THIS magnificent Victorian hotel next to the railway station has recently been refurbished.

Some features have been retained such as the sweeping staircase and the chandeliers. The extensive garden remains despite encroachment from car parking spaces.

It is some time since we were last in this venue. Remembering the afternoon teas, we thought they might be worth another try.

Fortunately, we had checked out the possibility in advance. Finger sandwiches, scones with Devon clotted cream, local pastries and tea for £10.50 was far in excess of our budget.

Our visit was mid morning. Walking the length of the reception area we got a whiff of chlorine. Where was the pool?

Light refreshments are now served all day in the Tempus bar. This overlooks Tearoom Square and the station entrance. Although smokers are confined to one end of the area the smell of tobacco was evident.

Initially, we sat on one of the low settees but the backs were so short, offering no support, we moved to conventional chairs which were far more comfortable.

For Ann, a cup of black coffee, a jug of water and biscuits would suffice. For me, a pot of tea would do. Both drinks were priced £2.95.

Breakfast items available until 11am included a bacon and egg sandwich (£4.50), smoked salmon with scrambled egg in a muffin (£6.95) and toasted fruit loaf with preserves (£3.95).

I chose the latter. This turned out to be two thin slices of fruit bread with wrapped butter and three small jars of preserves. But why does an English hotel have to source its preserves from France when there are so many excellent producers in the UK? We both felt the toasted bread was significantly over-priced.

We could have managed some of the lunchtime snacks within our budget; soup (£3.95), mini fish and chips (£5), mini Yorkshire puddings with caramelised onion (£5) and rarebit or tomato or mushrooms on toast (£5.95).

However we had no way of knowing what the portion sizes would be.

Sandwiches in farmhouse bread with salad and homemade crisps (£6.95) and salads (£8.50) would be too expensive for us.

Wheelchair access is only possible using the disabled lift next to the Tearoom Square entrance.

Who currently owns the hotel? The response from the receptionist was confusing. Cutlery was embossed WMF Hotel while the brochure suggests Principal Hotels of Harrogate.