Review of The Grand Eastbourne 150th Anniversary Afternoon Tea

Sweets and pastries at The Grand Eastbourne

This year, The Grand Eastbourne celebrates its 150th anniversary, writes Nick Mosley, and maintains a crown of being one of only two 5-star full service hotels with direct sea views on the south coast of England.

If walls could talk, then the White Palace would have a lot of beans to spill, and we’re not talking the baked kind served at breakfast.

Even by mid-Victorian construction and aesthetic standards, the commandingly elegant 120 metre long white stuccoed facade must have been quite a sight when the build was completed in 1875. However, it wasn’t nominally built as a hotel but rather a private residence for William Earp and his family, including an extensive brood of 13 children.

Although the details are now somewhat muddied in the annals of history, its fair to say that Mr Earp always had plans to utilise the property as a hotel, but following a spat with Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire – one of the most powerful people in England at the time who also owned the land the property was built on – everything ended up in court and the building was sold, only then to become a hotel anyway.

The Duke’s imposing statue still sits on the Western Lawns, keeping a eye on the comings and goings of The Grand.

The opulent Great Hall at The Grand Eastbourne

As you’d expect over the years, a luxurious property of this calibre was a popular destination for the great and good who wanted to not only take in the fashionable sea air but also see and be seen alongside their contemporaries. As well as gentry and industrialists galore, notable guests have included Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton, Sherlock Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, prime minster Sir Winston Churchill and actor Charlie Chaplin.

However, The Grand’s connection to music is probably its greatest cultural legacy with visits from the likes of classical composers Edward Elgar and Claude Debussy, the latter of whom finished the score for his famous ‘La Mer’ during a month or so period in 1905 in the hotel’s suite 200.

Due to its impeccable acoustics, the Great Hall of the hotel was also longtime home to BBC radio classical broadcasts on Sunday nights from 1925 to the outbreak of war in 1939.

It was to the Great Hall that I headed with my friend for a spot of Afternoon Tea on a gloriously sunny Tuesday afternoon at the end of April. My thought being, if you can’t enjoy a treat on a Tuesday, then when can you? I even ironed a shirt and popped on one of my few blazers for the occasion.

The Grand Eastbourne's 150th anniversary afternoon tea

Executive chef Hrvoje Loncarevic and his brigade of chefs have crafted an exquisite – and thoroughly indulgent – Afternoon Tea with tiers of sweet and savoury pastries inspired by the history of the hotel.

Served in the elegant surrounds of the Great Hall, we enjoyed three tiers of savoury pastries, theatrical miniature cakes and sweets, finger sandwiches with traditional fillings – and of course the crusts neatly cut off – and the all important scones with jam and cream, or savoury cheese if preferred. We enjoyed a glass of fizz and ginger and lemon tea, on the basis that the health benefits of one would cancel out the other.

Everything is lovingly handmade and skilfully baked in The Grand’s kitchens by their accomplished pastry section, and that – trust me – is now a rarity with many hotel Afternoon Tea offerings.

Afternoon Tea is priced at £36 per person from Monday to Thursday or £40 from Friday to Sunday, with an additional upgrade if you’d like to savour a glass of Canard-Duchêne Champagne.

The hotel has been very sympathetically restored over the past decade or so by owners Elite Hotels. The heritage has been absolutely respected but there has been gently considered modernity added in furnishings across public spaces, dining rooms and accommodation. The hotel exudes history and understated style but in absolutely no way feels intimidating or fusty.

I’ve long been a fan of The Grand hotel in Eastbourne – I had an exceptional lunch at their Mirabelle restaurant in February – yet I admire the property not only for the premium food and drink offering. Its also for the highest levels of seemingly effortless professional service that are shared by not only the older hands but also the new blood who are making their first forays into the world of hospitality. Nurturing skills and training – and installing the values of a historical brand with its eyes firmly on the future – are undoubtably going to be the success of any hospitality business.

In addition to their 150th Anniversary Afternoon Tea, throughout this year The Grand is hosting one-off dinners and music-led events to celebrate the journey of the property. Also keep an eye on their social media channels for the chance to get your hands on an overnight stay for just £99 per night. She might be 150 years old but this Grand Dame of the south coast is as relevant today as she was when the doors first opened in 1875.

Nick Mosley

The Grand Eastbourne, King Edward’s Parade, Eastbourne BN21 4EQ

01323 412 345 • www.grandeastbourne.com