Au Périgord Noir

If you want a fantastic view from your room and a wonderful dinner this is the hotel for you. I think this is our third visit. Madame is wonderfully welcoming and if you don't speak French her English is excellent. The rooms are spacious, spotlessly clean and the beds are extremely comfortable. Husband is a bit sniffy about the module bathroom which looks very plastic but it offers plenty of room and the water pressure and temperature of the shower is excellent. It is also spotless. The hotel is completely accessible for anyone in a wheelchair and there are specific parking spaces right by the entrance door of the hotel if you have mobility problems. The outstanding thing about this hotel is the food. In the UK I would usually say do not eat in the hotel dining room, go find a decent restaurant but here I would say don't bother using your car and having to forego having some alcohol. You will have 3 choices for starter, main course and desert. Amazingly for France this includes a vegetarian option for the starter and main course and I have been known to take those excellent options. Tonight I started with layers of black pudding and apple topped with the lightest of pastry with a gentle flavoured curry sauce accompanied by a mix of dressed salad leaves which was excellent. I had very favourable reports of husband's starter too. Then for me it was sturgeon, beautifully presented with long-stemmed brocoli, pea shoots, leek and a bed of mashed potato. The sauce was beautifully delicate, a lovely shade of green and to my shame I can't remember what its ingredients were. Husband went for the duck which looked superb, just slightly pink and beautifully tender. The sauce looked so good I mopped some with my bread and it was excellent. We both went for the cheeseboard which included 5 types of cheese, mixed leaves dressing walnut oil and very fresh tasting walnuts. Cheeses included a gentle sheep cheese, a hard cheese from Dome which tasted a little like a sharp parmesan, a cheese with truffles with a lovely flavour, a really good blue and I can't remember the 5th. Portion size was excellent so I could manage 3 courses. The wine choice was great. We went for Ca Sulfit Bergerac because we liked the word play (Ca suffit = that's enough - as in fist banging on table Sans sulfits means without sulphites in the wine, which most wines have) and it is organic and entirely Merlot grapes. The scent was lovely and tasted velvety smooth. Breakfast is a little disappointing in comparison but absolutely OK. Plenty of choice. There is a swimming pool which looks ideal for use at the right time of year. The views, as mentioned, are fantastic and for many rooms will include the Chateau Hautefort which is a must see. In terms of architecture you will ask yourself how on earth planning permission was granted for the hotel because it is not at all in keeping with the area. The current Mo sieur et Madame had nothing to do with the original build. This y

The hotel is easy to find with ample free parking available. We were welcomed by Clare who speaks excellent English. The rooms are large, quiet, comfortable and well appointed. The restaurant serves good quality food at a reasonable price. Some of the rooms have a view of the chateau at Hautefort.

The hotel at first seems basic, but the rooms are clean and airy. It’s a super quiet location. The lovely swimming pool is a nice addition. The food menu seems quite gourmet and I was sceptical, but it turned out to be very tasty and superbly well cooked and presented. A great meal! Clare is very nice and speaks very good English. We couldn’t fault the place.

I arrived at the hotel with the England Universities Rugby team mid afternoon on the 4th May and from the moment we arrived to when we left Claire and her husband were amazing hosts. Our party of 37 had the hotel fully booked and the facilities were spot on with the pool and grounds providing us with the perfect areas for players and staff to relax. The food was plentiful and delicious and nothing was too much. The afternoon before our game there was a superb banana bread as part of the snacks and it went down a strong with the players. It was so popular that Claire and her husband stayed up late to make more for our match day breakfast. We won our game and again after the match and up to the point we left the hospitality was amazing. The players and staff thoroughly enjoyed our stay and it was a perfect place for our preparation and I can’t wait to come back with my family for a holiday here.

We really enjoyed our stay. Claire and Laurent were very good hosts and very kind to our little granddaughters. The food was excellent. Lovely swimming pool and a pretty terrace with views of the countryside.

Un cadre agréable. Nous avons pu dîner sur la terrasse extérieure. Le service était rapide et assuré par une équipe sympathique. Mention spéciale pour la patronne qui a de l'humour!! Des plats locaux copieux et raffinés ! Un très bon rapport qualité/ prix ! Un agréable soirée dans ce restaurant que je conseille vivement !