Self catering in a Premier Inn?

[Mrsemcgregor]

So in a moment of somewhat madness I’ve booked a Premier Inn in the Peak District for 3 nights in October half term. We are an outdoorsy family who love to walk in all weather so I’m not worried about that side of things.

We will eat out of course but I’m not sure I want to eat out for every single meal and the hotels own restaurant is currently closed (may be open again by time we go).

So what are your best hacks for eating in the room? There is a supermarket very close so supplies won’t be an issue. I’m thinking pastries for breakfast, what’s the best way to get a decent cup of coffee using a hotel kettle? Can I buy milk the night before and pour it directly into a thermos? What can I take from home to make it easy?

I fully intend to ensure the room is left completely free from our food stuffs and won’t be doing anything smelly and will be taking all rubbish with me.

You don't need a bottle opener, there's one on the side near the mirror :)

M&S do individual coffee filters of their Columbian coffee. Not very green as each serving is one use plastic, but helpful for my rare trips to hotels (or friends houses) that don't have decent coffee in the rooms.

And This is their t&c's. Guests must not
cause any health and safety hazard to any of our team members or any of our guests;

bring any potentially dangerous or hazardous materials or equipment onto Premier Inn premises;

use any electrical appliances that may set off the fire alarm system, such as toasters, mini cookers or portable grills;

Don’t forget plates and cutlery (plus washing up liquid and tea towels)!

@CottonSock

I'm also a bit shocked at some of these unsafe and stinky suggestions! A hob, Jesus Christ. Tinned fish.... What's wrong with fruit, pastries and sarnies. Plus the odd takeaway, meal out and snacks.

I wouldn't do fish, but the rest of it can add up to a lot of money for some people and some don't find a bunch of sugar filled crap like pastries or snacks very filling.

@CottonSock

And This is their t&c's. Guests must not cause any health and safety hazard to any of our team members or any of our guests;

bring any potentially dangerous or hazardous materials or equipment onto Premier Inn premises;

use any electrical appliances that may set off the fire alarm system, such as toasters, mini cookers or portable grills;

Never had a problem with setting off the fire alarms.

Sainsburys One Cup Coffee Filters in packs of 10.

^Never had a problem with setting off the fire alarms*

That can be interpreted in several ways

We do this all the time! We take our own plates, bowls, cups, cutlery, fairy, sponge, tea towel and Tupperware, in addition to most of the food.

Breakfast - fruit, pastries, instant porridge or just standard cereal. Milk bought the evening before and kept overnight in a sink full of cold water in the bathroom - it stays as cold as if it were in a fridge and is fine for a couple of days.

Lunch - we make sandwiches in the room. We take bread, real butter (no need to refrigerate), corned beef or sandwich spread. Crisps and other snacks. Salad sticks - we take carrots, peppers, cucumber etc with us which are fine unrefrigerated and chop up there. Yoghurts - these store fine in a sink of cold water, the same as the milk. I tend to buy the kids the squeezy yoghurts which are great for picnics.

Dinner - eat out or takeaway often. If eating in, hot chicken if available or cold meats or tuna if not. Salad, french stick or tiger bread. Instant noodle pots, drained and tipped onto a plate or couscous.

I'd be impressed if anyone managed to boil an egg in a PI kettle. In my limited experience of hotel kettles they take about 45 min to boil a thimble ful of water.

@Namechangr9000

I'd be impressed if anyone managed to boil an egg in a PI kettle. In my limited experience of hotel kettles they take about 45 min to boil a thimble ful of water.

We bring our own .

Take a slow cooker. Stick stuff in in the morning and it will be ready by the afternoon. You could pre prepare a few meals and put them in your plug in cool box or just dice everything up and shove it in there. You can even buy stew packs in the supermarket to shove in! All in one pot so easy

Angel delight is great for dessert and also using up milk that might not last.

Took some camping and shook it up in an old pancake shake bottle - worked really well! You could use any wide necked bottle eg reusable sports water bottle like you'd have on a bike, not a single use plastic bottle.

There's plenty of things you can make with just a kettle (apart from pot noodles and cup a soups).
You usually need a base, such a cous cous, orzo pasta, noodles or porridge, then various flavourings and additions.
I have read on the internet (but not tried) of boiled eggs (sounds disgusting to me), or using boil in the bag, and hooking in the kettle.
None of those last have I attempted or would attempt. However, there are plenty of suggestions on the internet for cooking with just a kettle.
If there are shops nearby where you can buy milk, and other items, then you should be ok.

I self catered in a youth hostel without even a kettle, as they would t allow them In rooms. The kitchen and all public areas were closed. I had brioche rolls for breakfast and bought a salad or something from M&S or a Cornish pasty. I had cups of tea out and just had water in my room. Moving on to a premier inn with a kettle was bliss. And the breakfast was fab. It filled me up for the day.

We have been to loads of Premier Inns over the years and we always take our portable fridge - it's not that small but nobody has ever told us that we can't use it. We have never tried to hide it when coming through reception and you can see it plugged in in our room but it had never been a problem - I didn't know you weren't supposed to bring them. We use it for keeping cans/ chocolate/milk cold as we found chilling stuff in the sink/ bath didn't really work