When it comes to summer staycations, The Black Horse in Amberley is exactly the sort of place I look for: close enough for a spontaneous overnight stay, yet far enough away to feel like a proper escape.
Earlier this year, restaurateurs Richard, Oliver and Gregory Gladwin acquired the Grade II listed inn and, following a careful refurbishment, reopened it in March.
Dave Watts
Joining the likes of Rabbit in Chelsea, The Shed in Notting Hill and The Black Lamb in Wimbledon, it’s the brothers’ sixth site, but their first outside London and first with bedrooms. And the fact that it sits in the West Sussex village where they grew up makes it a homecoming of sorts.
Richard, who relocated from Barnes to take the reins, greeted me warmly. There are 12 bedrooms, and I checked in to number seven: a calm, cosy space with exposed beams and a dinky freestanding bathtub.
Soft cotton sheets, Bamford toiletries, fresh flowers and colourful mugs from the local pottery completed the homely yet luxurious feel. Through the window I spied sheep-dotted fields, and I felt my shoulders drop.
Dave Watts
The pub sits in the heart of Amberley, one of the prettiest villages I have ever visited, where every rose- and wisteria-clad cottage looks worthy of a postcard.
I strolled past the old castle walls, tearoom and village shop before heading out into the Wildbrooks, a vast nature reserve of picturesque wetlands and grazing marshes.
Back at base, the bar and dining room interiors strike a pleasing balance between old and new. Dark wood panelling and characterful original features intermingle with a lively colour palette and eye-catching paintings by Gladwin matriarch, Bridget.
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Outside, I sat in the spacious beer garden overlooking the green folds of the South Downs and ordered a glass of Nutty Wild, a delicate sparkling wine produced just six miles away at Nutbourne Vineyards, which is also owned by the family.
Food is where the Gladwin farm-to-table ethos comes to life. Much of the meat is from Gregory’s nearby farm, including Wild Brooks beef and vineyard lamb.
A Black Horse signature is a horse-shaped beef dripping and local herb candle, theatrically lit at the table and served with soft milk bread to mop it all up.
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Dave Watts
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Dave Watts
Other highlights include chargrilled Worthing squid with black ink rice, leek ash mayonnaise and red pepper, and beautifully plated cured chalk stream trout with elderflower and pickled cucumber, both well paired with a bottle of Nutbourne’s creamy barrel reserve Chardonnay.
Predictably, I slept like a log. After a quick morning lap around the village, I settled in for breakfast, which is another gastronomic delight: fat cakes (tasty bite-sized doughnuts), buttery kippers and perfectly scrambled eggs fresh from the Gladwins’ hens.
And then it was off to the vineyard. Sitting among the vines with a tasting flight of award-winning Nutbourne wines and a picnic of local cheese and freshly picked crudités, it was more South of France than Sussex.
sophiefarrahwrites
Despite having lasted little more than 24 hours, the trip felt much longer. It was hard to believe that somewhere with such beautiful surroundings, excellent food and warm hospitality was so close to home. Proof, perhaps, that you don’t need to travel far to feel a world away.
Rooms start at £110 B&B; blackhorse-pub.com
