Dining Room
The perfect place for entertaining guests, East Cliff Hall’s Dining Room was a fashionable room with all the Victorian mod-cons. Living next door to their own hotel, the Royal Bath, had many advantages. Hotel staff would cook, clean and care for Annie, Merton and their guests on a rota basis. Food was brought over and would be prepared in the kitchen and scullery – where our café kitchen is today. When the next course was required, it could be requested with the touch of a button via a discreet floor-mounted bell push. The corridor, where you entered, was once part of the butler’s pantry area. Setting the atmosphere with dark red wallpaper and mahogany furnishings, typical of the popular Scottish Baronial style, the room is framed by an impressive Japanese style gilded peacock and pomegranate mural. It was painted by John Thomas (c.1826-1901), who had also decorated the Royal Bath Hotel. The dark red décor was traditionally used in dining rooms to show meat on the plate at its best. The stained-glass windows reveal the patriotism and imperialism of the Russell-Cotes; four of the panes depict the Patron Saints of the United Kingdom, and others represent countries of the British Empire. Artwork currently on display in the Dining Room. Click on an artwork to find out more.
