#TROYTribe - The Star with Alex Polizzi

Alex Polizzi - The Star

Rosie, our co-founder, recently visited fabulous hotelier & television personality Alex Polizzi at The Star in Alfriston in East Sussex for a weekend of breathtaking walks, delicious food and great chats.The Star provided the perfect backdrop for a few photographs to be taken of Rosie and Alex sporting some of TROY London’s key pieces.

We caught up with Alex about her love of the area and why East Sussex is so close to her heart.

Plus we teamed up to bring you the chance to WIN the ultimate the ultimate British staycation in glorious East Sussex worth over a £1,000!

One lucky winner will WIN one nights stay for two at The Star with Dinner and Breakfast as well as a £500 Gift voucher to spend at TROY.

“I love this area, because I know it very well. Partly it is familiarity; of the walking around here and the landscape. My step dad was born and brought up in this area and still lives in the house he grew up in, and so I spent many, many years walking the downs, going to Glyndebourne, going to the book shop in Alfriston. Kind of enjoying that there is so much on offer here. I felt like this was my chance to be part of the countryside that I already loved. I didn’t have to force myself to, its quiet gentle compares to Cornwall which can be fairly brutal, this landscape of rolling hills and raviolis landscape is I think quintessential England to me."

"One of the walks we do is walking from my dads house in Fiston to Alfriston where there is this wonderful book shop we used to go to and have tea and scones in one of the many book shops and we saw the star slowly go downhill, it was in decline for many years before we brought it and in fact we almost bought it in 2018 but got cold feet and backed out and then I was inspired funnily enough by one of the pubs I was advising professionally and this man was so passionate about his product and so brilliant at what he did and I really missed the opportunity to make my mark and affect the changes to make the business successful. So I managed to persuade my mother and we took the leap."

Watch Alex's Interview

The Star is a striking grade II Listed 15th century building in the medieval village of Alfriston, that reopened in June 2021 after an extensive renovation, with Olga and Alex Polizzi at the helm. Alfriston is in the South Downs National Park, close to the historic town of Lewes and to both Glyndebourne Opera House and Charleston. Walking around the Cuckmere Valley is a great way to take in the incredible surrounding landscape of the Seven Sisters and the South Downs. The hotel can recommend cycle hire, walking routes, and can even provide a rucksack picnic for guests to take on a day out.

The front of the hotel, known as The Inn, opens onto the High Street, and offers relaxed all day dining with local beers, open fires and oak beams. The library is a sanctuary for guests to enjoy a cup of tea or something stronger, play one of the board games or take a moment to read a book from the bookshelves. The library has a secret door that opens onto the restaurant at the heart of the hotel. The restaurant has its own inner courtyard, created as a lovely spot for warm weather dining; this highlight of the hotel has a Mediterranean feel, with interesting climbing plants, lots of terracotta pots and unique trellises made by the local blacksmith. The restaurant serves simple, unfussy dishes with a focus on clarity of flavour, and the ever-changing seasonal menus utilise the abundance of exceptional Sussex produce.