spirits.
On the à la carte side, look out for the venison tartare with crostini and smoked sea salt, or the cod cheeks with taramasalata and cucumber, to start. The 8oz flat iron steak, served with triple-cooked chips, peppercorn sauce and café de Paris butter, is the standout main, while the beer-battered North Sea haddock comes with mushy peas, tartare sauce and a curry sauce on the side for anyone who wants it.
Puddings are proper comfort food: a sticky toffee pudding with butterscotch sauce and tonka bean ice cream, or a lemon and lime cheesecake with gingerbread biscuit and raspberry sorbet, both easy to say yes to after a day on the wall.
Walkers coming off the wall might just want fish and chips and an early night, while others treat it as a date night with the tasting menu. Some groups stay for a few nights and try both dining options to mix things up. Whether it’s a celebration or a pop-in after a day of walking, dogs included across the hotel, pub and restaurants, everyone’s welcome.
Reopening the pub mattered beyond the food too.
“The response has been amazing. At first, it was a little bit overwhelming how nicely we were greeted, but you could see the outpouring of emotion. We’re already becoming part of the community, and the village of Wall has welcomed us with open arms. I’ll be forever grateful for that.”
WILLOW IS WORTH COMING BACK FOR, AGAIN AND AGAIN
Willow is the hotel’s fine-dining answer: a smart, contemporary space with exposed brick, rich wood and plenty of natural light, built around understated luxury and a menu that leans hard into seasonality.
The eight-course tasting menu moves from shallot with Old Winchester and garden tomato, through lobster with English pea and horseradish leaf, duck liver parfait with fig leaf and milk bread, heritage carrot with cod roe and langoustine, North Sea monkfish with nasturtium and N25 caviar, and Cumbrian lamb with courgette and Scottish girolles, before finishing on strawberry with white chocolate and lemon verbena, and brown butter with carrot and mascarpone.
And don’t worry, there’s a vegetarian tasting menu just for you. Think cured beetroot croustade with black truffle, Jerusalem artichoke with sherry vinegar and lavender, Northumberland cheddar with wild garlic and walnut, garden leek and potato gratin with aged Comté, smoked celeriac with hay and butter, and hen of the woods with umeboshi and aubergine, before milk chocolate sorbet with cocoa nib and sea buckthorn, and a dulce de leche, Yorkshire rhubarb and buckwheat dessert to finish.
The team’s knowledge is what makes it: expect the chef and team to talk you through each dish as it’s cooked in front of you, explaining every ingredient on the plate. Add the wine pairing and it turns into a proper education, with flavours you may not have tried before.
Sunday lunch is served in Willow too: a two-course menu at £28, or three courses for £35, with a choice of roast Northumbrian sirloin of beef, roast pork shoulder, Northumbrian lamb leg, haddock mornay or a mushroom and truffle pie for anyone going meat-free, all served with creamy mashed potato, honey parsnips, confit chantenay carrots, Yorkshire pudding and jus.
Start with the pork terrine with pickles and herb emulsion or the smoked salmon roulade with cucumber and fennel, and finish with the sticky toffee pudding, or a British cheese course with quince pâte de fruit and chutney if you’d rather stay savoury.
Cocktails deserve a mention too, from a Parliament Punch made with tequila, Midori, pineapple, and prosecco, to a Raspberry Marciano built on vodka, raspberry, lime, and ginger ale. Take them out to the beautiful terrace overlooking panoramic views of rolling hills and countryside – and relax.
The Hadrian’s Hotel pub and Willow have seasonal menus that change through the year; no two visits look quite the same. That’s every excuse you need to come back and try new dishes.
THE ULTIMATE AUTUMN ESCAPE
As the nights draw in, Hadrian’s Hotel comes into its own. Picture a brisk walk along Hadrian’s Wall, a fireside pint at the pub, Sunday lunch or a tasting menu at Willow, and a stay in one of the hotel’s cosy rooms rather than a drive home in the dark. Whether it’s a romantic weekend away, a celebration, or a break from city life, this is a Northumberland stay built for slowing down, with a seasonal menu that gives you a reason to return before the year’s out.
Hadrian’s Hotel, Front Street, Wall, Hexham NE46 4EE
Rachael Ellis
Head of Content
After gaining a first in her BA Media and Journalism degree at Northumbria University, Rachael worked at Newcastle’s leading regional newspaper with her stories being picked up in national and global newspapers. She spent two very successful years giving a voice to those communities across the North East who otherwise…
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