Lion & Pheasant
Style Contemporary coaching inn
Setting Shrewsbury’s historic heart
Lion & Pheasant may be small, but it doesn’t stint on style or hospitality. Inside its two historic townhouses, candle-lit drinking nooks, mirror- and fire-graced dining rooms, and simple, serene boudoirs await. The chef is a talent, and the mood is relaxed: settling on which delicious dish to try at lunch or dinner is as taxing as it gets here.
Need to know
- Rooms 20, including one suite.
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Rates
Double rooms from $123.76 (£79), excluding tax at 20 per cent.
Prices have been converted from the hotel's local currency (£79), via XE.com, using today's exchange rate.
- More details Rates include breakfast (full English or Continental). A 50 per cent deposit is required for bookings of three or more rooms.
- Facilities Garden terrace, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: flatscreen TV with Freeview, home-made biscuits, a selection of teas and coffees, Gilchrist & Soames bath products.
- Check-out 11am, but late check-outs can be arranged subject to availability (and a charge). Earliest check-in, 3pm.
- Children Welcome. Cots for babies are free and extra beds can be added to larger rooms for £15 a night. Rooms 4, 14 and 15 are the most suitable if you are travelling with kids (there’s space for an extra cot or bed to be added).
- Eco-friendly The hotel restaurant serves locally sourced food and ingredients plucked from the owner’s garden.
- Also No pets. Smoking is permitted on the garden terrace. The restaurant at the Lion & Pheasant is extremely popular, so be sure to make dinner reservation when you book or you might not get a table.
Food and drink at Lion & Pheasant
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Hotel restaurant
A seasonal menu is served in the rustic-style split-level main restaurant. Shropshire-born head chef Matt Strefford uses local produce – with some ingredients fresh from owner Dorothy’s garden – to create Modern British classics infused with Mediterranean flavours. Expect mains of slow-cooked haunches with Provençal sides, or roasted game with traditional trimmings. Sometimes used as extra restaurant space, the Georgian Crystal Room with its chandeliers, elegant mirrors and Philippe Starck Ghost chairs can be booked – and a four-course table d'hôte menu served – for private functions.
- Dress code Stay cosy and casual in cashmere and corduroy.
- Top table Sit on the upper level of the split-level main restaurant for a bird’s-eye view of your fellow diners below. For a romantic nibble, grab a spot by the fire in the inglenook bar, or sit at the front overlooking the high street and spy on locals.
- Last orders If residents wanted to sit at the bar all day and all night, they could. Breakfast in the main restaurant between 7.15am and 9.30am on weekdays, and at weekends from 8am to 10am. Lunch is served from 12pm to 2.30pm and dinner between 6pm and 10pm.
- Room service In-room treats can be ordered 24 hours a day: pick from two main meals and a selection of salads, sandwiches and hot snacks.
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Hotel bar
The huge open fire and cosy yet contemporary decor tempt guests to hunker down for the night and sample the local brew or the bar’s aptly named signature cocktail, Town of Flowers: a blend of G&J Greenall’s Bloom Gin, pomegranate liqueur and fresh lime. For private functions book the Star bar, adjacent to the elegant Crystal suite.
Lion & Pheasant 50 Wyle Cop, Shrewsbury, SY1 1XJ
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Smith extra at Lion & Pheasant
A half-bottle of white wine from Tanners, an independent wine merchants opposite the hotel
In the know
Our favourite rooms
Crisp, neutral decor with a touch of colour is the Lion & Pheasant’s signature style, with oak or wrought-iron beds in every room; gain bonus points with the other half and request a river view, fireplace or four-poster bed. Stairs leading to a large day bed make Room 14 a favourite: its spacious proportions mean it’s perfect for sharing with little Smiths, as does the separate entrance room in pseudo-suite, Room 15. Loft rooms are full of character, with dormer windows and beamed ceilings. The largest, Room 23, is accessed by a spiral staircase but beware: timber beams make rooms in the eaves unsuitable for beanpoles. Rooms facing the back of the hotel are the quietest.
Packing tips
Protect your modesty with your own robe; they’re not provided in rooms. A sturdy basket will help you stock up on local cheeses in Ludlow’s famous food markets. Sensible shoes will see you through an encounter with Shrewsbury’s numerous vintage shops or the paths along the River Severn, but add a pair of heels/brogues for an evening of fine dining.
Also
Shrewsbury has more than its fair share of Michelin Guide-listed restaurants, so come here hungry.
