Feasting Nights and Cooking Clubs with Chris Hale near Wakefield

There is something about a long table, a room full of candlelight and a menu you did not have to choose from that makes an evening feel like an occasion. Our feasting nights and cooking clubs at Hodroyd Hall are built around exactly that. They are relaxed, generous and led by MasterChef's Chris Hale.

Why feasting works so well here

I have always thought food tastes better when it is shared. Feasting style dining does away with the formality of individual plates and puts everything in the middle of the table: whole roasted joints, seasonal vegetables piled high, sauces to pass around, bread still warm from the kitchen. People reach across, they talk, they linger. In a house as old as this one, that way of eating feels completely at home.

Chris Hale in The Private Library

Chris cooks with the seasons and with real restraint, letting good Yorkshire produce speak for itself. Our supper clubs usually run in The Private Library, a panelled room that takes a single long table and holds the warmth of an evening beautifully. On other nights we open up The Orangery, which is lighter and larger, with the gardens just beyond the glass. Both rooms suit the same idea: a small number of guests, one menu, and a kitchen that is genuinely enjoying itself.

What an evening looks like

Most feasting nights begin with a drink in the drawing room, or out on the terrace when the weather allows, before we move through to the table for several shared courses. Numbers are kept deliberately small, usually between twelve and thirty depending on the room, so the evening keeps its intimacy. Your ticket covers the full menu, and we are glad to work around dietary requirements if you let us know in advance. It suits couples, groups of friends, birthdays, and companies looking for something warmer than a standard dinner. If you would rather have the whole thing to yourselves, we run private feasts on request.

Where is Hodroyd Hall?

We sit in open countryside between Wakefield and Barnsley, on the edge of South and West Yorkshire, a few minutes from the M1 and easily reached from Leeds, Sheffield and Huddersfield. There is plenty of parking, and if you would rather not drive home afterwards we have luxury overnight rooms in the Hall itself.

See it for yourself

If a feasting night or a cooking club sounds like your kind of evening, do get in touch or book via our website. Perhaps you'd like a private feast for your own group, or book a viewing and see the rooms before you commit. We would love to show you around.