When you’re treating yourself to a night away, there is a lot to be said for seclusion. But this is a matter of psychology as much as geography. The Whitebrook restaurant with rooms is, in reality, eight miles outside Monmouth, half an hour from Brecon Beacons gateway Abergavenny, and an hour from Bristol. But on a dark winter’s evening, as I climb out of the Wye valley on to narrow, icy lanes sparsely dotted with cottages, it feels remote. There is no traffic. No phone signal. I can feel real life receding in the rear-view mirror. For a night, I’m free.
The Whitebrook capably maintains this illusion. A one-Michelin-star restaurant with eight bedrooms (and surprisingly competitive midweek rates; see below), it sits below a steep wood overlooking that eponymous brook. Outside, running water is the only sound you can hear. Inside, all is calm. The ground floor is low-ceilinged, timbered – stylish, but modestly so – and divided between a lounge and the dining room. Artful pools of light and candles penetrate its inviting, dusky recesses. Sade wafts silkily from hidden speakers to reinforce the chilled-out vibe. Service is, likewise, warm and relaxed.
The bedrooms include four recently refurbed superiors (swanky bathrooms, muted colour schemes), and four older standards that, if a little dated, have good fabrics and handsome furniture: down pillows and crisp cotton bedding, handmade Sedbergh toiletries. Certain details – a profusion of naff paper drinks coasters, a scruffy old kettle – are less impressive in a venue aiming for real luxury. In the bathroom, wall-mounted soap dispensers and the fixed-head shower feel more Travelodge than Relais & Châteaux. These are tiny details, but chef-owner Chris Harrod did not bag that Michelin star without being fastidious.
In the post-Noma fashion, Harrod’s food is driven by the seasons and rooted in its locality, highly technical but natural-looking on the plate. Welsh meats, heritage veg and obscure foraged items, such as hedge bedstraw (no, me neither) are prominent. A dessert of poached pears, with lactose crisps and almond crumble, is given a clean, medicinal edge using powdered maritime pine.
At its best, cooking at this level has its own irresistible logic. It combines unexpected ingredients in such a complementary way that it opens up astonishing depths of flavour. For me, not every dish quite hits those heights.
An amuse-bouche of broccoli mousse with candied walnuts and perl las (pearl blue) cheese was like a car veering on to a motorway’s rumble strips. You could see where it was going, but the ride was bumpy. A sea bass main was merely a very good, technically accomplished plate of food.
The Jerusalem artichoke starter, like that dessert, better testified to Harrod’s creative elan. The lightly caramelised artichoke pieces stood upright, like standing stones, in a thickened pool of goat’s curd, interspersed with earthy shards of fried skin, delicate strands of trompette mushrooms, parmesan and “forest findings”, such as pennywort. A rosemary milk foam, suspended like cuckoo spit between the artichokes, made it look, beautifully, like an aerial view of a forest clearing in winter. It offered endless layers of contrasting flavour that was deployed delicately but confidently.
Although his treacly stout bread is not at its best served as toast, Harrod’s full English is unusually tasty. Ace bangers and bacon come from the renowned Trealy Farm.
Later, whether you choose to explore Monmouthshire’s castles or the Forest of Dean, walk Offa’s Dyke or head into the Black mountains, there is plenty to do. But that all involves going out, back into the real world. Potter around neighbouring Margaret’s Wood nature reserve instead and, for a few hours longer, you can remain gloriously off-grid.
• Accommodation was provided by the Whitebrook (01600 860254, thewhitebrook.co.uk), B&B and dinner for two people from £214 a night. Travel between Manchester and Abergavenny was provided by Arriva Trains Wales, arrivatrainswales.co.uk
Ask a local
Vicki Spencer-Francis, creative director, Abergavenny Food Festival
• Drink
With its roaring log fire, the Foxhunter bar at Abergavenny’s Angel hotel is a great place to while away your time in winter. In summer, the Saracen’s Head near Monmouth is a favourite with canoeists and walkers, and you can cross the river Wye by the ancient hand ferry.
• Walk
Three of Monmouthshire’s nine castles – Skenfrith, Grosmont and White – are connected by a 20-mile circular walk. Stop afterwards for a tipple at The Bell at Skenfrith. The Sugarloaf, Skirrid and Blorenge mountains loom large on the horizon. For a treat, try Shaun Hill’s Walnut Tree restaurant below Skirrid.
Abergavenny Food Festival is on 17-18 September, abergavenny-foodfestival.com
• Shop
Visit Ancre Hill Estates for local wines or Raglan’s Untapped Brewery. I also love Marches Deli in Abergavenny and Usk farmers’ market every first and third Saturday.
