Herrislea House Hotel - Family Run Hotel

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Happy New year - 2009

Happy New Year. We had a freezing cold end to 2008 with the hotel boiler bursting and even at home all our heating appliances giving up. We managed to keep warm, the last 3 guests in 2008, with the donation of heaters and time from friends. However within 3 days of ordering a new one (the week before Christmas) we had the new boiler here and with the aid of a good friend Gordon had it installed before New Year and we are back in business with cosy toes and oodles of hot water.

Update: Auction sale went well. After much heart searching we have closed the CafeBar. This part of the hotel has been sold to Hjatland Housing Association to be made into 3 flats.

We have had over 10 years of operation in the CafeBar opening it on 4th July 1997 and it has seen many very good events attended by many who have become firm friends over the years. All types of functions from Shetland Nights; Medieval nights; Weddings; Discos; Survivors Breakfasts and Sunday lunches to name a few – definitely one of the most versatile function areas around in Shetland.

So what now – We still have the hotel with restaurant and are taking bookings steadily for the coming year. We have started the year quite unusually, so busy we have hardly had time to consider how to clear out the CafeBar and attached stores. However we have managed to create another store at home and over the next month will be clearing out and selling off all of the many pieces of artefacts, furniture, bric-a-brac, etc that made it an interesting place to visit. We have re-arranged our public rooms in the hotel to accommodate the leather suite and more comfy sitting areas for whiling away time & relaxing.

We are putting together our menu for the forth coming year which will include using our best china and cake stands for scrumptious afternoons teas the kind that were enjoyed in a bygone age of time and opulence.

Cafe Sell-off
Shetland Auctions
Saturday 3rd May at 2pm

Everything in Starboard, CafeBar. Chairs, tables, couches, brasswear, ships brass binnacle, ships lamps, copper milk Urn, pictures, linen, bedding, lamps, rugs, glass washer, glasses etc. Auctioneer – Harry Hay. Bar open and teas, coffees and homebakes available at Herrislea House Tingwall.

Tables pine & dark wood
Copper occasional tables
Coffee tables

Pine kitchen type chairs
Padded seat & back banqueting chairs + removable covers
Suite, Couches
Antique blue leather arm chair
Big & small mats/rugs
Large filler Green plants

Freezers

Table cloths
Cushions
Curtains
Downies
Pillows
Throws
New towels, New sheets
Sheepskins - unususal vibrant colours and natural ones - new

Table lamps
Bathroom shaver lights
Wall lights – new
Ceiling light – new

Ships lamps, brass binacle
Brass items, Brass Urn, Brass Gong
Ornaments & bric-a-brac, large champagne bottle and stand
Pictures, hangings, dried flowers
Suitcases
Toys
Drift Net
TVs, Speakers, CDs, Cassettes, printer

Stainless milk jugs, sugar bowls, coupe dishes
Pots
Glasses
Cups, saucers, plates
Morning trays with folding legs
Small pedal bins, Floor polish
Sink & bath taps some Victorian style

For more information call 01595 840 208

Chef/cook Summer Session

Full/part time or relief work is considered for the right person who will have an interest in fine dining & presentation to join our small team providing a fine dining experience using local products.

The work involved is the preparation & service of meals for the hotel restaurant with responsibility to keep the kitchen and operation to a high standard of Food Hygiene. We operate a cooksafe policy.

The right person may be a full time experienced chef/cook who wishes to develop a restaurant with an already good reputation. This post will be for the summer session with a view to continuing into the winter season OR they may be a part time chef/cook with an ability & interest in good food preparation who wishes to develop their skills to enable them to take control of a kitchen for fine dining this post may cover certain shifts or periods according to availability.

For more information call 01595 840 208

Bestafoys Pier Event

Bestafoys Catering, the outside catering branch of Herrislea House, will be on the pier in Lerwick again this year at the 'Taste of Shetland Event' from 21st to 24th June.

Bestafoys Pier Event info

Read all the news fron The Taste of Shetland event

Going Whaling
Gordon briefly re-introduced whaling on thursday last week. The whale however was already dead and had been for some time, making it a very smelly job indeed for Konrad & Alwyn on the Koada.

this whale had washed up dead on a sony beach at Copister in the south side of Yell. Dead whales are a particular nuisance to the local populace once they have lain there for a few weeks and the smell is indescribable.

Apparently it is the respnsibility of the local Councils Rnvironmental Services to rid the locals of this problem and they asked us to remove it to Lerwick for disposal.

So on a fairly grey day with a break in the weather the Koada set off for Yell and shore side Gordon with the help of Victor Jamieson & Jim Smith prepared the whale for launch. The Koada took it in tow and arrived in Lerwick Harbour late afternoon where SBS Logistics and Environmental Services took charge of disposal.

