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Royal Mail Hotel

It takes just one bite of Dan Hunter’s calamari – micro-scored and garlicky, with ginger and squid ink rice ‘cake’ and a dehydrated squid ink ‘wafer’ – to appreciate the remarkable substance to his radical style. Hunter produces innovative food to be enjoyed at one or several levels, inspired by years as head chef at Mugaritz, the acclaimed Spanish bastion of post-Adrià cooking. The smoked-tuna broth with shoots, flowers and wafers of vegetable and fungus confirms his ability, and the wow-factor extends to desserts such as ‘broken frangipane’, studded with candied black olives, served with arbequina olive oil ice-cream. The wine list is remarkable in its depth, admirably served by sommelier Lok Thornton. The room, adjoining the hotel’s bistro and bar, is unexceptional but plans are afoot to build a restaurant space more befitting so special a dining experience.