Goudhurst Restaurant Guide

A visit to this “lovely restaurant way out in the country” is “like a trip to the theatre only better – with amazing cooking” on “a top-value tasting menu”. “Dishes are often surprising – I love that much of the produce is from the garden or nearby”, in line with Kent-born chef-patron Will Devlin’s ultra-local and sustainable ethos. He also runs Birchwood, a daytime venue in the nearby Flimwell Park sustainable woodland development, but was forced to close The Curlew in Bodiam due to rising costs in late 2022.

2023 Review: This former coaching inn “offers a good range of well-cooked dishes in its small dining room” – “pre-booking is advisable as it’s close to Sissinghurst Castle and Gardens”. In the summer, “a pop-up pizza hut is open in the garden for a more casual dining experience”.

“The service and food are simply sublime” at this “lovely pub” – named in honour of the First World War poet Siegfried Sassoon, who lived nearby – which has served “the most accomplished food” for some years. South African-born chef-patron Petrus Madutlela, who has masterminded the venue’s gastronomic rise since 2015, departed in early 2023 and is replaced by Lee Adams, who worked for the late Gary Rhodes and returns to his native Kent after a decade running kitchens in Dubai and Hong Kong. Early reports suggest standards remain very high under the new regime, although consistency may be an issue.

2023 Review: “A super-charming setting for some imaginative cooking” – this funky project on the Kent/Sussex borders combines the restoration of a bucolic walled garden with vinery, Victorian glasshouses, restaurant and shop. Eat from breakfast onwards, either outside in summer or under the tented awning, or in the glasshouses during the winter.