Up-Helly-Aa 2007
Up Helly Aa has been and one of the best we have experienced. We had a full house of course and everyone out to see the procession including our Filipino staff who are here for their first year and not too sure what to expect for a 'fire festival'. Mind you neither were the rest of our residents. Mr & Mrs Higgins and Mr Kinnear went off in the morning and took in the early parade of Vikings with the Galley and we arranged Douglas from Island Trails to accompany them on a tour the history of Up Helly Aa festival to complete the picture for them.

We had the now traditional Herrislea survivors breakfasts and quite a number survived until into the afternoon, including Gordon & I still serving breakfasts at 2pm and finally falling into bed at 6pm in the evening. this all night all day stint gets a little harder every year!!!

We had photographers staying who came up with some wonderful pics. visit the link below:
Click Here

We had Alex Wade and friends staying who are surfers looking for a wave unfortunately they didn't quite make a wave on Weds ....and Alex surfaced at 5pm a bit wobbly. However look forward to his book about surfing. visit the link below:
Click Here

The Bageera - Burghead
Bagheera is just back from a job at RAF Kinloss. They laid 17 tonne off 800mm plastic pipe in Kinloss Bay for GSS Plant and AMEC. The job took two weeks and involved a good deal of problem solving but all parties involved were delighted with the end result.

Please visit the B.K Marine website for more information.

Starboard Cafe Bar
We did a banquet for the organising committee of the Bergen to LK Race last week-end and are still getting rave reviews for the meal all had a great time singing traditional Norwegian songs between each of the 6 courses. Gettign through an array of local seafood and lamb.

Starboard Cafe Bar
The CafeBar is the only eaterie in Shetland with a childrens play area and from the wonderful comments we get from visitors it does not appear to be too common elsewhere.

Last week a couple of local Mums and kids were in for lunch and too the chance to practise for joining the session on Tuesday nights!!

Equestrian Association
Some of the Equestrian Association members drop along with their horses to see Gordon, on a ride out from Lerwick last week.

Vintage cars (click for more photos)
Charlie Grants photos show the Vintage Car Club of Great Britain outside Herrislea House last Sunday. They were up in Shetland for the Shetland Classic Motor Show. 24 cars and 54 people got a lovely sunny day for a tour of Shetland stopping of at Herrislea and having lunch from our Sunday buffet in the CafeBar. It gave our neighbours a great chance to view them all together and close up and Charlie took a series of pictures of all the cars.

Tingwall SWRI
They spent the evening in their own private dining room around the antique table, splendidly furnished with local products and agreed it was an experience they could not have matched no matter how far they had travelled.

Faroese Golfers From Friday 26th, May 2006
Faroese Golfers now regulars to Herrislea House Hotel played Whalsay on Friday after arrival off Norrona. They enjoyed a good old Shetland breakfast here at the hotel. Then they set off at 6.30am to play Dale on Saturday and Sunday. We really enjoy having them here in the hotel they are an enthusastic bunch!!

HERRISLEA HOUSE HOTEL CONTRIBUTES TO COPE’S COMPOST PROJECT
Wednesday, 07 June 2006
COPE Ltd is partnering with Herrislea House Hotel on a new recycling project involving a large industrial compost machine, Big Hanna, and the hotel’s surplus cardboard.

The initiative, supported by Shetland Islands Council and Shetland Enterprise, is designed to generate high quality compost to feed the social enterprise’s onsite half-acre nursery. ...click here for more

HERRISLEA HOUSE HOTEL PARTNERS WITH LOCAL SCHOOL ON ECO SCHOOLS INITIATIVE
Wednesday, 07 June 2006
Herrislea House Hotel and Hamnavoe Primary School have joined forces to help the school achieve its third flag in the Eco Schools Initiative.

The hotel is already involved in recycling activity and has won a Green Tourism Business Scheme Gold award from VisitScotland, and so the school wanted to use the establishment as a best practice example, demonstrating to its pupils how the Eco Schools Initiative can be applied to a commercial enterprise. ...click here for more

GRAND FINALE FOR HERRISLEA HOUSE HOTEL CATS APPEAL FUNDRAISER
Wednesday, 19 April 2006
Over the last month Herrislea House Hotel has held a series of successful fundraising events in support of the Community Action for Trauma Support (CATS) appeal. In total, 150 people have attended four events and raised ?,642.00 for the worthy cause.

Marjorie Williamson, proprietor of Herrislea House Hotel, said: “We have enjoyed four fundraising nights over the past two months, to raise money for, what we consider to be, a very worthy cause. ...click here for more