The George in Rye

Arriving at the hotel was like stumbling onto a secret. Beautiful entrance, with attentive and friendly service from the quaint main desk reception. The room was elegant. We ate at the hotel restaurant, wherethe food and service were excellent. I highly recommend a visit.

Firstly parking is an issue as the High Street where The George in Rye is situated is both very narrow and busy. You will be certainly lucky if you manage to get to park outside and drop your bags off. Parking is relatively nearby and cheap in the nearby market car park at £1 for 24 hours, this however is not good for visitors that have a problem with walking as the hill is very steep and it is a good five minute walk.

Upon arriving on a Sunday lunchtime the hotel was very busy, which was to be expected given the reputation of the hotel. Although this does mean that the chances of you being able to check in promptly were extremely slim, if not non-existent. Finally after about a 10 min wait and a member of staff finally walking past we were able to check in.

We were shown to our room (seven) and our bags promptly followed. I was surprised that some of the rooms were on the Main High Street, thankfully our room was on the street to the side of the hotel. The room was on the small side, this I could excuse given that we were in the lower end of the Hotel’s pricing structure. What I couldn’t excuse was the state of the carpet. It had more stains than the front room of any halls of residence living area. I wouldn’t expect this from a hotel that was so popular and one that appears on Mr & Mrs Smith.

Thankfully we were moved to another room (three), which was everything I expected from The George in Rye, well decorated, comfortable and with the Aveda/Ren products you find in hotels of a similar nature. Although the room was again situated on the street to the side of the hotel, it did not pose any problems with noise.

The Courtyard is a lovely place to enjoy a few afternoon drinks with the sun beating (weather depending) down on you. To accompany your afternoon drinks the bar (The George Tap) has a good selection hot and cold of bar snacks available.

The restaurant focuses on a Mediterranean theme with a focus on fresh and seasonal ingredients, sourced from the local farms. Although we were too late to book a table in restaurant (it is advised you book early), we ate in The George Tap. The food (Seared wood pigeon breast, Ribeye steak, and Vanilla pannacotta) on the whole was well prepared, rich in flavour, and good value for money. As for the service: The food was delivered promptly and we were well looked after by the bar staff.

Overall I would suggest that the service you receive from the staff can be hit and miss depending on who might be working, although none of the staff seem particularly well trained compared to other hotels of this nature.*

For somewhere to eat away from The George in Rye then I would recommend The Fish Cafe. For those looking for light snacks, the café will provide from 11 am onwards, whilst on the first floor the restaurant opens from 6 pm to 9 pm every night of the week. A function suite provides ample space in this historic listed building for up to 70 people. There is no denying the obvious and fish predominates on all the menus but carnivores and vegetarians are by no means precluded.

In the café expect to find a good range of starters, shellfish platters, main courses and puddings with a special menu for children. Much the same approach prevails upstairs in the restaurant, except that the choices tend to be rather more sophisticated and substantial, which is naturally reflected in the prices.

*Please note: since Matt visited, the hotel has changed their General Manager and has recruited some new staff.

Had a lovely lunch of bubble and squeak with bacon and eggs in the Hope and Anchor pub overlooking the harbour.

Having recently stayed at the George in Rye I can thoroughly recommend the hotel for a romantic getaway. After dining in the hotel restaurant on our first night (very good), we ventured to the Fish Café on Tower Street for our second evening. Attentive service, good wine and well worth the visit for the reasonably priced seafood. We both ate lobster for a fraction of the price we'd normally pay in London. However, back at the George, it seems the hotel has implemented a new bar policy on Friday and Saturday nights. Whether this is just for the summer months I am not sure – but the only people allowed to drink in the bar on these nights now are hotel guests and their friends and those dining in the restaurant. So, if you're staying at another hotel nearby, you can no longer drop into the George for a quick pint on a weekend after 7pm. The reason for the policy, apparently, is to keep noise levels down for hotel guests – fair enough if you're staying there. But on our visit, we heard some very disgruntled, respectable locals voicing their disappointment to the manager. For us, though, it wasn't a problem. On a much-needed and awaited romantic getaway, and after a marriage proposal written in the sand on Camber Sands that morning, my partner and I were only interested in each other and our bottle of celebratory champagne.

A fantastic hotel for a cold winter weekend! Make sure you book into the Aveda spa for some treatments. There's nothing nicer than coming back to the hotel after being pampered, to curl up in front of the fire with a bottle of red wine. Bliss!!

We had a fantastic 24 hours at The George – absolutely lived up to – in fact, exceeded all its promises. Dinner and breakfast were delicious. We were tempted to have lunch there too but thought we ought to venture out. Katie, the owner, recommended a pub just down the hill in Rye called The Ship. It was spot on. Blazing fire, lots of comfy chairs to choose from and quirky original decoration. Delicious lentil, ginger and lemon soup followed by scallops and risotto for me and chicken liver on toast for my husband. Highly recommended.