Locals and travellers receive the warmest of welcomes at this out-of-the-way Victorian farmhouse down a Sussex country lane – a beguiling backdrop for a cosy, impeccably run country restaurant done out in genteel bourgeois style with starched linen and high-backed chairs. “Goodness, in all its forms, is guaranteed”, says a fan – no doubt referring to the kitchen’s Anglo-European ways and its “very special food”. Forget nostalgic, rose-tinted flavours, this is the world of cured Loch Duart salmon with pear seaweed and lime dressing or twice-cooked pork belly with apple textures, tiger prawn fritters and cider jus. Wild mushrooms naturally pop up in a risotto (perhaps with some seasonal broad beans), while desserts might include salted caramel parfait with marshmallow and glazed pineapple or ‘chocolate frivolity’ with poached pear and Griottine cherries. The “special” wine list also receives a thumbs-up.