Telegraph Travel, Room Service Article

Generosity is the only fault in a sophisticated slice of seaside suburbia

Printed Saturday, January 6, 2007, written by Paddy Burt

A reader who lives near Rustington Manor in West Sussex suggests that we try it: “It used to be very rundown, but new owners have refurbished it and the hotel reopened about a year ago.”

From the photographs on its website, Rustington Manor looks like a large suburban house. And when we get there, it - er - still looks like a large suburban house, surrounded by similar surburban houses. At the end of the street is a pebble beach.

Going inside, we meet a tall, goodlooking young man dressed in vertical stripes - trousers, long apron, waistcoat - and a bow tie with horizontal stripes. Seizing our bags, he whisks us upstairs to a small, nicely furnished room. He introduces us to the shower room, two bathrobes and a generous bar of soap; then, pausing at a bowl laden with fruit, says: “Do help yourselves to the fruit we have provided for you.” We admire the up-to-the-minute television, clock radio and CD player.

As we have arrived early, we take our newspapers down to the bar, which is furnished with brown leather chairs. Early diners are arriving, most of them grey-haired, the men in suits, women in best dresses. The tall young man, with a woman in a smart black trouser suit, is making a great fuss of them, plying them with drinks, canapés and menus. Now it's time to go upstairs and put on our glad rags.

When we come back, the place is buzzing. The dining room is almost full, so is the bar. When it's our turn for menus, we read that “Jonathan is the chef and his wife, Susan [in the black suit], is the host.” “That's Chris,” she says, nodding in the direction of the stripy waistcoat. “He's been here since soon after we opened.”

Susan tells us our table is ready, and leads us to the only empty one in the room. Now we realise there are also two waitresses, one of whom brings us white rectangular plates. “Quail's leg with asparagus and balsamic dressing, compliments of the chef,” she explains. “I can't see a quail's egg,” my husband mutters. I laugh. “Leg, not egg - idiot.”

From the “To Begin” section I choose Cheese Charlotte, a cone of what tastes like mixed cheeses with a delicate beetroot and vanilla dressing. My husband is having the rabbit rillette, with home-made prune, lime and apple chutney. We are also given a selection of home-made bread and a generous amount of butter. So far, so very good.

When main courses arrive, mine is a piece of poached salmon with a very nice carrot and white-wine sauce. The only problem, for me, is the huge size of the salmon. My husband's “harmony” of beef is a huge piece of fillet steak and an oxtail and kidney pudding with horseradish creamed potato - two generous meals on one plate.

“So how are you going to manage that, when there's also a dish of inviting-looking mangetouts, carrots and broccoli, plus a dish of new potatoes?” I ask. “I probably won't,” he replies.

Inevitably we feel guilty when we order lemon-curd cheesecake with blueberry sauce and blood-orange and poppy-seed shortbread with bitterchocolate sorbet. Both are delicious but, again, too generous.

In pubs where the food is not very good, the chef sometimes compensates by serving huge quantities; but somebody as good as Jonathan doesn't need to. I do hate a waste of food.

Breakfast starts well, with a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice. Then Susan brings individual packets of Alpen and cornfl akes, each ceremoniously served with its own jug of milk. Coffee, brought in two cups, comes straight from the espresso machine. Then, without prompting, she brings two more. How generous; but a jug or cafetière would be more welcome.

When we pay the bill, she tells us that she and Jonathan have been here for three years: “The first two were spent renovating. Before that, I spent 15 years in my jeans, packing potatoes, in the inlaws' shop.”

Rustington Manor Hotel & Restaurant, 12 Broadmark Lane, Rustington, West Sussex BN16 2HH (01903 788782 , www.rustingtonmanorhotel. co.uk ), has six rooms. Paddy Burt paid £90 for b&b; £19.90 for drinks; and £60 for dinner. Total: £169.90.