By Juliet Perry
Situated near the seafront and right next to Eastbourne’s theatre district, the Devonshire Park Hotel provides the perfect place to dine for those catching a show or taking a summer stroll along the prom.
From the moment we walked in to the clean and bright hotel foyer, the staff were friendly, helpful and professional. Before sitting down to eat, there is the option to enjoy a drink or two in the hotel bar. The bar is full of comfortable sofa-like chairs and you can browse the menu while you enjoy your aperitif.
And the menu really gets your mouth watering. It is created on a daily basis by head chef Quentin Rollings, who carefully picks only the freshest ingredients, many of which are locally sourced, to provide a real treat for the taste buds.
Each of Quentin’s meat and fish dishes are paired with a carefully thought out and interesting sauce, mousse or dressing - rather than the usual gravy. And there is always an exciting vegetarian dish.
For our starters we enjoyed smoked duck breast with hazelnut, rocket and blackberry salad and English asparagus with a poached egg and hollandaise sauce. The duck was beautifully cooked and seasoned. It was served with a delicious dressing which was well balanced and worked perfectly with the juicy blackberries and chopped, crumbly hazelnuts. The tender asparagus was also well cooked and Quentin’s divine hollandaise showed-off his excellent culinary skills.
Both plates of food were wonderfully presented on rectangular plates and the portion sizes were perfect - warming up our appetites for the main course.
The duck and asparagus are just two of the delightful starters created by the head chef. French onion soup with parmesan croutons, seared breast of wood pigeon and salmon gravalax home cured in vodka, dill and earl grey tea with balsamic beetroot are just some to the exciting dishes created by him.
The starters give you a taste of the great things to come and the main course did not disappoint. We enjoyed Romney Marsh lamb chump chop served with sundried tomato and rosemary dressing and pan fried guinea fowl supreme with chorizo and mustard grain sauce. Both the dishes were served with creamy dauphinoise potatoes and a perfectly cooked selection of mange tout, green beans and baby carrots. We were also offered redcurrant and mint sauce to complement the locally sourced lamb. However, the beautifully cooked meat did not need the condiments available because the sundried tomato dressing was superb and a delicious partner for the lamb. A sprig of gorgeously ripe fresh redcurrants were also placed on the well presented plate.
The guinea fowl was also a triumph and the mustard grain sauce was not overpowering and lovely addition to the meal. We were feeling full after the main course, but couldn’t resist the dessert menu. There were eight to choose from and we struggled to make up our minds. Classic cheese and biscuits served with spiced chutney, grapes and celery, bread and butter pudding with crème anglaise, and fruit fool with a hazelnut crumble topping were all on the menu. We opted for Belgian chocolate torte with clotted cream ice cream and pear and almond tart with clotted cream and mango syrup - the perfect end to a lovely meal.
Our three courses were washed down with a fantastic Chilean sauvignon, which was just one of the wines on the extensive list. All the wines are chosen with Quentin’s food in mind. The Devonshire Park Hotel is not the cheapest restaurant in town, but you get what you pay for and if you are after quality food in an intimate setting this is the place for you. The main courses were priced at around £16.50, but when we dined The Devonshire Park Hotel was offering Tottingworth fillet of beef with Barkham blue cheese sauce and roasted tomato and port jus at £25.95. Judging by the food we tasted, the fillet of beef would be well worth the extra money.
The Devonshire Park Hotel on Carlisle Road
Tel. 01323 728144