June 29 - July 4 York Trip Report

After breakfast, we took Simon’s advice, and ran to join a free city tour, run by the Association of Voluntary Guides to the City of York. Another great suggestion. The tour focused on the history of York, from Roman times up to the present. Our guide Kevin did a stellar job, talking about the Roman settlement, the old Abbey, the city walls, some of which are original Roman walls. Our tour included a walk on the wall, which I was glad to do. Our Best of England tour had offered a wall walk as an option, but I was afraid that I wouldn’t have been able to keep up. I needn’t have feared; the wall is well maintained, and easily traversable.

We also went into the old town, but again, Kevin concentrated on history, not on the Harry Potter related (or supposedly related) aspects. The tour was supposed to last two hours, but we went well over that. Simon later said that had we wanted even more, Kevin would have kept going as long as we wanted.

But it was lunch time, and we had reservations at another of Simon’s recommendations, “Ate O’Clock.” As it happened, the tour ended with what Kevin called “the obligatory walk down the Shambles.” But he hustled us through it, saying there really was nothing interesting to see, and the crowd was already shoulder to shoulder.

As it happened, Kevin left us just about a block from our lunch restaurant at 13a High Ousegate, so even with the extra time on the tour, we were able to make our 1:00 reservation.

By the way, you may have noticed that some of the street names end in “gate.” Kevin told us that once we learned that a bar is a “pub,” a gate is a “bar,” and a street is a “gate,” we’d do just fine in York.

The restaurant was good. We were there for Sunday lunch, so the Sunday Roast was an option, but Stan chose Chicken Kiiv, and I had pork belly confit. Both plates came with plenty of vegetables and potatoes, and my pork belly came, oddly, with a couple of prawns. The meats were very good, and were the roasted vegetables. The prawns were not. We also enjoyed wine (of course!): Stan had a verdejo, and I had a Romanian pinot noir. Our server brought me a generous sample of the pinot noir, and it was pretty good.

And once again, there was too much food for us. We did eventually learn to split mains; we knew that it was okay to do that in pubs, but we weren’t sure it would have been acceptable in restaurants.

After lunch, we walked around a while, then stopped for coffee at a cute little Greek coffee bar whose name I neglected to write down.

Our next stop was the Minster. We had spent a little time there on the Best of England tour, but I particularly wanted to go back and enjoy it at our own pace. That is an amazing structure; I could have spent hours there. I stayed for evensong, but Stan was tired and headed back to the hotel.

He did come back (having changed his shoes) and met me as I left the cathedral. He was in search of a pub he had seen the previous week when he walked the wall with the Rick Steves tour. He remembered a garden full of happy people, and wanted to find it again. And he did! It’s called the “Fat Badger,” and quickly became one of our favorite spots. It’s at 2-4 High Petergate, just at the wall. After that huge lunch, we weren’t interested in dinner, but we did a starter to share: king prawns pil pil, tasty shrimp marinated in a garlicky chili oil. Great with beer and cider. A great way to end a great day.

Monday, 1 July. Another good breakfast at No. 21 York; I skipped the eggs this time, and enjoyed the fresh yogurt and fruit; Stan shared his generous portion of Wensleydale with me. We did a little sink laundry (hooray for heated towel racks!) then across to the far end of town to the Yorkshire Castle Museum.

What a great museum this is! We spent 4 hours here, and could easily have spent longer. The highlights are “Kirkgate,” a faithful recreation of a Victorian street, complete with shops full of period goods; and the World War I exhibit. There are also galleries on fashion through the ages, as well as typical living areas from a wide range of social classes.

The building is part of a former prison complex, and part of the museum experience is a walk through prison cells, where you can hear the “inmates” (filmed, projected on the walls) tell their stories.

After our visit, we stopped into yet another of Simon’s recommendations, Rustique, 28 Castlegate. It’s on the way back into the main part of old York, just across from the Fairfax House, an authentically furnished Georgian townhouse.

The menu is decidedly French. We were there in the late afternoon, and had no problem being seated without a reservation. Reservations are pretty much required for dinner, evidently. Again, having eaten far too much in our stay, we split some appetizers: a half dozen snails; Moules a la Creme, mussels in a white wine, garlic, and cream sauce; and a charcuterie plate.

