At the beginning of last week my friend Jane and I needed to pay a visit to the city of Bath. We go there quite often as it’s very close to home, so we have our favourite places to go to. On arrival we were starving so we made our way to what we consider to be the best and most cosy cafe with the tastiest food, but to our bitter disappointment we discovered it was closed down.
As it was pouring down with rain we didn’t hang around for long moaning about it and we didn’t really feel like trapsing around in the foul weather, so we only made it as far as the Pump Room Restaurant. We were enticed inside by the smell of delicious food and the lovely piano playing.
The main building of the Pump room started in 1789 and was completed in 1799 and is a grade 1 listed building, the original building has been added to over the years and it is very handsome. It sits above the natural hot springs and visitors can still take the waters from the spring, the water is an acquired taste as it’s warm and smells like rotten eggs.
Adjacent to the Pump rooms are the Roman Baths, the hot springs that supply the baths were first discovered by the Celts who built a shrine at the site. The Roman Baths were probably built on the orders of Emperor Claudius and were added to and improved over the years of the occupation until the Romans packed up and moved out in the 5th century AD. The visitor site is quite big and well worth the admission fee.
If you find yourself in Bath, don’t be put off by the grand facade of the Pump Room and dismiss it as a bit posh or pretentious. The food is relatively reasonably priced and delicious. Most days there is a string quartet serenading diners and sometimes it’s the pianist who played so beautifully for us on our visit.
Bath is full of delights and I never tire of it, it’s small and perfectly formed for a charming day out.
Carole Gardiner
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