What the Paper Say:
THE GOOD HOTEL GUIDE 2004
In Royal Deeside, this hotel has been owned by the
Franks family for over 40 years; Nigel Franks is
the manager. Composed of two Victorian listed buildings
(the Gaelic name means ‘an oak copse on a
sunny hillside’), it looks over the Dee valley
and Ballater’s golf course to Lochnagar mountain.
The setting and country house ambience are regularly
praised, and so are the ‘friendly owners’
and ‘charming staff’.
The main house is baronial and turreted; the other,
Oakhall, a pink and granite former hunting lodge,
has cheaper bedrooms (some upper ones might be 'cramped'),
and is suitable for a group booking. There are antiques,
comfortable seating, watercolours and open fires
in the lounge. In the conservatory-type restaurant,
candle-lit at night, the ambience is ‘relaxed’,
and the service, supervised by Fiona Franks, is
thought ‘impeccable’. The chef, David
Mutter, serves modern dishes, elegantly presented,
eg, ravioli of langoustine and crab; pan-fried saddle
of roe deer with celeriac and young morels; mousse
of white chocolate with mango ice-cream and raspberries.
‘The pudding on our last night would not have
looked out of place in an art gallery. The food
is quite expensive, but the half-board rate made
it good value.’ But one couple complained
that the menu hardly changed in three nights. ‘Coffee,
in the lounge with wood fire, ended a near-perfect
evening.’ Nigel Franks is a wine enthusiast;
his wide-ranging list includes plenty of half-bottles,
and a fixed mark-up per bottle means that the higher-quality
wines seem reasonably priced. ‘Breakfasts
are great (delicious porridge).’
The bedrooms vary, most have good views; they are
supplied with bathrobes, flowers and fruit; some
have antiques. Some are decorated with tartans,
and have paintings of local wildlife. ‘The
cream, blue and yellow colour scheme of our quiet
room was very pleasant.’ Children are welcomed,
though there are no special facilities for them.
One reporter in 2003 thought the building in a poor
state of repair, ‘and the driveway had potholes’.
Many outdoor activities are available locally: walking,
climbing, riding, fishing, golf. A good base for
exploring the Speyside distilleries; several National
Trust of Scotland properties are nearby.
