Articles by Daphne Colthard

About Daphne Colthard

After graduating at RADA but finding no roles Daphne went into magazine journalism with Good Housekeeping. Widely recognised as one of the country's leading restaurant and hotel reviewers, particularly by herself, Daphne is the author of "Bedded and Breakfasted", a light hearted chick novel and Grand Hotels DC: the Daffers Dictionary. Daphne lives in West London and is married to an investment banker Oliver. They have 2 boys Humphrey and Tarquin. More Posts

Chewton Glen Hotel

I had a traditional, typical Xmas – i.e. a ghastly one. Our son Tarquin, now married, stayed with his wife Hyacinth and their two young children. Our other son – Humphrey – arrived with his new girlfriend Bracken. Bracken, a moody, pouting girl, made it quite clear that she did [...]

January 3, 2025 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/Bocca di Lupo

The favourite Soho trattoria is something of an institution. Alice (Mansfield) told me that George Melly, best known as a jazz vocalist, used to meet fellow Surrealists at the Barcelona in Beak St; artists have long patronised the drinking clubs of Soho, notably the Colony Club – of which [...]

December 5, 2024 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard restaurant wrap-up

After visiting the Thyssen collection I suggested lunch at a restaurant El Rincon d’Esteban in a side street near our hotel and opposite the parliament The Cortes. In my experience politicians know their food though expect others to pay for it and apparently use El Rincon. We recced the [...]

November 18, 2024 // 0 Comments

First day in Madrid

Picking up where Nancy left off we arrived at Madrid’s Barajas airport without incident. I would note that security at Gatwick was oppressive with the staff delighting in confiscating liquid items such as Bob’s perspirants and shaving foam. I also noted that dress standards had dropped. Time [...]

November 16, 2024 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/Tea at the Grand Brighton

In all the years I have been reviewing for The Rust I have never covered afternoon tea though it is now a popular though not inexpensive experience: Bob Tickler’s charming P/A Polly once paid £200 for tea at a high end London hotel. This may be as hotels are still recovering financially from [...]

November 1, 2024 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/The Pig on South Downs

I have visited this restaurant several times and yesterday went there with an old friend in the advertising industry who knows his food and wine. From the moment we arrived at the attractive hotel in Madehurst near Chichester he was impressed. There was a mix up with the booking dates (my fault!!!) [...]

September 26, 2024 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/Crab & Lobster (Sidlesham)

Yesterday I arranged lunch with an old friend – a scion of the advertising industry who is well used to fashionable London restaurants. So I was slightly apprehensive about how he would react to a gastro pub in Sidlesham to the south of Chichester particularly as it was raining. This did not [...]

July 16, 2024 // 0 Comments

Stamford

After a relaxing and enjoyable stay with some old friends, I decided to visit for the first time the Lincolnshire town of Stamford. Stamford was originally the refuelling place for the coach and horses trip to Scotland. It also has the palatial home of William Cecil, Queen Elizabeth I’s most [...]

July 2, 2024 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard/The Arlington

As the saying goes: “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it …” The Arlington has the same location, decor and menu as La Caprice – the only difference is the name and ownership. It’s the latest venture of Jeremy King, late of the Wolseley. When I went there last Thursday I felt I [...]

May 18, 2024 // 0 Comments

A la Colthard: José Pizarro and the Brass Rail

I was in London last weekend and checked out two restaurants with an ethnically gastro theme. The first was José Pizarro at the rear of the Royal Academy. His schtick is Spanish cuisine. I like Spanish cuisine and tapas has created the idea of the shared platter. I invited Alicia who generously [...]

April 28, 2024 // 0 Comments

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El Cid/The book and the film

January 12, 2025 // 0 Comments

I was recently given a new biography of El Cid, the Spanish 11th Century knight, by Nora Berend, a Cambridge University historian. Her thesis is that Rodrigo de Viva – [...]
The Tanner Report: Fulham 4 Watford 1

January 10, 2025 // 0 Comments

Reporting on this victory is secondary to commenting on the decline of the FA Cup in my lifetime. The year of my birth (1954) witnessed what many consider the greatest game [...]
Foreign detective writing

January 9, 2025 // 0 Comments

We tend to assume that only English-speaking writers can write detective novels. In Britain the genre is dominated by women – Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Marjoriec [...]
Surprising actors in a 1980 TV series

January 8, 2025 // 0 Comments

On Monday I watched Bergerac, now shown at 3.00pm on the UK Drama channel. It featured – as Belle Young, an eccentric boatowner and smuggler – the 1970s actress [...]
The Tanner Report: Fulham 2 Ipswich 2

January 6, 2025 // 0 Comments

Against Wolves, Southampton – and now Ipswich – Fulham have earned just 2 points, but 5 against Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea. We do better against the big boys. [...]