This may have leapt to the top of the list of “best meals of our 2024 trip to Europe.” The snails were traditional, in garlicky melted butter. The mussels were amazing. My husband usually refuses to eat mussels, and I seldom urge them on him. But the serving was huge, and the mussels and their sauce so delicious, that I did suggest he try “just one.” Well. Let me say that he is now a fan. I will say that I love mussels, but these were without a doubt the best I have ever had. The sauce (broth?) was amazing, and I ordered more bread to sop it up.

The charcuterie plate was very generous, with several kinds of meat, I think 4 kinds of cheese, and the best paté we’ve ever had. We also enjoyed wine (did you doubt it?), French vermentino and syrah.

The servings were so generous that once again we found ourselves waddling home for a quiet evening. Time for showers, shampoo, catching up on emails, and just relaxing.

Tuesday, 2 July. We enjoyed a slower breakfast today, at Simon’s request, so the linens in our room could be changed. We had an interesting political discussion, comparing election thoughts.

Our main activity today was to the Yorkshire Museum, very near the guest house. This was another great experience, and again, we stayed about 4 hours, maybe even longer. The prehistoric exhibit is very interesting, with artifacts from the earliest (think Stone Age) area settlements. There are also excellent exhibits from the Roman and Viking occupations, with a great Roman mosaic. The medieval galleries are among the most interesting.

Since it was mid-afternoon, and we wanted an excellent but not too large meal, we went back to Rustique, but with firm plans to order fewer dishes. We cherry-picked our favorites from the previous day, ordering the mussels, the chicken liver paté, and the cheese plate. The cheeses and paté had been the stars of the previous day’s charcuterie platter, and we felt they deserved to shine on their own. Another wonderful meal.

We had planned to visit a local chocolatier to buy gifts to take home, but for some reason it was closed. We checked the hours for the next day, then went back to the hotel for a few hours. Later we went out for a walk, and headed across the river to a section of town we hadn’t yet visited. We also walked a bit on a part of the wall that has been restored, with great views of the river and riverside parks.

We made our way back to more familiar neighborhoods, and ended up at the Fat Badger for a drink before heading back to our room.

Wednesday, 3 July. Our last full day in York! After a good breakfast, we walked to the nearby York Art Gallery. We had heard some not-so-great comments about this museum, but we enjoyed it immensely. There is a great ceramic gallery, evidently one of the best in Britain.

The main painting and sculpture gallery had a wonderfully eclectic mix of works old and new, thoughtfully curated. There was a special Monet exhibit, but there was only one work by Monet, a lovely water lily view featuring a graceful bridge. However, the exhibit was excellent, divided into three areas: artists and works who influenced Monet, works by artists influenced by Monet, and finally an imaginative array of where Monet’s influence might eventually lead modern art.

We then headed back into town, to buy chocolates. Simon had recommended Monkbar Chocolatier, 7 The Shambles. (I don’t eat sweets, but all reviews from people to whom we have given them have been glowing.)

We had lunch at a pub Valhalla, 4 Patrick Pool, where we shared a good pork pie and chips, washed down with cider and a local beer.

After lunch, Stan headed back to the room for a while, and I went to the York Minster. I visited the crypt, which we had missed on earlier visits, spent more time in the chapter room, and managed to catch the automaton clock chiming the hour.

Dinner was a return visit to Tasca Frango. We pretty much repeated our previous dinner there, but with less food. (We were learning.) We had the piri piri chicken, piri piri prawns, and the tomato salad. We did order some toasted bread chunks to sop up the yummy sauce. We of course enjoyed a Portuguese white, and finished the meal with port, with chocolate mousse for Stan and coffee for me. Another great meal.

Our final stop was a pub whose name I neglected to record, but it was across the street from the Valhalla. We had hoped to have lunch there, but they didn’t serve food. We loved the ambiance, however, and had vowed to return. We enjoyed wine and a Belgian ale before returning back to our room.

Thursday, 4 July. Not much to report this day; we had a lovely, leisurely breakfast, gathered our bags, then left for the train station. We did visit the National Railway Museum, which is just behind the train station, and well worth a visit. The historical aspect of rail service in Britain interested me most, but there were plenty of train engines, and a virtual reality Flying Scotsman experience.

