miss b's quote

'I haven't been everywhere yet but it's on my list' Susan Sontag

Thursday 22 August 2013

miss b loves...The Glass House Café Bar, Stydd Gardens and a Roman village


Last Sunday, a twenty minute drive from home took us to The Glass House Café Bar & Tea Room at Stydd Gardens in the beautiful Ribble Valley. 

The café is housed in a bright airy space..... a glasshouse! There's an eclectic mix of lovely shabby chic furniture ....... 



...... and an abundance of lush exotic plants which creates a very special, tranquil oasis....


Passion fruit flower


There are so many cute and quirky details......
  


These tiered cake stands were for sale too!


The food is sourced as locally as possible and it's beautifully presented. My smoked salmon and dill paté arrived in a mini tagine .....



The generous side salad was impressive and the addition of raspberries, blueberries and edible flowers was a nice touch ...



mr b opted for a delicious
prawn sandwich

Traditional ginger beer was a refreshing change....



The Glass House is in a perfect setting too. Stydd Gardens is unlike any other garden centre we have ever visited. It's more like walking around someone's private garden.



It's such an enchanting place with meandering paths, old-fashioned plants .......and  white doves! It's only when you see the price tags that you realise that the plants and garden ornaments are actually for sale!



A number of independent, creative businesses are housed in pretty summerhouses....... beautiful antiques and pretty vintage finds at Maison de Lamond ...... 



Fullalove's wines.........


The Tin Snail for home interiors and gifts....



Pendle herbs .......



....and Pasharan, a garden design company.

The weather was so unexpectedly warm that we decided to drive into the village centre, park and walk along the River Ribble. 



Many of the stone cottages are former weavers' cottages dating from the 1700s when hand-loom weaving was an important occupation in the village. 




Ribchester is most famous for its Roman history. The English place name Chester and the suffixes -chester, -caster and -cester are all indications that the place is the site of a Roma 'castra' meaning a fort ..... so Ribchester simply means 'Roman fort on the River Ribble.'

In Roman times the village, known then as Bremetennacum was established about 78 AD.



The last time I visited the Ribchester Roman Museum was during my primary school trip (many years ago!) It's been extended several times since then so I was ready for another tour! The museum is home to many Roman artifacts.........


Tombstone of a Cavalryman, glass bottles,
 a shoe sole and gold rings

The Ribchester Parade Helmet was an accidental find rather than being excavated during one of the archeological digs. Thirteen year old John Walton, found it in 1796 along with many other items named the Ribchester Hoard. The bronze replica helmet is on display in Ribchester and the original is currently housed in the British Museum.




Next door, the 13th century St Wilfrid's Church stands in beautifully manicured lawns......


Before heading back to the car, we went in search of the Roman Baths.......We could clearly make out the foundations of the changing room and the warm room (tepidarium) .....I suppose it was their equivalent of today's spa!




A leisurely stroll past more charming cottages .......



....the historic White Bull Pub, which dates back to 1707....


The sky really was this blue!

....and we were soon back at the car park. 

What a lovely relaxing way to spend a Sunday afternoon ...... and all this so close to home!

51 comments:

  1. Wooow.......!!!

    Such impressive post,miss B.:)*

    Realy invited place....I want I can eat this salad and drink this Ginger bear!

    You describe it so tasty and your images are absolutely pleasant!!!

    Thankyou so much for share your daily inspirations,my dear friend:)))*

    Wish you lovely end of the week,
    Hugs from Amsterdam,
    ***Violetta***

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  2. The Glass House is my kind of place! I would love to visit Ribchester very soon. Your photos just gave me all the more reasons to have a staycation next year. I particularly loved the lamp, remains of a Roman bath, and the flowers in the jar. I use old used bottles of jam and diffuser for little flowers in the kitchen. Thanks for the tour miss b!
    Have a lovely day x

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  3. such a beautiful, cozy place!

    Xx

    Alexandra

    www.fashion-bridge.blogspot.com

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  4. What a lovely setting for such a lovely lunch. Each photo reveals a site more picturesque than the last. Aren't passionfruit flowers so stunning? They almost don't look real.

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  5. This would be my idea of a perfect Sunday afternoon:) Gorgeous photos!!
    ~Anne

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  6. Miss B, you made me dream! Seems you had a very lovely time. The Café looks so cosy and good I like what you ordered but the Mr B choice is definitely my fav, those sandwiches inspire me so much and must have been too good!:) Love the fact many shops/business are houses in such beautiful summerhouses, would love to visited them! Is a place full of history too, lucky you who live so near of these marvels!:) Kisses dear xo

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  7. I am jealous! this looks wonderful !! hope you are having a great week!!

    Rosemary

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  8. Beautiful place!! Very relaxing!!

    xoxo!

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  9. miss b, it is enchanting indeed! i love all of the places around it and also the little treasures within. your lunch looked so good. glad you enjoyed and thanks for sharing :)
    http://www.averysweetblog.com/

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  10. In this beautiful wide world there are so many wonders to see, and it is a pitty that we don't have enough time or money to see all that, but I really enjoyed your pics. One other thing that you presented in this post is that we don't have to go far away, this gorgeous place is only 20 minutes away from your house, and I can only say that sometimes we just have to open our eyes more widely! Ilina

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  11. Miss B, what a wonderful, clear summer day you had. The place is fascinating with its amazing furniture and garden decor. You know one of my favourite sandwiches in England is the Prawn sandwich. I would enjoy eating Mr. B's meal! It is nice to learn about another Roman town in England besides Bath.

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  12. what a cute little place- I love the wicker furniture!

