Uckfield, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

“In a delightful village”, this “scenic” gastroboozer-with-rooms continues to please, two years after longtime owners the Pullan family handed the keys to the Young’s group; the “best atmosphere is in the bar” (as opposed to the annexe), though the “great garden” remains the standout here, offering lovely views of the Ouse countryside.

2021 Review: This “delightful pub with an excellent garden” on the edge of Ashdown Forest wins solid ratings for an inviting menu of locally sourced dishes. A family-run freehouse, it also has a strong list of local beers, wines and ciders.

2022 Review: They “recently extended the outdoor space and garden” at this imposing wattle-and-daub Elizabethan inn, built for the Keeper of the Privy Purse to Elizabeth I, no less. Together with a “new menu” of snacks and heartier grub it now makes a “great eating place” by all accounts.

This “extremely popular” 16th-century free house with four bedrooms, in a hilltop village in the Sussex Weald, has everything you want in a country pub, from “very good cooking” and beamed interiors to “a lovely pint of Harvey’s”.

“A lovely setting overlooking the gardens towards the South Downs” helps set up a “top-class experience” at this Elizabethan country house spa-hotel: “decor… ambience… service… food all are first rate”. Mind you, “there‘s nothing flash/super-creative about any of this: they know their market and it’s just really well executed”.

“For us, as garden lovers, a magical place” – this Elizabethan country house in the Sussex countryside sits in grounds laid out in the 1880s by the famous landscape gardener who then owned the property (and has been a hotel since 1958). “It‘s probably best to enjoy Gravetye in the summer when it is delightful to wander round the beautiful gardens with an aperitif” and to get the most out of “the modern, conservatory-style dining room, which is simply dazzling in design, creating a feeling of almost being in the garden”. Since its 2019 relaunch, there has been a major upgrade to the cuisine here, with chef George Blogg preparing “beautifully balanced dishes with assured use of ingredients”: “seasonal produce is allowed to shine and sing”. (The food would score even higher if the odd reporter did not find it “a bit safe”). Staff generally “can’t do enough for you” but ratings slipped slightly this year on one or two “hit ’n’ miss” experiences in this regard. No complaints of any significance were highlighted, and the general impression is that a meal here is “so smart, and of such quality”.

There’s no doubting the “great” setting of this former religious hostel, which lies at the foot of the Sussex Downs on the banks of the Cuckmere River; having been acquired by hospitality whizz Olga Polizzi in 2021, it’s now an “upmarket country hotel” replete with Bloomsbury set artworks and (in the dining room) a gorgeous Elizabethan-esque floor. With River Café alum Tim Kensett having moved on to his Scottish wild-dining concept Inverlonan Dining, head chef Vincenzo Petrocco is currently at the helm; the “food is mainstream Anglo-French with good fish and meat options” and while “not inexpensive” (“you can eat in the best London restaurants at their prices”) and described by sceptics as “good but fairly ordinary”, more positive reporters believe the “quality cooking and service justify the bill”.

Recently relaunched, this hotel dining room set in an Arts & Crafts boutique hotel and wedding venue with “excellent views” over Happy Valley is a “real treat”. The original interior includes a stained-glass window and a fireplace, and chef Scott Goss makes best use of locally sourced ingredients.

2023 Review: A “family favourite” for its “lovely atmosphere and brasserie food” – and handily close to Tunbridge Wells station – this spin-off from the ever-expanding Ivy operation is well regarded by most reporters, but also suffers from the complaints commonly levelled against its Identikit siblings: most especially indifferent cooking that’s “poor value for money”.

2021 Review: “For a thoroughly enjoyable traditional afternoon tea (HdV certainly make an occasion of this British tradition)”, or “a very good full English”, this fine-looking mansion still wins praise. However, more serious dining from its French bistro menu, as supported by its trademark wine list, attracted too little commentary for a rating last year.

This “lovely thatched country boozer” with a pretty beer garden and great views of the South Downs is highly popular in our annual diners’ poll as an “absolute go-to place for the most excellent, innovative and delicious pub food”, in “a lovely quiet spot”. It’s the country cousin of the high-quality Gingerman group in Brighton, seven miles away – and does a roaring Sunday lunch trade.

2021 Review: “More ‘pubby’ than The Gingerman” – the namesake group’s original site and flagship, opened in 1998 – “but more relaxing” too, this dog-friendly Kemptown spot is a solid performer which “cannot be beaten for family get-togethers”; the newest ginger, The Flint House, mixing tapas, cocktails and a roof terrace, opened in central Brighton in spring 2019.

2023 Review: Isaac Bartlett-Copeland’s ambitious and ultra-local operation in Brighton’s boho North Laine is “so original and never the same twice”, with its ‘taste of Sussex’ menus and an all-English list of wines. The “NYC vibe” goes too far for some tastes (“well-meaning front of house told us everything, and I mean absolutely everything, about every dish…”)

“Brighton’s most popular restaurant” (our survey agrees – it’s the most commented-on in town): “small plates rule – and the choices are definitely out-of-the-ordinary” – at Pamela & Ben McKellar’s venue in the Lanes, where “most of the seating is counter-style, which is great but arguably limits its appeal (you have to be very lucky to get one of the tables if you want a six, for example)”. For £50 per person, you can avoid having to choose and go for the chef’s short tasting menu, which is “really good, and a good representation of the kitchen”. Notwithstanding its popularity and virtues, though, ratings overall here are only in the middle ground and one or two more sceptical reporters “expected more given its reputation… I’m not sure exactly what it is attempting”.

“Exceptional seafood, ultra-fresh off the boat” is the order of the day at this classic oyster bar down “one of the cutest winding alleys in the Lanes” – “every Brightonian has either been in this place or stared longingly through the window” since it opened almost 20 years ago, and it’s “definitely a must-stop for visitors to the town”. “The USP is that you can choose your fish from a board showing the day’s catches. When it’s gone, it’s gone (but it’s annoying when the board isn’t kept up-to-date – we missed out on the Dover sole!)”. There’s a newer branch in the Rotunda on the Promenade (see also). Top Menu Tip – “the seafood risotto”.

The “perfect place for a celebratory meal” – a decade-old Lanes favourite by GBM winner Michael Bremner where “it’s great sitting at the pass watching the chefs at work”, though half the seating is also allocated elsewhere if that’s too much drama; you can choose to make a meal of the small plates, or sample more of the “interesting” and “flavourful” dishes on the “amazing tasting menu” (“where as much attention is paid to the vegetarian options as the meat and fish”). As feedback on the venue was thin and included (unusually) the odd off-report this year, we‘ve left it unrated.

2021 Review: “A shabby-chic bistro with pleasant staff and interesting small plates” – fish-centric – plus “natural wines to complement the seasonal organic food”.