Rooted in the present
The Priory Bay hotel on the Isle of Wight may be built on land previously occupied by medieval monks, Tudor farmers and Georgian gentry, but owner Andrew Palmer (founder of the New Covent Garden Soup Company) is making sure it won't be rooted in the past.
His aim with the 18-bedroom hotel - which has eight cottages located around the courtyard and opened just over a year ago - is to make it "a modern country house hotel … without any of the formal constraints and hushed tones often associated with the drawing rooms of country hotels".
This modern touch has been transferred to the monthly changing menu. It is split into a table d'hôte with seven starters, five mains and seven desserts (£23 per head without wine) and an à la carte with six starters, seven mains and desserts from the table d'hôte (averaging £26 each without drink). Recipes, created by head chef Yannick le Francais - promoted from the position of sous chef four months ago - and his kitchen brigade of eight, are described as modern European with a deep foundation in classical French cooking.
Essentially, says le Francais - who consults on menus with Alex Gautier, head chef at London restaurant Roussillon, also owned by Palmer and his brother James - the dishes are lighter and slightly less traditional than those of other country house hotels, with an emphasis on using as many local ingredients as possible.
A typical example from the à la carte starters is the salad of grilled magret of duck with nuts, apples and pears (£10). It shows off not only the local produce, but also the menu's strong leaning towards seasonality. Le Francais says pairing the duck with the fruits was an ideal way of promoting the seasons to customers. From the same selection of main courses, the roasted pigeon with a Champagne sauce (£16) highlights the French connection, with some birds as well as a little foie gras imported directly from there.
Not surprisingly, with the hotel in such close proximity to the sea, fish and seafood are strongly evident throughout the menu. From the starters, roasted monkfish stuffed with herbs and wrapped in bacon (£10) is popular, as is the main course of sea bass à la provençale, which features pan-fried sea bass on a bed of seasonal vegetables, with tomatoes and olives and a drizzle of olive oil.
Bringing out the best of the seafood is a dish soon to earn its place on the menu - a crab ravioli with local crab and a basil-infused sauce (£7). Palmer is so confident in the quality of fish and seafood he buys that in July he opened the Priory Oyster Seafood Café, which operates during the summer season only. The 65-seat eatery serves cuisine described by Palmer as "a mixture of Brittany, with traditional fruits de mer, and simple barbecued fish".
Desserts have more of a Mediterranean feel. Tiramisù, crème Catalan and banana mousse with caramelised pineapple are favourites with diners, who eat in the hotel's two dining rooms, with 70 and 30 seats respectively. Customers are mainly hotel guests during the week mingled with tourists at weekends and in the high season. They are looked after by restaurant manager Jane Hodder who heads the front of house team of up to six.
The Priory Bay hotel, Priory Drive, Seaview, Isle of Wight PO34 5BU. Tel: 01983 613146