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  13. The twenty minute drive seemed to be well worth it. It looks like a delightful place, and I would love to have some salmon pate right now. :) Great post Miss b. xx/Madison

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  14. What a lovely place it is decorated like an Anthropologie brochure. I love Passion flowers although they do take over the garden. Have a fun filled weekend

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  15. It looks like a swoon worthy place, every detail is more gorgeous than the next, if you know what I mean and the food sounds like it was amazing.

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  16. What a lovely place full of marvels! It's always a pleasure to visit your blog miss B. It's a treasure cove!
    Love
    Coco et La vie en rose
    Coco et La vie en rose on Bloglovin
    Coco et La vie en rose on Facebook

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  17. looks like you had a great time!! such a lovely place!
    maybe you would like to follow each other?
    xoxo

    www.mychoicebysorana.blogspot.ro

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  18. This place looks so exotic in my eyes! And so well photographed! Thank you for for your kind comment, I was pleased to read it!
    Nice to meet you Bo!

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  19. Gorgeous ! Wish I'd been there with you !xx

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  20. Such a lovely day and the tea house is darling! The salad looked very TASTY! I always enjoy the garden stores:) That Pub and the bottom from the 1700's is so fun! What a great spot to have a beer! xxleslie

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  21. Oh my goodness thank you for letting us tag along...the food looks amazing....the sights even more wonderful!

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  22. Miss B~Simply and utterly charming. This is exactly the way I remember the English Countryside in summer from many years ago. What a treat!
    xx, Heather @ Stylemindchic

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  23. Thank you for taking us on a tour! The food looks really appetizing and the setting is so cozy and romantic. Indeed, a very nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

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  24. Hi sweety, you always find the most amazing places, thanks for always sharing them with us. This is so quaint and seems to have the most charming character, the stone cottages are great! Lovely atmosphere for a laid back lunch. I appreciate your kind words, wishing you a wonderful sunny weekend!

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  25. Oh, this is such a charming place. The food looks delicious. I've never heard of a prawn sandwich before, or ginger beer, how interesting. The River Ribble is so pretty. How nice that the garden accessories are for sale. I would have had to buy that angel - I love it! I have to tell you that the cottage picture with the purple flowers is wonderful. It is a picture to be framed.

    Thank you for taking me along with you once again. It's like I'm visiting these terrific places myself.

    Love,
    ~Sheri

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  26. Sucha a lovely and cosy place to spend your time!

    http://beautyfollower.blogspot.gr

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  27. I absolutely loved the garden center and lunch spot. This is so British, especially with the mismatched seats and all that. Charming! Wish we had anything even close to this. I'd be there all the time. Food looked so fresh and delicious too.

    How amazing are those Roman baths? You really have ancient things right below your feet in Europe. What a charming village too. I just love a day trip like that!

    Have a good weekend!
    xxKim

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  28. I'm loving the relaxed atmosphere, creative vibe and charm of this place.

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  29. that first little place looks so charming. and that salad is so pretty with the edible flowers in it. i love the gardens too and all the little shops. i could definitely spend an afternoon meandering around there.

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  30. What a beautiful place ! thanks for sharing such a beautiful, cozy place and you have captured it so well! xx

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  31. Beautiful Images <3

    Happy Sunday xoxo

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  32. Quel bel endroit ! Ça avait l'air appétissant

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  33. What an enchanting place!!! I've never been to Europe sadly (hoping for next year), but I love seeing all the wonderful sites on your photos!! The food looks yummy too!

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  34. I couldn't imagine a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon. The town looks so picturesque and you capture the places you visit beautifully. Yet again, I have added another place I would like to visit. Have a great week!

    LittlePinkRainBoots.blogspot.com

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  35. what a beautiful outing! from the food, to the shops to the museum! ANd all the grounds are spectacular! Thanks for sharing with us!

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  36. What a beautiful place! I love restaurants that feel like an intimate garden and the food looks amazing, not to mention the backdrop. Just lovely!

    xo Mary Jo

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  37. wow...this is so gorgeous. i would jump at the chance to drink some tea in a pretty garden like that! i'd also love some of those cake stands for my apartment!!

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  38. You do find some beautiful places! I adore the shabby chic furniture and I must say the idea of traditional ginger beer sounds delicious. I love tinned ginger beer, so would have loved to taste this version too/

    I hope you are well Miss B, I'm just recovering from holiday blues!

    http://forcailini.blogspot.com

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  39. What a treasure chest and I am loving that Morroccan table - just stunning!

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  40. This place is absolutely perfect - I wish there were more places like this - and I swear there are none in Germany

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  41. I'm so pleased that you all enjoyed my tour and I'm glad I came across The Glass House - such a special place as many of you have said. I'm sure we will be back there very soon! It's always a pleasure to read comments like these - thank you!

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  42. What a lovely way to spend an afternoon. That cafe and garden look absolutely charming!

    Rowena @ rolala loves

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  43. so lovely to have you follow my blog. and thanks for the sweet comment :) I'm following back x

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  44. Oh I looooved this place! how cute are those cake stands :)

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  45. It looks amazing!! love those cake stands too :)

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  46. Bonjour miss b. Glad I stopped by this morning. What a lovely, peaceful place. It reminded me of the Ravenna Gardens you saw on my blog this week :-) It is also an indoor space, which means you can enjoy it year round, while the light still comes in. Veronique (French Girl in Seattle)

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  47. Beautiful and lovely place! Thanks for sharing and inspiring! xo Caroline

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  48. what a gorgeous place. I just love this type of places specially the glass house
    www.thoughtsofpaps.com

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  49. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by hun :)

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  50. Hi, it looks so lovely in the summer. Having just visited it now (November), it looks very Autumnal. I'm looking forward to visiting there again, Liz x

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Thank you for taking the time to write a comment on my blog. I really do appreciate it. miss b

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