Jodie Kidd's ultimate West Sussex pub road trip
British supermodel-turned-landlady Jodie Kidd has a deep affinity for the rural charms, fiercely local spirit and bucolic beauty of West Sussex. The racing driver and self-confessed petrolhead (known for completing one of the fastest celebrity laps on the TV motor show Top Gear) grew up in this part of England and now co-owns a pub, The Half Moon in Kirdford, near Billingshurst. Here, she taps into the region’s burgeoning wine scene, seasonal food and just-caught fish from the coast through local suppliers. We caught up with Jodie, fresh from a children’s school-meal-delivery mission – ‘that’s what happens in lockdown, you become entrepreneurs’ – for her insider knowledge on how best to combine a West Sussex road trip with its finest pubs, and, of course, the driving.
Name five pubs you’d include on a road trip of the South East?
‘I’m going to have to be exceedingly biased and say I’d stick mostly to West Sussex, because there’s something so beautiful about the South Downs. They’re also accessible from London and the airports, and there are classic things to do, like going to Goodwood or Sandown, or visiting Brighton or other places on the coast. It’s got so many things happening the whole time. Many people think you have to go into Devon to get those tiny twisty lanes and beautiful rolling hills, and yet you can get that here, so close to London.’
The Hand and Flowers, Marlow
‘This is not in West Sussex but it’s not a million miles away. It’s a good place to start and is one of my favourite pubs. This is Tom Kerridge’s place, and it showcases what a pub can really be when you’ve got a chef like Tom running it or cooking in it. Not only is Marlow exceptionally beautiful but the food is extraordinarily brilliant. It’s obviously got its two Michelin stars, but it’s also got amazing rooms that you can rent – they’re dotted all around Marlow, and Tom’s done them up beautifully. This is a lovely place to start with an overnighter.
It is so seasonal that every time I go back it changes so much. But one detail I love is that it all starts with looking at the menu over a glass of prosecco with this smart rendition of a prawn cracker (melt-in-the-mouth stuff), whetting your appetite for an emotional two-hour food-extravaganza journey for your taste buds. I also highly recommend diving into the biodynamic wine list, which is truly sensational.’
AlamyThe Duke of Cumberland Arms, between Haslemere and Midhurst
‘I would then come down to another one of my favourites – a truly hidden, off-the-beaten-track little pub called The Duke of Cumberland Arms. Unless you know where it is, it’s hard to find. You literally have to come off a road, go 90 degrees left then drive down this tiny little track. A pub appears on the left hand side with these enormous outdoor firepits. It’s on tiered levels with big open areas and you have this watercourse that goes all the way through it. There’s a lovely, lovely restaurant there. The food is also exceptionally good, all cooked using local produce. The best element is (I hope they still do it) when they pick your fish from these large ponds and grill it for you.
We’re now getting deeper into West Sussex and this is where the driving side comes in – gliding along beautiful twisty, turny roads, through woodland and ancient forests then into open farmland and beautiful rolling hills.’
AlamyThe White Horse, Chilgrove
‘I’d go from The Duke of Cumberland Arms down to The White Horse, which is just outside Chichester near Goodwood. It’s a really pretty, pretty pub, right up on the South Downs. It’s perfect for combining with doing something at Goodwood, such as watching the Spitfires take off and land, which they do on most days; taking in a bit of car racing at the motor circuit; or playing a round of golf. In the last five or 10 years, the pub has had a real makeover and some fabulous chefs have come in, and it’s very locally minded. They really support all the local produce, especially meat from Goodwood. It’s a lovely hidden gem and has some great ales from local breweries.
You’re now going into a vast sparkling-wine region, with vineyards such as Nyetimber and Bolney. It’s becoming quite a hub for wine – we’re seeing what used to be arable lands turning into vineyards. It’s that very chalky base you get from the South Downs, and vines love it. We’re really starting to produce some fantastic sparkling and white wine – Bolney also does some red. So you must experience the local wines. I think in the next 10 to 20 years, these will start overtaking some of the French wines, because of the effects of climate change – we’re getting warmer, and places like Bordeaux and Provence are getting so hot that the vines are really suffering, so I think Sussex’s wine is only going to get better.
There are some lovely little B&Bs up there – there’s one that my friend Milly runs, called Saddlers B&B, in Funtington. It’s a beautiful house right in the centre of this British wine region and she does her own candles, flower bouquets from the garden and seasonal food. I highly recommend it – a great sleepover spot.’
The Half Moon, Kirdford, near Billingshurst
‘Finish at the Half Moon in Kirdford, near Billingshurst [co-owned by Jodie] for a lovely evening meal where you can sit out on our suntrap of a terrace. You’re eating and drinking among fragrant herb gardens and raised vegetable patches – you can see our chefs coming out and pulling up the carrots, cutting rosemary that will literally land on your plate half an hour later. It’s a beautiful spot to sit out and have a glass of rosé. We’ve got two rosettes so the food is gastro-pubby but still pubby, not quite Hand and Flowers level, but it’s a lovely little gem in a pretty Sussex village. We gave ourselves the task at the beginning to only bring in food and drink (apart from some of the wine, which comes from various parts of the world) from within a 20-mile radius where we can. This gives us the spoils of being so close to the coast, where we can get deliciously fresh crab and fish; then we’ve got Cowdray down the road, which has its own farm shop and produces top-quality vegetables and meats; and Goodwood. We’ve got this amazing family business nearby growing heritage tomatoes, called Nutbourne, and they’re bringing back all these ancient breeds of old English tomatoes; there are local asparagus farmers too. It’s all about championing these little cottage industries all around us in West Sussex. They’ve had a hard hard time over the past year, everyone has. The pub feels true to the area, both in food and the building’s style.
I’d highly recommend one of our homemade pies, they’re smart but hearty. We make our stocks three days in advance and they’re packed with flavour. We also do this delicious, simple, truffle macaroni cheese that comes in a gorgeous copper pot. I love to keep it simple, even though we do get wonderfully elaborate with our ingredients for the à la carte menus, but I have a weakness for the bar menus – a good old pie or Scotch egg. We do a great Scotch egg! One of my favourite things, pre-pandemic, was to come in every now and then to have a tequila Old Fashioned – people don't really think of tequila for an Old Fashioned, but we have this very special tequila, Pancho Datos, from Mexico, and they designed this cocktail for us that’s now my go-to.’
Watch what happens when top chefs Tom Kerridge and Nieves Barragán Mohacho meet for lunch:
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