You may know The Alfriston (which you’ll unsurprisingly find in Alfriston in East Sussex) as Deans Place (no apostrophe!). It’s just re-opened its doors with its new name after an 18 month refurbishment, and Sussex Exclusive was delighted to be invited for dinner and to have a look around.
A little history
The Alfriston building was built in the 16th century. With views across the water meadows to the river Cuckmere, it was an important and grand merchant’s house. Dean (or dene or denu) is an Anglo Saxon word that means valley which explains the name. In 1554, the building was described as being part of the Sussex Estates of Thomas West, the 9th Lord De la Warr.
Over the centuries since, it has been owned and lived in by a number of notable Sussex families, and in the late 19th century it spent a period of time as a creamery! It’s been a hotel since the 1950s and in January 2024, it was bought by the Signet Collection – as their first Sussex hotel. Since then, it’s been undergoing a transformation and it reopened its doors in March (2025).
The new look
The new look includes their boutique hotel rooms and suites, their 1554 Brasserie and Orangery restaurant and and Godrey’s Bar, the outdoor pool, and opening in April, their spa. There are lots of nice finishing touches. The rooms are named after Sussex people and include a bottle of Madeira! They are nicely done, with some rich fabrics and of course, some of them have those fabulous views across the river.
There is lots of local art and some old photographs hung around the hotel, sweet jars in the corridor (I’m not sure if I could help myself) and a fire greets you on arrival. There is casual seating aplenty if you’re just dropping in for a quick drink and they are still offering afternoon tea (a favourite with lots of Deans Place fans).
What’s on the menu?
As always, we were keen to know about what Sussex suppliers and ingredients are on the menu. It’s a Signet Collection menu but I was delighted to hear one of the directors, Hector Ross, promise that “local” matters to them. To that end, they are using local meat, wine from Rathfinny (literally just up the road) and even wild garlic picked locally by the restaurant team.
The restaurant has a lovely warm feel and the staff are absolutely charming. With just the right level of attentiveness, they knew and understood the menu and answered all my many questions with ease. They were also able to help with wine recommendations. This was their first night of service so you expect a few glitches … but there weren’t any (well not that we saw!).
One of their signature dishes is Cauliflower Popcorn with teriyaki and a sweet chilli sauce. It is absolutely delicious and utterly moreish, and that was my starter (I may spend the rest of my adult life trying to recreate it at home) while my colleague had the Wild Garlic Soup, washed down with focaccia and wild garlic butter. So far, so good.
The Chicken Milanese with Black Truffle Oil met and surpassed my colleague’s expectations (he’s a bit of a chicken Milanese connoisseur) whilst I went casual with the Short Rib Chuck Burger with bacon and cheddar which hit all the right notes. I am not a big burger eater so they have to work hard to please me and this one did.
I always think it’s rude not to at least look at the pudding menu and that led us to a Creme Brulée Cheesecake and a Jam Roly Poly. Again rude to say no. Once again, our expectations were met and surpassed. Cheesecake can be risky but this had just the right balance of flavours and a firm texture while the Roly Poly was a much subtler and quietly more sophisticated version of its 1970s school dinner cousin. We rolled out of the restaurant happy and replete.
Alfriston is ever popular. It seems to pop up as voted “Prettiest Village in England” on an almost monthly basis. The new look The Alfriston looks like it’s going to be a great addition to both the Sussex boutique hotel scene and for those looking to explore Alfriston and the wider area.
*Our visit was by way of private invitation as part of a press event.*
If you’ve enjoyed this post about The Alfriston, you may also like:
