Plant Hunters’ Hangouts
Thirst and Hunger
Hunting for plants makes you hungry (and thirsty!). Here’s our guide to the places we visit when we aren’t tending to our Architectural Plants.
We intend to add to this list over time, as we are lucky enough to travel a lot for work and pleasure. We have also logged our favourite places to explore and rest that we have found on our travels.
Happy hunting.
Guy x
West Sussex – Within 10 minutes of the nursery:
Limeburners, Billingshurst
2.5 miles to the North of Architectural Plants, 5 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Close by, traditional pub grub which is always reliable. Nice front garden to have a sundowner. Small play area for children and dog friendly. Quaint.
The Bat and Ball Country Pub, Wisborough Green
4 miles to the North of Architectural Plants, 7 minute drive
Lunch, Dinner & Camping
Large pub with multiple seating areas inside and out. Plenty of parking. Good gastro style pub food, cosy fire place in the Winter and always friendly service. Feels family run.
The Rising Sun, Nutbourne
2.5 miles to the South East of Architectural Plants, 8 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Nestled in the centre of the picturesque village of Nutbourne, close to Nutbourne Vineyard (also worth visiting). One of the best cheesy chips we have ever had and an excellent Chowder. Best to get a table by the bar, good rear garden too. Look out for events as they often have bands playing.
West Sussex – Further afield:
The Horse Guards Inn, Tillington
11 miles to the West of Architectural Plants, 20 minute drive
Lunch, Dinner & Accommodation
Wonderful locally sourced, seasonal food, in a beautiful pub nestled by the church at Tillington. Lots of nooks and crannies to explore and beautifully decorated by the owners throughout the year. Well worth a visit, great wine list too. Recommend booking ahead and their Chablis (not so local, but damn tasty).
E.Street Bar and Grill, Petworth
10 miles to the West of Architectural Plants, 16 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Really nice vibe & interior inspiration. Small, sheltered garden to the rear for the warmer days. Great food and drink – a place to chill after a good rummage through the local shops. The velouté was excellent. Open Thursday – Sunday.
The Kennels, Goodwood, Chichester
19 miles to the South West of Architectural Plants, 30 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Like everything at Goodwood, it’s done so well. A sense of luxury, white tablecloths and fine dining but in a relaxed way. Book ahead. During Goodwood Revival we can be found amongst the plants on our garden design stand, join us.
Purchases, Chichester
20 miles to the South West of Architectural Plants, 31 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
The last time we visited it was a balmy Summer evening, the door to the garden was open – the perfect English day with a light breeze. Fantastic food, drink and service. Found on the high street and a good pairing with the Chichester Festival theatre, we sponsored their main show back in 2022.
Always worth booking as they get booked well in advance. Sausage dog, Aubrey, was well looked after.
The George at Burpham, Burpham
15 miles to the South of Architectural Plants, 27 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Since 2006 The George has been owned by the local community. Great walking nearby on the South Downs. Very secluded pub in a beautiful setting. Always love the food and drink selection – really worth the drive. Very reasonable for the quality – don’t miss out on their desserts.
JO.CO Café, Handcross
19 miles to the North East of Architectural Plants, 30 minute drive
Café
Drop in if you are heading to Nymans. Great coffee, cakes and pastries. Friendly welcome. Close to Pease Pottage, much better than a BK Whopper.
Tinwood Estate, Chichester
17 miles to the South West of Architectural Plants, 28 minute drive
Wine tasting & food boards
The wine tasting is great, especially on a warm day, but the real treat was their lunch. Pick your own food pots and picnic looking over the vineyard. Keep an eye out for their event schedule through their website. It was a winner with the Mother in Law.
East Sussex:
Rye Harbour Discovery Centre Café, Rye
74 miles to the East of Architectural Plants, 1 hour and 50 minute drive
Café
The perfect place for a hot drink and sweet snack after an often windy walk. Good for spotting Yellow horned poppies and birds, of course.
Surrey:
The Parrot, Forest Green
16 miles to the North of Architectural Plants, 24 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Set at the foot of Leith Hill (sort of). Good for walking locally and Redwood exploring on the East ascent, a place Darwin frequented. A bit more than pub grub, large restaurant and bar space. Plenty of parking. Excellent Sunday lunch. Dogs welcome.
London:
Thompson Deli & Baker, Streatham
40 miles to the North East of Architectural Plants. 1 hour and 14 minute drive
Deli & Café
Specialist deli, phenomenal bakery, sandwiches and much more. Good stop on the way in to or out of London. Fluffy, fresh donuts and Garlic stuffed olives are a winner.
Clayton’s Kitchen, Somerset
120 miles to the East of Architectural Plants, 2 hours and 33 minute drive
Lunch & Dinner
Really informal, foodie, chilled atmosphere – clearly a hidden gem for the local customer. Intimate café bistro feel but with sophisticated and unpretentious dining. Definitely book ahead.
Holland:
Wils, Amsterdam – Michelin star Restaurant
Lunch & Dinner
In the financial district, ignore the Michelin man in the reception – ride the elevator up to the rooftop setting. Warm welcome from the start, individual servings and explanations from each chef.
Extraordinary wood fired food. We particularly like the simple brussel sprout, dramatically served on a skewer. Well worth a visit if you are in the area – posh but understated.
Greece:
Stork Rooftop Bar, Athens
Bar, Lunch & Dinner
Head here from the Acropolis, rooftop dining with a great view. The best bowl of tomatoes we have ever eaten. Good vegetarian options, a superb lunch. Simple food brilliantly prepared. Only downer was the couple kissing on the balcony beside us… but those tomatoes made up for it. I am already looking forward to our next visit.
USA, California:
Great White Café, LA
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
After a stroll along Muscle Beach, yes we did see Arnie, we travelled up and down the canals looking at all the lush Podocarpus salignus. We deserved our Californian-style breakfast and juice, everything was perfectly LA. I’ll be back.
Erwin Hotel, Rooftop Bar, Venice Beach, LA
Peppers Mexicali Café, Monterey
Lunch & Dinner
Brilliant service and fresh local ingredients. Cute and local café style dining – just up the hill from Lovers Point Park. Well worth visiting the Monterey aquarium whilst you are in town – linked to the infamous HP printer brand.
Whale Watchers Café, Big Sur
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
All the way along the Big Sur you can see the most perfect pampas grass – grappling on to the edge of the steep cliffs. We were lucky enough to pick this café for our lunch. Really simple, no fuss, almost feels like they are more interested in their wonderful succulent collection as the chap spent a huge amount of time tending to them during our visit. View – insane. Make sure you do this drive.
We hope we’ve inspired you to go exploring too. If you’ve visited any of our recommended hangouts and enjoyed their grub, we’d love to hear how you’ve got on next time you visit us.
Enjoy our recommendations? We have also logged our favourite places to explore and rest whilst on our travels.