If there’s one outdoor terrace/restaurant/beer garden you visit in Yorkshire this Summer, make it The Ivy Harrogate! The luxurious all-day classic restaurant has teamed up with Jo Malone to create the ultimate floral terrace inspired by the new Jo Malone London Blossoms Collection. Not only is the terrace itself an absolute dream, but the various floral arrangements alongside The Ivy Harrogate’s luxurious decor create an atmosphere of pure indulgence.
Until Sunday, 25 August the brasserie’s exterior terrace will feature a beautiful display of blooms paying homage to Frangipani Flower, Silk Blossom, Star Magnolia and Orange Blossom, all of which are featuring within the new range.
The Ivy Harrogate
I was lucky enough to be invited to try the new menu and the Jo Malone cocktails and of course had to go!
The Ivy Harrogate Decor
Before I get onto the terrace, I wanted to mention the fabulous, grand decor that reminds me a little of the Ab Fab set styling! Almost garish, yet classy. High end, yet aproachable. The artwork is bizarre, the colours are rich and the restaurant makes you excited and curious as soon as you walk through the doors.
The Terrace & Garden
Firstly, I wanted to say that the terrace itself is beautiful, even before adding the floral decoration. It’s an open space attached to the restaurant’s main dining area, with a gorgeous outdoor fire, dream marble tables, and other features that make cocktails and even dining outside an absolute must!
My friend and I visited on a cold, rainy June evening (that shouldn’t even be a sentence, but moving on!), and we decided the terrace was too nice to not fully appreciate by sitting outside. The fire, perfectly cosy Ivy blankets, and the gazebos above offered us plenty of protection and warmth.
It felt like a cosy night in a private garden and not at all like we were in the town centre. Perfect!
The Ivy Harrogate X Jo Malone Terrace & Garden
Onto the best bit! The blossom-filled The Ivy Harrogate X Jo Malone Terrace and Garden. It was like something out of a fairytale. All different types of floristry showing a flair for style and design that you would never expect in a standard British beer garden.
We spent ages looking at the intricate details in the arrangements, and loved seeing how much work had gone into creating this beautiful space. I can only imagine how perfect a sunny day on the terrace would be.
Summer Menu
The Ivy Harrogate X Jo Malone Cocktails
To celebrate the collaboration, The Ivy Harrogate created refreshing, floral cocktails to match the fragrances, including one cocktail and one mocktail.
The Silk Blossom Cosmo features Marylebone Orange & Geranium Gin, Cointreau Blood Orange, lime and cranberry juice.
The non-alcoholic alternative, the Orange Blossom Bloom, incorporates Seedlip grove 42 and orange juice, topped with Fever-Tree ginger ale.
The Ivy Harrogate Dinner
Starter
We started the meal well with a Crispy Duck Salad and Tempura Prawns with Salt and Pepper Squid. The portions were large, well-presented and most important of all, tasty!
Main
There was so much choice on the menu that it was difficult to narrow it down.
My friend settled on Salmon and Asparagus – Pan-fried salmon supreme with asparagus tortellini and a Champagne sauce, while I went for an all time favourite, veal. The special on the menu was Veal Paillard – Thinly beaten veal loin with mushroom sauce, green beans, rocket and Parmesan.
The sides were the truffle and parmesan chips that are an absolute must-have if you visit, and Sprouting broccoli, miso butter, sesame and chilli – another favourite of mine!
The meal was delicious and filling. However, the asparagus tortellini was slightly disappointing as there were only two pieces, hardly worthy of being a main part of the dish. The salmon portion was large though, so could make up for it if that’s the part you want most.
Dessert
For dessert, which we were not too convinced we could manage after the rest of the meal, we both got the same, the Chocolate Bombe.
It’s a melting chocolate bombe with a vanilla ice cream and honeycomb centre with hot salted caramel sauce.
This dessert is not only insanely tasty and rich, but it’s an experience! It starts as a chocolate ball, with sauce poured on it to melt the ball and reveal the rest of the dessert inside.
If you haven’t tried a bombe dessert before, I won’t spoil it completely here, but you may have seen it on my Insta Stories if you follow me (@teaisfortina).
Further Thoughts
One thing I love about the The Ivy restaurants is the attention to detail. I mentioned the blankets above, but everything was branded, often embroidered, in a non-tacky way, being well-made and good quality. The bottle cooler kept our Savignon Blanc cool, but the draped cloth made the difference, never having ice dripping. We were consistently served with drinks, and well looked after by our waitress. Everybody was friendly and professional, which made the evening even more perfect.
We finished the evening full in front of the fire with blankets and a cup of tea. How gorgeous is this silver set? It was the perfect end to a great evening.
I would definitely suggest going before the end of August to catch the Jo Malone collaboration. The terrace is the perfect spot for after work drinks, a catch up with friends or an extra special date night.
It may seem like I’ve shown a lot here, but there is definitely more to experience in person. I will definitely be going back before the collaboration ends and can’t wait to show more friends.
Adding The Ivy to the array of fantastic restaurants in Harrogate makes it the perfect town to visit for lunch or dinner.
To check out the menu, visit the website at theivyharrogate.com
Have to been to one of The Ivy restaurants before? Will you be visiting The Ivy Harrogate? Let them know I sent you!
Also, let me know where else I should check out in Harrogate!
Disclaimer: I was gifted the meal and drinks, but all opinions, as always, are my own.
I'd love to hear your thoughts!