Review by Fiona Duncan, published 19th August 2007.
Cornwall, travel journalists like me will keep telling you, is - dread phrase - the "new" Côte d'Azur. Its coasts are slowly but surely becoming littered with soothing havens for style victims where they can enjoy the simple life and the bare necessities: Champagne bars, in-house cinemas, in-room beauty treatments, pillow menus, hot tubs, wifi internet and so on.
'Most, I'm sure, will find peace and contentment at this fine hilltop, stone-built house'
And what of those of us who search, not for fashion's latest foibles, but for charm, character and tranquillity in a hotel? Is there a restful, unflashy place in Cornwall that serves good food and has a beautiful view?
The Well House, close to the coast at Looe and in reach of the Eden Project and Bodmin Moor, should fit the bill.
For years it was owned and run by Nicholas Wainford, and was noted as much for its food as for Nick's personality and hands-on approach.
On his retirement last year it was bought by Richard Farrow, a jovial ex-marketing man from Nottingham, and his wife, who have moved in next door.
Wainford's excellent head chef, Glenn Gatland, relocated to Hell Bay Hotel in the Isles of Scilly, to be replaced by his former second-in-command, Tom Hunter, also highly competent. All is well at The Well House.
Past guests might bemoan the fact that the feeling of being welcomed into a private home is less marked, but first-timers will have no objection to the present, less character-led approach.
New visitors - and I encourage you to become one of them - won't remember the front door flung open by Nick the moment they arrived instead of having to tinkle a little bell for attention; they won't regret the passing of squashy sofas in the sitting room, and the advent of modish, if anonymous, new ones; and they'll certainly appreciate the white, airy, sophisticated dining room with its smart leather chairs and its stunning views across the Looe Valley.
Most, I'm sure, will find peace and contentment at this fine hilltop, stone-built house, as did its first owner, a successful Victorian tea planter (leaf tea - 50 types - has become a feature of the hotel in his honour) who returned to Cornwall for his retirement.
The original, beautifully tiled hall, the staircase, and the woodwork are as new, and the richly decorated bedrooms (the best have patios) are extremely comfortable.
There are also some beautiful wooded grounds with some delightful corners - a heated swimming pool surrounded by flowers, a large tennis court, and those views.
Though the personal touch may be missing (Richard's warm personality could always be put to good use by flinging open that front door, as of old), the key staff are welcoming and it's easy to relax.
We even made new friends. Mind you, it wasn't difficult. Not when the gentleman in question sitting beside us in the bar before dinner (delicious canapés) was pouring over the score of Falstaff by Elgar, who just happens to be my relative.
We got chatting, and discovered that he was a conductor. The following weekend we went to see him perform his Falstaff and thought of him preparing it, sherry in hand, at The Well House.
I love connections like that; it's what hotels should be all about - not pillow menus, but people.
St Keyne, Liskeard, Cornwall (01579 342001; www.wellhouse.co.uk). Doubles from £210 per night, including dinner, bed and breakfast.
