Chilston Park - Reviewed
Above: Chilston Park, Kent (Kent Life Magazine)
Above: Head chef Gareth Brown, at Chilston Park, Kent (Kent Life Magazine)
When the sun shines in this country, we Brits love nothing better than taking our meals outdoors. So the clever team at Chilston Park Hotel have decided to capitalise on the rolling acres surrounding this handsome, 17th-century Grade 1 listed country house, and offer lunches al fresco-style throughout the summer.
This being England, it naturally decided to pour with rain the day my dining chum and I turned up, leaving us to gaze forlornly at the soggy tables and chairs outside, imagining what might have been.
But we weren’t forlorn for long. We relocated to Culpepper’s, the spacious hotel restaurant, which always has a sense of occasion about it, with its ornate ceiling, antique furniture, draped curtains and heavy silver cutlery.
And our lunch proved an exceedingly bright spot on a grey summer’s day, prompting my chum, The Hungry One, to utter the heartfelt exclamation – “at last, quantity and quality!” For someone who needs to eat approximately every 20 minutes and views ‘fine dining’ with something approaching dread, this was praise indeed.
Head chef, Gareth Brown, a local boy and now TV chef, has put together a sensibly short, fixed-price lunch menu with three choices per course, which he changes daily to keep things fresh and seasonal. Or you can go for the à la carte, which doubles your options.
Head chef Gareth Brown has put together a sensibly short, fixed-price lunch menu
We decided to test both menus, THO tucking into smoked chicken and baby vegetable terrine from the fixed-price menu, which he declared had “lots of flavour, considering it’s chicken”, and thought the apple chutney a splendid addition.
Meanwhile, I was pretty much in food heaven with my very tasty king scallops with gnocchi and tomato pesto, served warm and winning lots of points for presentation.
To follow, THO demolished a veritable tower of braised beef, served with truffle French beans and cocotte potato - and a glass of robust Castillo Clavijo Rioja to accompany. I managed to catch “amazingly well cooked, the meat just falls apart” in between mouthfuls, plus the ultimate accolade: “You won’t leave hungry, and I don’t say that very often.”
Fish or flight?
Dithering between duck breast and poached lemon sole, I plumped for ‘south east brill’, out of sheer curiosity. My fish turned out to be from Eastbourne, and served in succulent, white layers with a contrast of brilliant green roast salsify – a great combination, with bags of taste and eye appeal, and particularly good with my choice of a crisp Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand.
I notice that in my notes I’ve written “I could lick the plate, it’s so good” about my pudding – and I certainly don’t say that very often. All I can add is, just try the blueberry and mascarpone tart and tell me I’m wrong. Across the starched white cloth, a very happy chap was ploughing his way through nearly all the sorbets on the menu. “I love mango,” was really the only sensible thing that emerged.
Add in super service from our Scottish waitress, Julie, the prospect of enjoying all of the above outside in the sunshine, if you’re lucky, and a delightful setting – Chilston Park comes highly recommended.
Chilston Park Hotel
Sandway, Lenham
Nr Maidstone, ME17 2BE
Tel: 01622 859803
Email: chilstonpark@handpicked.co.uk
Opening times
Lunch: Mon to Fri 12 to 2pm, Sat closed, Sun 12.30pm to 2.30pm
Two-course lunch £17.50 per person
Three-course lunch £21 per person
Sun lunch £23 per person
Dinner: Sun to Thu 7pm to 9.30pm
Fri and Sat 6.30pm to 9.45pm
Typical prices: King scallops £8.50, local brill £26.50, desserts £6.95-£8
Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc, £31 or £8 per glass; Castillo Clavijo Rioja, £32 or £8.25 per glass