12 Oct 2016 by Charles Manners

This Autumn I find myself with two projects focussing once again on small hotels with restaurants, with two sites; firstly near Christchurch in Dorset and secondly the Clive Arms @ Bromfield near Ludlow, part of the Ludlow Food Centre. Both hotels have 15 rooms with the potential to expand, and have restaurants which have been out positioned by other competitors offering contemporary gastro pub food and design. The other common factor is both hotels require investment not only to maintain the fabric of the buildings but also to re-position them for tomorrow’s market place. A great challenge!

Finding reference points to help the thinking is always interesting, and a visit to the Pig @ Coombe was very excellent. The Pig is a new contemporary country house hotel in South Devon near Honiton, one of 5 hotels developed by Robin Hutson. The rooms were unfussy, using all the period features, and just plain comfortable; the food was excellent, the 25 mile menu using home grown and local products, and the staff relaxed and friendly, overall a faultless stay with elements that can apply to both projects.