The Star

With ‘first-rate attention to detail’ and ‘efficient, helpful and delightful staff’, Olga and Alex Polizzi’s updating of a historic Tudor inn, in a medieval South Downs village, has undoubted star quality. The third venture in the Polizzi Collection (see Hotel Endsleigh and Tresanton), it is ‘a model enterprise’. Interiors are classic Polizzi, mixing contemporary flair and wit with antique shop finds, delicate Madeaux by Richard Smith wall coverings. Dog-friendly ground-floor rooms in a 1960s wing, and those above with Juliet balcony, have floor-to-ceiling windows. There is a Mediterranean-style courtyard, a library with secret door into the dining room. Here, and in the bar, menus include dishes such as cannellini bean and cavolo nero soup; wild monkfish, rainbow chard, walnut and caper sauce. ‘Each morning the breakfast buffet looked stunning, with its pastries and summer fruit.’ Expect unusual choices for breakfast, too, such as slow-cooked tomato, grilled sourdough, labneh, oregano. Picnics can be ordered for Glyndebourne, a walk on the South Downs way or a day on the beach at Birling Gap. (Tony & Ginny Ayers, Tom & Sarah Mann, Donald Reid)