The Sportsman, Seasalter, Kent

I recently ate at the newly opened Koffmans in the Berkley Hotel and was quite simply blown away. Don't be decieved, if you are after molecular- gastronomical hi-jinx, "witty" interpretations of familiar dishes, or even "deconstructed" dishes then, Koffman's is probably not for you. If however, you wish to witness a masterclass in the running of a top end restaurant then I'm sure you'll leave, as I did, with a huge grin on your well-fed face. The dishes (scallops with squid ink and cauliflower puree, tournedos rossini and peach melba) were perfectly executed, their simplicity belieing the huge and intense hits of flavour that Koffman seems to effortlessly get from relatively plain ingredients. The service was both seamless and friendly, the wines were excellent with a good choice from the better value end of the price scale and the restaurant itself is both classy and comfortable. I, for one can't wait to go back!

Terrific! Great food , excellent service & v good value for money. Delicious bread. I had the scallops with black pudding & apple - good but quite small, unlike the other dishes. My companion had the terrine & accompaniments - perfect.

The pork belly was cooked beautifully,as was my companion's chicken. Good quality produce in both cases, with smooth,tasty mash.

My custard tart had crisp pastry & creamy, nutmeggy filling, althoughI wouldn't have paired it with rhubarb ice - cream.

There were some good wines to be had by the glass.

Good ambiance, efficient,knowledgable & friendly service.

I've had a lot less for a lot more elsewhere.

I think they could improve how they manage the process. When you arrive they explain that you have to look at the chalkboard to decide your order which will be taken in about 15 mins etc (it didn't actually take that long). It seemed to me that they could fairly easily run off daily menus & just cross items through as they finish .

Overall though, a great place , worth making the effort of getting to !

A little shabby, some would say trendy, we felt welcome had good service and my chowder was delicious!, but my wife had sea bass and at £22 was the most expensive fish course we have had with the SMALLEST fillet ever. We have eaten at The Ritz, Ramseys and other fine restaurants and even they dont charge these prices. Overall we had a lovely meal and good service but felt cheated by the vastly overpriced fish. As a footnote they sell whitstable bay oysters at £2.95 each! we had them in Quaglianos in Mayfair far cheaper even after shipping to London. Get the prices right and we would go back otherwise if I want to pay to £ I will go to Reads and have a bit of ambiance

Having read a scathing review in a local newspaper after having already booked (had to wait nearly 6 weeks for available table), I was a little apprehensive. I had nothing to worry about and quite frankly we had a lovely meal with great service. On arrival, yes we did have to look at the chalkboard menu and order there, but that added to the charm of the place. When seated we were presented with a wooden platter of Various home baked bread which was gorgeous. I had the Pork Terrine to start with with perfect accompaniments of sliced pickles, toasted onion bread, and mustard. Ray with cockles and black butter was cooked to perfection and I had the dessert of Cream Cheese Ice Cream with Pear Puree, Meringue and Ginger cake crumbles which was divine. We all had different selections and there was not a single dud dish, service was excellent and we were in no way rushed. All the food was presented beautifully and I woudl definately remcommend and will certainly go back.

tre bon

Was recommended to us so we stayed in Whitstable for a couple of days and went to the Sportsman for a meal. We was very disappointed with the service. We walked in and had to choose our meal from the chalk board at the bar, felt rushed. The food was good but not over exciting. The Duck was fatty, but the only good thing was the rhubarb sorbet. Wouldn't go there again in a hurry.

Yes the building is shabby but the food and the service are most definitely not. We had a starter between us as we do not eat loads at lunch. The blackened mackerel was full of fresh flavour. The roasted belly pork was the best I have tasted. The young staff were courteous and unobtrusive. We have paid far more for much less quality. We will definitely be going to The Sportsman again.

A very tatty building in a bleak location. The interior was not much better. Staff were either disinterested or supercillious. The meal was one of the worst I have ever eaten - in fact, I couldn't eat the main course. My so-called mussel and bacon chowder starter turned out to be a small dish of tepid pea soup with a couple of tiny, forlorn mussels and two small strips of very fatty pancetta. My main course of crispy duck was soggy and fatty rather than crispy, served with a rather pointless not to say tasteless salsa with sour cream and, strangely, 2 chunks of roast potato and some cabbage. My companion ordered lamb which was described as pink but was in fact raw. By dessert, we both had lost the will to live or to spend any more money on what was potentially another inedible course, so requested the bill - which was unacceptably high for what we had been given. Do not visit this establishment if you are looking for good food.