Haywards Heath, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

Chef Steve Crane’s “excellent food” has been a feature of this “delightful” Elizabethan country-house spa-hotel for 23 years. Some reporters see it as very much an “old school, ladies who lunch, white tablecloths” venue – “no fireworks, just a decent meal in a quiet, refined setting”.

In the “dream location” of this sleepy but charming West Sussex hamlet, Matt Gillan’s “romantic” restaurant-with-rooms “continues to be a strong all-rounder” offering a “very convivial and relaxing experience” (especially if you opt for the “brilliant tasting menus”). Add in “superbly decorated bedrooms” and “breakfast – the icing on the cake”.

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.

“Family friendly and lively” Sussex pub-with-rooms that was taken over by the national Young’s chain in 2022, after over four decades under the Pullan family. There is the odd grumble about the switch, but most reports remain positive and its “lovely terrace” in particular continues to win approval.

This “great country pub” – a free house dating from the sixteenth century – benefits from inglenook fireplaces and beams inside and an inviting garden in the summer, and offers some “delicious” grub. It makes an “excellent stop when touring the local gardens”.

“Truly beautiful and with superb food” – “the gracious room with stunning gardens beyond (including a unique walled kitchen garden) help make for a very special experience” at this “fabulous location” – an Elizabethan country house deep in the Sussex countryside (whose grounds were laid out in the 1880s by its then-owner, a famous landscape gardener). A hotel since 1958, it was relaunched in 2018 with a new “brilliantly architecturally conceived modern dining room” – a “light and airy space” whose “gorgeous views” mean “you actually feel it’s part of the outside”. And – having largely sunk from view in terms of gastronomy – nowadays its “quietly impressive” performance under chef George Blogg is establishing itself as one of the top 10 most commented-on destinations outside the capital in our annual diners’ poll. He “has significantly upped the kitchen’s game, with a three-course menu, perfectly prepared and exquisitely presented, incorporating wonderfully fresh herbs and vegetables” backed up by a heavyweight wine list. Top Tip – stay the night and “breakfast is every bit as good as dinner!”

2022 Review: “The hype is all true!” – “The most extraordinary selection of stunningly presented South African-influenced dishes” inspires a huge thumbs-up for Jean Delport’s cuisine at this “memorable” destination. It is set in “staggering grounds, too” – “sitting in the lovely Leonardslee Gardens, just outside Horsham”.

This pioneer of the open kitchen concept (launched in 2008) is nowadays in the hands of chef Ben Wilkinson. Despite its renown in foodie circles, it achieved relatively little feedback in our annual diners’ poll, hence we’ve left it unrated. But such reports as we did receive were ecstatic, and the AA have awarded the place an un-scruffy three stars.

With its “beautiful setting nestling under the South Downs” and “inventive, superbly presented dishes,” this “lovely thatched country pub” from Brighton’s Gingerman group is “well worth the trip inland from the coast”. The wine list is strong on local Sussex wines.

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…”)

Well established as “a real favourite” since launching in 2019, “what it does – modern British cooking in a relaxed bistro setting – it does brilliantly”, while “the wine list brings it a cut above many other locals. Rob (Maynard, co-founder with James & Faye Thomson) seems to find amazing different things to drink”. Top Menu Tip – “don’t miss out on side orders: blue cheese and leek gratin and pommes Anna are both amazing”.

Eat “surrounded by bottles in this friendly and informal bistro”, which also doubles as a wine bar and shop. Reporters love the “inventive small-plates food and excellent wine list” – especially the set menu, which is “full of more adventurous things you might not normally order à la carte”.

“Exceptional food, wonderful service and great ambience” combine to provide an “amazing special-event evening” at MasterChef: The Professionals winner Steven Edwards’s conversion of a former Hove bank, now with a basement ‘speakeasy’ bar. There’s a selection of tasting menus: from five courses for £70 per person to nine courses for £120. “If Etch was in London, it would cost three times as much”, agree local fans of its “always interesting menus”. “A very good selection of English wines is a bonus”.

This “little gem of a side-street restaurant, just up from the sea front” delivers “tastes that go Wow!”. The first in chef Ben McKellar & his wife Pamela’s successful local group, it has maintained “the same standards as ever” for more than 25 years now. Top Menu Tip – “there’s always a delicious soufflé for pudding!”.

This “cracking hidden gem, tucked away in the Lanes” is “a bit of a Brighton institution now, and rightly so” – an “intimate and romantic” place where “the seafood is fresh, the dishes filling yet light and the service unobtrusive but friendly”. “It provides a great selection of crustacea and everything from mackerel to Dover sole”. There is now also a beachside offshoot in the Rotunda on Brighton’s Promenade.

GBM winner Michael Bremner’s open-kitchen Lanes joint has been one of Brighton’s most interesting culinary venues for years, and remains “sensational” thanks to tasting menus that are “full of surprises” (as much the veggie option as the carnivorous one). Add in “attentive service and a buzzing atmosphere” (“sitting at the pass is a fantastic experience”) and it’s “highly recommended” by its very many fans. (It’s priced for the evening taster menu, but you can also make a meal of individual small plates here for a much more modest cost).

“Every dish is packed with flavour” at this “crowd-pleasing”, modern British small plates venue from Pamela & Ben McKellar’s Gingerman group, with a “bright and friendly dining room above the bucolic Lanes of Brighton”: there’s a “really something for everyone”, backed up with “super-friendly service”.

“A proper meat restaurant!” – Razak Helalat’s popular destination (which has a London sibling near Tower Bridge) is known for its “perfectly done steaks” (although “if you don’t like your steak and red meat, you may feel a bit stuck”); and also wins praise for its “great and attentive service” too. Even those who feel it’s “very good”, though, can also feel it’s “expensive for what it is”.

This “buzzy seafood restaurant on the seafront” with views over the skeletal West Pier features some “innovative cooking” and “fantastic sauces”, with whole fish cooked over fire a speciality. Some reporters consider it “a little pricey”, but “the lunchtime menu offers good value”.