Back in the 17th Century, Nicholas Culpepper used medicinal herbs to cure the ailments of the day. And presumably accidentally poisoned a fair number of people in the process. He was the unlucky, but appropriate, namesake of this pub’s previous incarnation at Gatwick North, now thankfully consigned to the dustbin of history. We had a grim meal here a while back, with the burger causing intestinal aggravation for one of our party for much of the following day. So it is definitely ripe for a Gatwick Pub Review!

Fortunately its replacement, Sussex House, seems to try to drag the place upmarket, to add the right sort of gastro to the experience.

The staff were a little bit slow (in an uncrowded establishment) so we started to order from the app, which worked until we tried to pay. It kept refusing Apple Pay and was reluctant to accept a credit card. Fortunately a very helpful member of staff then turned up, and we were on our way.

The house lager is a bit so-so and we were very disappointed to find the English sparkling wine (optimistically called Fitz), was totally flat. It was completely obvious from a distance as the waiter was carrying it across that there was not a single bubble so the barman must have known at the time it was poured. Their excuse when the drink was returned and a new bottle opened? “Not many people order it”. Perhaps so but a) it was a much better alternative to the Prosecco, so shame on all previous patrons and b) so what, not our problem.

Anyhow, the food was something of a revelation. It arrived very quickly, but both the fish and the gammon were really top end. Whitby quality fish? Pretty much (but then I don’t rave as much about the Magpie as some of my Northern family). The chips, not so much. They were definitely out of the fryer too soon, and were a little cold because they had been partially cooked from frozen, not because they had been left out and neglected. At £4.50 for a small portion (only the fish had chips thrown in) this was poor value.

However, the staff were friendly, and it is a relatively nice spot in the late evening (by Gatwick standards) and much, much nicer than the bar at the Hampton where we were staying, so we remained for another drink. Pretty good music, too, so a nice location for a pre-holiday meal, and so much better than its predecessor (Thank you, thank you, whoever decided on the makeover). Happy to be able to have done a positive Gatwick pub review!

Rating: 4/5

Sussex House: https://www.gatwickairport.com/restaurant-directory.html