The owners of Ludlow’s Overton Grange – where French chef Claude Bosi won his first Michelin star in 1999 – have bought the nearby Dinham Hall hotel off a £1.75m asking price.
Franck Choblet, who bought the 14-bedroom Overton Grange in Shropshire for more than £900,000 in 2002, said he planned to introduce brasserie-style dining into Dinham Hall’s restaurant and develop the casual dining offer, especially at lunchtimes.
He added that guests at his new property would benefit from a new indoor pool offering spa and treatment facilities being built at Overton Grange.
Dinham Hall is a Grade II-listed Georgian town hotel dating back to 1792 that was created from two inter-connecting houses and which commands views of Ludlow Castle.
The property has 13 en-suite bedrooms to sleep 25 guests, two lounges, and the 20-seat Orangery restaurant with French doors leading to the garden.
The Merchant Suite, which can seat 30 diners or accommodate 80 guests for functions, has access to a decked terrace in the garden, also via French windows.
Other facilities include the Dispense Bar, a 14-seat private dining room called the Green Room, and a two-bedroom cottage for the owner or manager.
Choblet also runs the 120-seat Salway Arms on the A49 between Hereford and Shrewsbury, the first of a chain of branded food-led pubs he plans to develop with Punch Taverns.
The Cirencester office of Colliers Robert Barry handled the sale of the freehold.
By Angela Frewin