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Richmond Arms at the Goodwood Park Hotel, Goodwood
The sprawling Goodwood estate north of Chichester is a magnificent 12,000 acre beast, honed to rural bucolic precision by centuries of Richmond family members.
Not only does the estate boast one of the finest racecourses in the country with views of South Downs, a legendary aerodrome, two golf courses, a hotel with deluxe spa, health club and two restaurants plus The Kennels, one of the smartest private watering holes to be found in the south of England.
It also runs July's sell-out Festival of Speed and the famed Revival meeting at the motor circuit in September.
And don't let's leave out an arable farm, the largest lowland organic one (and the first 100 per cent organic-fed dairy farm in the UK) with cattle, pigs and sheep, wheat and vegetables part of the mix.
The Richmonds have never shirked from style – unlike some more crusty, fusty British dukedoms.
Their marketing hat is firmly in place too, with these two sides of the Richmond DNA brought uber-confidently up to date by the Earl of March, the present duke's son.
No doubt he oversaw the new refurbishment of the Richmond Arms, part of the Goodwood Park Hotel, and once a former coaching inn.
You won't find refined 18th century swags for the wags here but simple, understated lines. The vaulted ceiling with its cross beams is whitewashed, hanging oversized red lampshades adding a saucy spice. Black and white subject-blurred photography completes a dash, an edge.
Modernity is what you get here, the chairs rigged out in brown zebra stripes, the tables' bases curved metal. No muzak will sully the atmosphere, one of restrained calm until, that is, large parties of golfers and car enthusiasts took up their lengthy tables with little regard for other diners. As they did the night I ate there.
To avoid possible cacophony, find out beforehand if an invasion is to take place when booking a table, Goodwood's restaurants attracting large parties due to its sporting activities. Or join in and enjoy it.
Oddly, the menu goes quiet on the farm's produce, no mention of its beef, pork, lamb dairy or vegetable produce evident on the a la carte or its two or three-course fixed price menu. Only the adjacent bar comes up trumps with the Goodwood estate's bounty, namely an ale and a beer. Sussex produce is spasmodically mentioned: Witterings fish, Southdowns lamb, Old Sussex cheese but not on-the-doorstep ingredients – in June.
The menu is modern British: duck and lentil terrine; salmon tartare with quails' eggs and chive salad maybe for starters; sea bass with saffron poached potatoes, cabbage and chorizo; butternut squash with Old Sussex gratin, spinach and almond salad; or calves' liver with bacon, champ and sauce diable are some dishes. A starter around 8, a main course averaging 16. The set menu (18.50 for two courses, 25 for three) may offer gravadlax of sea trout with pea shoots; smoked haddock with poached egg, scallion mash and grain mustard sauce and a blackcurrant delice.
The too thinly-sliced calves' liver meant an opportunity lost to add caramelising to the exterior when cooked. It was garnished, feather-in-cap-like, with one beaten to wafer-thin bacon crisp rasher, the saving-grace sauce gutsy and moreish. The champ, minus its spring onions, was a lacklustre affair, the braised lettuce hearts dully executed.
A chocolate mousse trio (white, milk and dark chocolate quenelles) with a raspberry basket needs to return to the drawing board, each mound a dismal attempt at pudding-making, the basket tasting of rancid oil, the raspberries the dish's sole saviour.
A tip-top glass of Philippe de Rothschild's Sauvignon Blanc, good breads, excellent service and the fine dcor are in place.
But why is the Goodwood produce not making it on to the plate? This admirable organic produce needs to be showcased in one of its top-of-the-range restaurants. Where else?
The lack of quality cooking to match the uniqueness of Goodwood is equally baffling, the estate one of the most stylish places in the UK. With it should come classy cooking to mirror Britain's emergence as one of the better countries to dine in, the clientele a global, expectant one.
Or must we more often than not still decamp to the big cities for a decent meal? My bill came to just over 27 not including a well-deserved tip for charming, solicitous service.
Richmond Arms, Goodwood Park Hotel, Goodwood, Chichester PO18 OQB. 01243 775537.
Open: For dinner during the week only from Sun-Thu (6.30pm-9.30pm), Fri-Sat (6.30pm-10pm) and for Sunday lunch (midday-2.30pm). Bar snacks available in the bar or a full lunch or dinner menu in the Goodwood Bar & Grill in the same building.
Food: ***
Service: *****
Atmosphere: ****
Disabled access: Yes.
How to get there: Follow the A27 to Chichester. At Chichester, stay on the A27 By-Pass/Ring Road. After the only set of traffic lights, take the second exit at the next roundabout signposted Goodwood. At the next roundabout take the second exit. 200 yards after the Goodwood Motor Circuit & Aerodrome entrance, turn right at the roundabout, signposted Petworth & Halnaker (brown signs for The Goodwood Park Hotel). Turn left at the next crossroads and the hotel is 150 yards on the left.
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Wednesday 23 May 2012
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