That was it; we returned to London that afternoon.

We enjoyed our stay in York very much, and would be glad to return. The museums are excellent, and the food remarkably good. And evidently, York has the second highest concentration of pubs in Britain, several of which we enjoyed immensely.

We highly recommend visiting York, and staying more than just a day or two.

Jane!! What a wonderful visit you had! I love that Castle Museum. I'll have to say I've never visited the York Museum but I will have to go next time. You know I love neolithic stuff!

Wow to your food as well! I know right where the Fat Badger is, lol.

Thanks so much for posting. Makes me want to throw stuff in the suitcase and hop a plane to England!

Thanks for the excellent report, Jane! When my son was doing a summer internship in London back in 2011, I went to visit him for a week. We stopped in York on our way to Edinburgh for a quick weekend trip and really enjoyed our very short visit there. We were able to go to York Minster, the Railway Museum, The Shambles and walk on part of the York City Wall. Your report makes me want to go back!

Thank you, Jane, for sharing your trip report & the details! We loved our time in York, and I’m wondering if it’s even possible to have a bad meal in York! Everything we ate was excellent, too!

We didn’t have time to go through the museums there with the activities we planned. A reason to return! : )

Jane, thanks. I always enjoy your trip reports and I love York, so this report was particularly interesting to me.

Very enjoyable, thanks Jane. After reading about your meals I think I can skip dinner tonight. ;-)

We visited York in 2011 when they were celebrating the 1800th anniversary of the death (in York) of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus -- they called it "Celebrating Severus" and it helped us appreciate how far back they take their history in those parts. We also enjoyed the Yorkshire Museum and, very much, the Minster, where one of the clergymen told us about a big fire years before that did lots of damage. Random people rushed in and out to save the silver plate and other treasures, all of which was returned from their homes. That story has stayed with me.

I've been looking forward to this trip report ever since your No 21 York review, and it did not disappoint!

I've bookmarked this for my 4 nights in York next spring -- thank you! (Btw, I'm going solo but might need to second guess that ... only so there's someone else to order extra and split the food with lol.)

Jane, you have convinced me to plan a future trip to York! Can’t wait!

Thanks, everyone, for your comments.

I still have a couple more trip reports to do (Venice and Florence,) and one hotel review, the Torre Guelfa in Florence. ; I'll try to get on those next week. Or at least get started on them. No more promises of "I'll do that tomorrow." Life keeps having other plans for us!

Hannah, I did get your PM; I'll try to respond tomorrow. Try, I said, Lol.

Another great report, Jane! Always a big smile when I see you’ve posted one. Great reading. Hope to get there someday.

Sounds like a great stop with some fabulous food! Hannah’s trip and your report made me go back and look at pictures from my 5 night York trip in 2022 - and think I need to go back. There is so much I didn’t have time for!

TexasTravelMom, there’s never enough time!

Thanks. I am bookmarking this for your great restaurant recs. I also highly recommend the free walking tour and the Castle Museum. During the WWI Centennial, I thought the exhibit there was better than the one at the Imperial War Museum in London.

Cala, I've heard that from several other people, as well.

Thank you, Jane. You write the best trip reports! I was at York in 2019 for 3 nights, I saw a lot but I envy your extra time. By far my biggest love is the York Minster. It is such an amazing and beautiful place. The rose window….incredible. And the chapter house was so memorable for that 800 year old wooded door and everything else. All the docents were terrific too I thought.

It was wonderful to relive it again through your eyes. Thanks again.

I appreciate the report. We will be in York next spring and I have saved your suggestions.

Jane, your trip sounds wonderful! And the meals sounded like they were to die for! I loved reading the descriptions! Thanks for such a great trip report!

Jane, I always enjoy your trip reports, but this one is really inspiring me to plan a trip. And reading it made me very hungry! :)

Awesome trip report, Jane. Somehow, we often manage to find less-than-great restaurants. We will be in York for a week in October. No worries about that this time! Thanks.

Great trip report. We were intending on going to York last spring but had to cancel due to a health issue. I had planned 3 days, but now realize I will need at least 5 as we wanted to check out the Dales. Definitely bookmarking your lodging and food recommendations. Now I’m itching to reschedule. Again,thanks.