Hidden Treasure

TO say that Losehill House Hotel is tucked away would be an understatement. It’s hidden up a singlelane track from pretty Hope village, and regulations mean that the signage has to whisper, not roar. But once enough guests have made it there and seen the view to Win Hill from the dining room, word of mouth will do the rest. Owners Paul and Kathryn Roden have had Losehill since last autumn, and their innovations have included developing beauty treatment rooms to complement the sauna, terrace hot-tub and small-but-sweet pool. Mindful of the fact that many guests will have spent the day getting muddy, their aim is to create somewhere appealing but relaxed.‘We fell for the location and the facilities, and we want our guests to be able to enjoy them without standing on ceremony,’ said Paul.‘We wanted to make it comfortable.’ The aim with the food is ‘good quality, local, interesting, but not pretentious.’ Chef Darren Goodwin is in charge of putting that idea on the table. He wasn’t able to make our Peak District luncheon, so on the day guests were in the hands of sous chef Rian Skidmore, with wines capably introduced by assistant manager Rob Chapman. House Champagne, the awardwinning Gremillet Brut NV, fuelled enthusiastic appreciation of the idyllic view from the dining room, Inside, pale yellow walls, classy furniture and lots of room for lounging made it perfect for a summer lunch. Vanilla-speckled rolls pointed to a sense of adventure in the kitchen (buttered and surreptitiously sprinkled with salt, they were delicious), and a starter of asparagus and goats cheese also took a less-travelled path by wrapping wedges of the ashcovered cheese in a coarse herb crumb. Asparagus, a real joy at the beginning of the British season, doesn’t take well to any wine but the gooseberry notes of the Sancerre Michel Girard 2007 sat happily with the goat’s cheese, pine nuts and crisp
leaves of ruby chard. Looking out over classic Peak sheep-farming country gave some of us a moment’s guilty pause when plates of roast fillet of local lamb were distributed by restaurant manager Laura Pettit. Served with a warm dressing of diced tomatoes and good oil and a collection of super-cute baby vegetables, it was a deliberate step away from wintry lamb stews and braises, and all the better for it. Non meat-eaters had very fresh fillets of sea bass given the same treatment, and here the mound of quinoa with the astringent, lemony scent of sorrel came into its own. Gigondas Domaine la Haute Marone 2005 was big, but not too big, with lots of red fruit and just a little spice. Dessert, served with an irresistible sparkling rose,was a crisp millefeuille with a smart stripe of raspberry and lemon and basil mousses, berries and a pleasingly intense raspberry sauce. It’s always a shock to the system when a long lunch ends and you have to rejoin the real world, but the wrench was felt particularly keenly by guests leaving this beautiful spot behind - for now.