Holidays in Windermere are a piece of cake

A newly designated restaurant with rooms in Windermere has adopted a new marketing strategy having discovered the type of cake a person chooses often reveals their inner personality. The Hideaway, in Windermere, might be tucked away in a quiet cul-de-sac, but visitors have been flocking there in their droves to sample the scrumptious Brownies concocted by chef and owner, Richard Gornall, former Virgin Atlantic’s Clubhouse Food and Beverage Executive with a worldwide remit.

Cooked to as secret a recipe as KFC, to make them the most gooey, delicious brownies this side of the ‘pond’, their ability to lure resident guests, passersby, local residents and walkers alike, has given The Hideaway an idea of how best to maximize its marketing budget.

The Hideaway lays on afternoon cakes in a manner that would make any Continental hotel proud, each one lovingly created in the kitchen, the hub of the largely boutique-style restaurant with rooms.

Its Brownies are, as Americans would say, totally ‘awesome’ and a regular talking point amongst diners and partakers of afternoon tea, despite the other signature dishes Richard has on his menu.

Having conducted some research, The Hideaway has discovered that those who plump for Brownies, in preference to any other cake, are adventurers, who love new ideas. They have a strong personality, a unique sense of humour and direction and tremendous loyalty.

Owner Lisa Gornall says: "It’s amazing to find many of our customers do actually fit this profile, so we need to work on this, showing our get-up-and-go approach to our business and also demonstrating to guests that we can provide them with the type of experience they perhaps don’t expect within Lakeland’s traditional hub."

Romantics, who apparently love their strawberry cheesecake, and layered chocolate cake eaters, supposedly unwilling to compromise and settle for anything average in life, also feature heavily amongst The Hideaway’s clientele.

Having undergone a major refurbishment, to provide many boutique style rooms within its Victorian Lakeland building, The Hideaway, feels its carrot cake is also hitting the spot, appealing to those who like quirky experiences. Getting up from a king-size, leather sleigh-bed and opening the door to see light cascading from stained glass, decorative windows, on to a geometric tiled hallway floor, certainly fits the bill.

The Hideaway says it doesn’t currently lay on lemon meringue, but feels this could be an interesting departure for the future, having discovered that those who opt for this cake are smooth, sexy and good with their hands!

Walking is high on the must-do list of visitors to Windermere, so The Hideaway will be going all out to make its afternoon tea experience the start, or end, to a cake-walk with a difference. There’s no requirement to be a resident to sample The Hideaway’s afternoon tea and cake experience, so anyone can literally head down the almost undetectable Phoenix Way, to have their cake and eat it.

For more information, log on to Thehideawayatwindermere.co.uk.