PERHAPS the greatest compliment I can pay Queens Hotel is that there is a constant sense of peace.

This is Cheltenham’s most renowned hotel, situated in the heart of the town and home to a busy restaurant and bar, with 84 bedrooms filled by guests with high expectations and function rooms to boot – yet there is a calm to Queens rarely found at popular grand hotels. Not a single member of staff, from the manager to the barmen to the chambermaids, looked stressed or harried; that’s not to say they were not working with haste, simply that everything was under control.

To me, that sense of everything moving seamlessly is a sign of a truly top class hotel. This meticulous organisation and the ornate design of the building put me in mind of The Grand Budapest Hotel, while the word that sprang to mind was impeccable.

Perhaps it is the history of Queens that inspires its staff to make sure everything is perfect. Named in honour of the sovereign and opened in the year of Queen Victoria’s coronation, 1838, it was later listed as a Grade II building in acknowledgment of its opulent design and period details. Now rated four star and part of the boutique MGallery by Sofitel collection, it has just been extensively renovated and the refurbishment has been sensitive to the regency features that earned the hotel its listed status - the original wallpaper by Augustus Pugin in the hallway and staircase is among the highlights – while providing modern comfort.

Our room, the Sherbourne Suite, was an ideal combination of period style and modern comfort: a vast raised bed fitting for King George III (one of the hotel’s more famous guests); an equally huge flatscreen TV; a marble-surface bathroom with a huge shower and a roll-top standing bathtub; views of the Promenade and Imperial Gardens.

Cheltenham is renowned for its restaurants and the one within Queens, the Napier, is among the finest. We were seated in the Orangery section, which has large windows with views of Imperial Square but still holds a warm atmosphere, and the food from starter to dessert was exquisite - actually, even pre-starter was superb: the bread (sourdough and pumpernickel loaves fresh from Hobbs House Bakery) and green olives (simply on ice, not marinated) were far beyond the usual fare.

I began with the seasonal soup of parsnip and honey with parsnip crisps (£7) while my companion went for the asparagus and poached hen’s egg (£7.50). For main, I had the roast free-range chicken (£18) and she plumped for the 10oz rib-eye steak (£25). To finish, I chose the lemon and thyme sponge pudding (£6) and she decided on the Pimm’s and lemonade jelly (£6.50). Based on our experience, the AA Rosette that the Napier has had for many years is thoroughly deserved.

The drinks on offer were equally excellent. With the meal we had a Grenache merlot and afterwards we stopped in at the hotel’s bar for a gin and tonic, mine with Cotswold Dry Gin and my companion’s with Monkey 47. The barman made the drinks with real passion and precision, guiding us through the various ingredients, and the result was fantastic.

In fact, his preparation of those two G&Ts was like a metaphor for the whole hotel: passion and attention to detail combining to perfection.

5/5

Rooms at Queens Hotel in Promenade, Cheltenham, start from £118