Laura Cartledge discovers The Grove Inn - a beautiful 17th Century stone building with food so good you are bound to be back for more. Photographs by Louise Adams
Just a stone’s throw from Petworth, and with spectacular views over the South Downs, The Grove Inn is a tucked away treat. The setting is split in two with half being a sophisticated pub with big wooden beams, parquet flooring and bar and the other half being a stylish dining room. With both being so welcoming, and my father and I being the decisive pair we are, we decided to experience both and were soon settled on the big leather sofa enjoying a drink by the fire.
Here we perused the menu and found that where to sit was going to be the least of our worries when it came to making hard decisions. The menu is traditional with a twist. With starters including homemade pea and crispy bacon soup, spicy devilled kidneys and poached asparagus with shaved parmesan. Arguably these were enough to get anyone’s stomach rumbling but when you discover the kitchen only uses local ingredients from garden, field, farm, boat and market you know whatever you choose you’ll be in for a treat.
We then headed through to the elegant dining room in which windowed walls provided a stunning backdrop of the surrounding countryside. Placing our palates and plates in the safe hands of chef Steve, my father decided to try haggis for the first time. Fried in a light batter and served with a British Cox apple chutney it was a gentle variation on the heavy traditional dish.
My tastebuds were tempted by the baked camembert pierced with cranberry sauce and served with crispy dipper croutons. The flavours were just how they should be with the rich creamy cheese being lightened by the fresh fruit of the sauce, to best describe how good the dish was however I have to turn to the croutons. Easily measuring 15cm long they were more like slices of baguette, toasted to crunchy perfection it felt like eating a grown up version of egg and soldiers as I tucked in with childlike delight.
For the main course the menu presented pub classics like fish and chips, albeit it served in a real ale batter and with homemade tartare sauce, and more original offerings like the confit duck legs with black cherry and honey sauce served on braised lentils and buck wheat. It has to be said there was honestly not a dish on the list that I would not like to try at some point which is a true testament to the passion and skill put into The Grove Inn by husband and wife team Steve and Valeria.
After much deliberation it was the venison, wrapped in mint and bacon with a red wine jus that won my father over, while the smoked haddock topped with poached egg and cheese sauce was my dish of choice.
For dessert we both liked the look of the banana pancake with vanilla ice cream and toffee sauce and the rhubarb crumble. As a result we decided to go halves, or rather to go “two-thirds,” as the pancake clearly met with my fathers approval.
Located only a short walk from Petworth The Grove Inn would make an ideal place to rest weary feet and refuel. The lunch options, which run alongside the main menu, include the classic jacket potato, ciabatta or wrap but like with everything here it has that extra special something. Toppings range from the conventional prawn and rose marie sauce to the more unusual stilton and cranberry. Even bangers and mash is made stylish as you can tailor make it choosing from traditional, pork and apple or Cumberland sausages to go with classic, whole grain mustard or crispy onion mash.
Special food nights also run which follow a gastronomic theme with the seafood weekends being particularly popular. Parties and hog roasts are also welcome while the Sunday roast is considered to be the best value in the county. Warmer months see the kitchen move outside too with barbeques bursting with meat, fish and other delights to make the most of the summer - they even have an outdoor fire which they use to smoke their own salmon over walnut chippings.
If this is not enough to tempt you go to The Grove Inn then to be honest that’s fine, it will mean more room for my friends and family - because while this was our first visit to this hidden gem of a place, it will certainly not be our last.
The Grove Inn
Petworth
West Sussex
GU28 OHY
Tel. 01798 343659
www.groveinnpetworth.co.uk
Opening Hours:
Closed Sunday evening and Monday day, unless a bank holiday when Monday lunch is served.
