These Kent hotels all have great restaurants, so you can indulge in locally sourced tasty food before a night in a sumptuous room
In Kent we are blessed with phenomenal culinary talent at our hotels, restaurants, pubs and restaurants with rooms, utilising local ingredients and seasonal favourites to bring inspired classics and modern dishes for every palette and occasion. So whether you’re indulging on Pancake Day or planning your post-Lent Easter Sunday lunch, the Good Hotel Guide shared 10 of their foodie favourite gastropubs and restaurants with rooms in Kent…
Named as the Good Hotel Guide’s Gourmet Editor’s Choice in 2018, Read’s in Faversham is an elegant restaurant with rooms in a beautiful red brick manor house. Four poster beds, original fireplaces and large sash windows look out onto beautiful gardens shaded by lofty horse chestnut trees. The leitmotif then continues inside where the boutique hotel’s six bedrooms are each named for a different tree. The restaurant is very much the heart of the whole experience with much of the produce coming from the hotel’s own walled garden alongside local game and meat such as Kentish lamb, and seafood brought fresh from the Whitstable and Hythe quaysides.
Named in this year’s coveted Cesar Awards (the Oscars of the hotel world), The Salutation is an exceptional Queen Anne-style mansion that has been brought to life by the creative stylings and beautiful taste of owners Dorothy and John Fothergill. A newcomer to the hotel scene in Kent, their attention to detail has made it a firm favourite already. For those visiting with dogs there are two cottages in the gardens, and there is a wonderfully happy and welcoming vibe to this superbly romantic hotel. Tuck into caramelised nuts and olives as you sit by the fire in the bar, before watching the theatre of chef Shane Hughes preparing your evening meal from his kitchen behind a glass divide. Cooking courses are available, and don’t forget to sample the Belgian waffles at breakfast.
• The Marquis at Alkham, Alkham
Reopening from 29th March this year after refurbishment, The Marquis at Alkham is a charming whitewashed restaurant with rooms in the Alkham Valley. A 200-year old inn, it is brimming with the character and charm of a historic building, whilst offering superb food as well. The emphasis in dining is very much on simplicity and delivering it with an abundance of taste. Locally grown vegetables, catch of the day landed by Dover fishing boats, and 10 bedrooms to stumble up to after a leisurely evening of indulgence.
An entirely different experience, Rocksalt is an ultra contemporary restaurant with rooms known specifically for its fish. Overlooking the sea in Folkestone, the restaurant takes full advantage of its location with large floor to ceiling windows leading onto an outdoor terrace - perfect as the weather warms up. Watch the world go by as you tuck into decadent seafood sharing platters washed down with English sparkling wine from the likes of Kent’s own Gusbourne estate. Then extend the experience by staying in one of four boutique bolt holes close by, each fusing beautiful antiques with the best of contemporary travel luxuries. Carefully styled details include exposed brickwork, softened by luxe Egyptian cotton linens, Nespresso coffee machines and views of the English Channel.
• The Milk House, Sissinghurst
A 16th century pub, The Milk House bears all the hallmarks of proprietors who have an exceptional eye for detail and a real love of what they do. Timber beams and a Tudor fireplace make for cosy pub style, while four beautifully appointed bedrooms enjoy views of the village and surrounding orchards. Dining is simple but stylish, once again all those beautiful local Kent ingredients are made the stars of the show in a range of classic pub fare and hearty Sunday lunches.
Charming on the outside, elegant and stylish in the inside, The Falstaff is situated in the centre of Ramsgate, formerly two houses that date back to 1801. After sympathetic renovations it was relaunched in 2015 and has since won awards for its service as well as its unique design. A seaside location, the restaurant is the main experience serving all meals and everything in between in a relaxed but professional environment. The hotel element has eight rooms and suites and there are also three self catered apartments, which are perfect for small families looking for a little more independence and privacy.
__________
