Cornish luxury
Glancing at the tariff for the 17-bedroom Lugger hotel in Portloe, Cornwall, the rates look a tad steep. At £180 for double occupancy for bed-and-breakfast in low season, rising to £280 for half-board in high season, this is serious money for an area that is six hours' drive from London. But Cornish hotelier Richard Young and his American wife Sheryl are confident that the market will withstand these prices. And Young should know - he was the opening general manager of the Tresanton in St Mawes, Olga Polizzi's upmarket property that's been credited with raising rates in the area. Young is not afraid to follow suit. "Cornwall is the place to be now, with all the new attractions, and people are prepared to spend the money to come here," he says.
The Tresanton was also the place where Richard met Sheryl, a former Wall Street banker who had moved to London and decided to take a holiday at the hotel. Six months after their first lunch date, the couple were married and soon decided that they wanted to run their own place.
Running hotels is in the blood. Young's grandmother moved to Newquay in 1927 to open the Hotel Bristol, a property that's still run today by Richard's brother, Stuart. Richard himself worked in the family business for 15 years and went on to do stints as general manager at Selsdon Park in Croydon and the Carlton in Bournemouth.
After some searching, the Youngs came across the Lugger, a 17th- century inn that had once been the haunt of smugglers and was being run as a hotel by third-generation hoteliers. It was a case of love at first sight. "We felt this could be a little gem and, with some work, could provide what we wanted," says Sheryl. When the Youngs first came on the scene, the Lugger was already under offer but the sale fell through, paving the way for the Youngs to make an offer that was subsequently accepted.
The Youngs traded for one season and then closed the hotel last October for a thorough blitz. It was, Sheryl recalls, a major task. Lots of internal walls came down and new ones were constructed. The property was completely replumbed, and had a new electrical system and new boilers installed. A pressurised water system was also put in, as Sheryl knew that her fellow countrymen, in particular, would insist on a good shower.
Sheryl also took it on herself to search out the details that would give the rooms a high-quality feel and put the Lugger in a similar price bracket to that of the Tresanton.
"People want a bedroom like the one they've left behind, but I also wanted the authentic character of the Cornish cottage to come out," Sheryl says. Bedrooms are styled on one of Sheryl's favourite hotels, Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica, California. All are decorated with bleached Portuguese woods, with Italian cotton and beds by Hypnos, deluge showers and aromatherapy toiletries in the bathrooms.
While the refurbishment was taking place, Austrian-born chef Franz Hornegger went to work with Anton Mosimann in London, to hone his skills and create a food style for the Lugger. "We felt that of all the food we ate in London, Mosimann's style of cuisine would suit our guests," Young says. "It's modern, imaginative and substantial enough. We use fresh produce and we're not into nouvelle cuisine." The result is a daily-changing, four-course menu with at least two fish options, devised by Hornegger and sous chef Colin Grigg.
And there's an ambition to achieve a Michelin star as well, with the promise for Hornegger of a Mercedes if he gets it - although Young acknowledges that this will be difficult to win with a daily-changing menu, where consistency can be hard to achieve. He also sees the food as another reason to charge high rates (bed-and-breakfast is available, but 90% of guests take the half-board option). "We know what goes into the menus," Young says. "An average piece of fish costs £7 a portion."
There are still things that need to be done. The hotel is currently closed, and will reopen on 1 February, giving the Youngs time to refurbish an old lifeboat house that sits on the sea wall. This will mean three extra bedrooms become available by Easter. And they will put the finishing touches to a spa room, where aromatherapy massages will be among the treatments on offer. The result will be a 20-bedroom hotel that the Youngs hope will generate £1m in turnover at the end of the first full year of trading. "Not bad for Cornwall," Young says.
Days spent at Tresanton now seem a long time ago, although the memories are happy ones. "Olga, I can thank for everything," Young says. "She employed me as a general manager, and it was through that I was introduced to my wife. And yes, she has visited us here. She's even recommended us when Tresanton has been full."
The business lowdown
Background
Reopened: April 2002
Average stay: three days (40% recommendation)
Seasons: low, February to April and November to December; high, May to October
Tariff
Daily rates, B&B (including VAT, based on two people sharing)
Superior rooms: low, £180; high, £200
De luxe rooms: low, £200; high, £220
Junior suites and terrace rooms: low, £220; high, £240
Daily rates (half-board)
Superior rooms: low, £220; high, £240
De luxe rooms: low, £240; high, £260
Junior suites and terrace rooms: low, £260; high, £280
Average achieved room rate, summer tariff: £170 excluding VAT (room and breakfast only)
Vital Statistics
Staff: 15 full-time
Restrictions: no children under 12; no animals
Covers in restaurant: 40
Anticipated turnover after first year of trading: £1m
Investment (including purchase price): £1.5m
Competitors: The Nare, Veryan; Tresanton hotel, St Mawes
The Lugger hotel, Portloe, Cornwall,
Tel: 01872 501322www.luggerhotel.com
What's on the menu?
£35 for three courses, including VAT Plus selection of cheeses, cafetière of coffee with after-dinner chocolates
Starters
Egg pancake with a spiced crab filling on a bed of carrot spaghetti
Tartare of salmon, tomato and avocado with herb oil
Velout‚ of artichoke with Gruyère cheese croutons
Warm salad of monkfish and Dublin Bay prawns with fennel butter vinaigrette
Mains Chargrilled beef steak on spring onion mash with green peppercorn jus
Skate wing served with nut brown butter, capers and red wine vinegar
Maize-fed baby chicken, lemon and herb dressing
Spaghetti with eggplant, tomatoes and mozzarella
Desserts Blueberry torte with clotted cream
Vanilla and mango bavaroise
Souffléd fritters and apricot sauce
