Thirty Two

Eating

Breakfast is served on a communal table in the peacock-blue dining room. The tongue-in-cheek décor in here plays on dimensions with huge overhead lampshades, a massive bronze-edged mirror above the stone fireplace, and a pair of enormous bronze candlesticks dominating the dining table. It's slightly Alice in Wonderland. A beautiful Chinese screen adorns one corner and a big Asian painting covers one wall. It's a showcase rather than a utilitarian dining room.

The food is excellent. Fresh fruit salad, cereal and yoghurts to start; a variety of cooked dishes to follow. Ingredients are organic or locally produced, and you get your own mini cafetière or pot of tea. As you’d expect, orders are neat and exact (how many sausages? White, brown or granary bread? Buttered? Eggs on top or by the side?) and the meal nicely presented with top-brand condiments: seriously tasty. The communal table led us to chat to other guests over breakfast, but if you’re not a morning person you can opt for a continental breakfast in your room.

There are several good restaurants nearby for lunch and dinner, including the Michelin-starred Le Champignon Sauvage and modern British fine-dining restaurant Lumiere. The Jonathans can email you a list of suggestions beforehand and book tables for you, or you can just wander around and take pot luck. We ate at Vanilla on Cambray Place, with quirky décor, seriously good food - succulent slow-cooked belly pork, barbary duck with orange and cardamom sauce, vanilla crème brûlée - and a comprehensive wine list.