Updown Farmhouse in Kent is a secluded guesthouse home to a restaurant, bar and private event spaces for both intimate and showstopping occasions. Set in a 17th-century farmstead just outside Deal, the family-run hotel and restaurant sits within seven acres of Kent countryside, with gardens, woodland and a collection of bedrooms and cottages spread across the grounds.
For the smallest gatherings, The Library (also known as the orange room) can be closed off for up to 12 people seated or 20 standing, while the Private Dining Room in the farmhouse conservatory seats up to 20. French windows open onto its own garden, so drinks can spill outside before or after dinner, and, in good weather, guests can even dine outdoors.
Larger celebrations can move into the main Conservatory and Pergola Restaurant, which accommodates a mix of capacities: 40 people seated on one long table, up to 80 in a normal restaurant style, or 150 when standing. For the biggest commitment, the whole house can be taken over, with bedrooms for up to 22 guests plus a drawing room, library and honesty bar - particularly special for birthdays, family gatherings or celebrations that would be made even better for lasting more than an evening.
At Updown Farm, design is also a big part of the appeal. The restaurant sits beneath characterful grape vines amid original 17th-century brick, with chefs working from an open kitchen around a wood-fired grill and farmhouse bread oven. Elsewhere, converted stable rooms retain exposed plaster, original beams and individual art, while the farmhouse itself has Georgian windows, deep baths and views over the gardens.
As for the food, think hyper-seasonal, with an Italian back-bone and driven by local and European produce, with everything cooked over wood. Sample dishes include buffalo mozzarella with figs and prosciutto, fazzoletti with Sicilian pesto, porchetta with peppers and olives, baked monkfish with saffron and mussels, and a 1kg T-bone to share.