Nestled in a pretty, sleepy West Sussex village in the South Downs National Park, the newly-reopened Swan Inn in Fittleworth is looking spiffier than ever.
Once a drinking hole for the likes of JMW Turner and John Constable who swapped landscape paintings for free board (there’s a scattering of them still lining the walls of the dining room), this 14th-century boozer has undergone an extensive two-and-a-half year renovation under the watchful eye of the charming Sussex-born restaurateur Angus Davies.
Out went the lifeless greys and in came bold Edward Bulmer colour and playfulness, fine art and furniture, reimagined by Sussex-based interior designer Zanna Westgate, with lashings of fabric sourced from a roll-call of British interior design and auction houses: Penny Morrison curtains, Birdie Fortescue bedspreads and handmade lampshades by Imogen Pope.
Each room (there are 10 in the main building and two in the stables, all named after former guests) has its own personality, with roll-top baths and squishy velvet armchairs, some dog and child-friendly with their own little gardens.
Under wonky beams, locals and their gun dogs snuggle into seats next to down-from-Londoners, feasting on homemade venison sausage rolls and pints of Burning Sky and Harvey’s. Food is taken seriously here — though it's more posh pub grub than fine dining. In the wood-panelled dining room, seasonal dishes reign supreme. Think buttermilk fried pheasant legs, braised beef cheek with bacon, mushrooms and creamy mash, and puffy profiteroles stuffed with creamy honeycomb parfait.
There’s a jovial pub ambience that feels deliciously wholesome and relaxing, the sort where nobody cares if you get a little sozzled. And you will if Davies coaxes you into sampling his extensive Eau de Vie list.
Rooms from £195 on a bed-and-breakfast basis, swaninnfittleworth.com
