Goats and ducks graze on the green. It is quaint and very English. You almost expect children with apple-rosy cheeks wearing smocks to be playing Pooh sticks on the small bridge. In essence it could be an ad agency's dream setting for depicting a rural idyll.

What you don't expect to find is a boutique hotel and café which is bang on the money when it comes to ticking all the style boxes. But that's exactly what the this place is all about. This art nouveau house has been turned into a gorgeous hotel by Lizzie and Graham Clarke.

Lizzie has impeccable design credentials from running La Maison Deux in York, and designing restaurant interiors. The hotel rooms incorporate French furniture as well as Eames chairs, mixed with beautiful soft furnishings and accessories. It is modern and original. The enterprise is a family affair with Natasha her daughter running the café with her partner and chef, Alexander Perkins.

Stepping inside feels like another world. A place where Carrie from Sex and the City would feel very at home – more Notting Hill than North Yorkshire, and all the more precious for it. You could have died and gone to fashion heaven.

Stacks of Vogue, black sofas and turquoise wallpaper in a sun-filled room off the café makes a great place for guests to drink coffee. Anyone can pop in for cakes, lunch or dinner.

In the café, silk-panelled curtains by Designers Guild in pink, turquoise and lemon give a refreshing shot of colour. There are white heavy statement chandeliers, large French mirrors and a banquette seating heaves with silk embroidered and velvet cushions. Tea lights, huge candles and strings of glass beads reflect the light.

Here you feel you want to dress for dinner and bring your best friend and best Prada handbag.

We had a bottle of Cava Segura Vidas Brut NV for £18.95 – a nutty style and a smooth fizz felt like the right way to start the evening.

The food is traditional, English and strictly seasonal. It's a relief that Alexander's approach to his menu is to re-work classics and give them a twist while retaining their simplicity. There are dishes of grilled John Dory, belly pork and confit of duck with red wine shallots.

Alexander previously worked at the Blue Bicycle in York and the Schoolhouse in Malton. What adds to the uniqueness of the kitchen here is that its strictly a one-man show. For someone so young, his confidence and delivery is outstanding.

To start, the oxtail terrine with celeriac slaw was rich and suprisingly light. Served with a home-baked onion Chelsea bun bread, this seemed a quirky touch and was delicious. By the time the main courses arrived it became apparent we were in good company – Sir Tom Courtenay no less.

One of his party announced it was the best meal she'd had in years. I resisted going over to ask him to read the menu as I'd forgotten my glasses.

Pan-roasted organic salmon with bubble and squeak served with cheese sauce, and a herb side salad offered fish that was generous, plump and perfectly cooked. Cheese is not an easy combination to get right with salmon but this was creamy and held the whole dish together. Bubble and squeak did just that to the palate, and added to the humour of the dish.

Roast cod and creamed potato with a mustard crumble and cider and leek stew sounds like a dish with an awful lot going on. It lifted the cod with a fusion of different consistencies and flavours. For a girl who's lived close to the sea to say this was the nicest fish she's ever had is quite an endorsement. The chocolate fondant dessert was meltingly delicious. Served with orange and raspberry sorbet, the warm chocolate sauce fitted perfectly with the zestiness of the fruit which also took the richness off the sauce to the right level. Other desserts included Eton Mess, buttermilk pudding with poached rhubarb and brown bread ice cream.

The service was impeccable. Discrete and charming, Natasha worked the room in her gladiator sandals like the perfect hostess. With starters from £4.95, mains from £6.50 to £16.95 and desserts at £4.95 this is exceptionally good value. It may all look exclusive, but the prices certainly aren't. Dinner for two with a bottle of Cava came to £59. The consensus from the couple at the next table was great atmosphere, lovely service and delicious food.

What Alexander and Natasha have done is complement the beauty of the interior with food that has style and substance. All tucked away in an enchanted valley just waiting to be discovered. On leaving we checked the visitors' book. Yorkshire's favourite movie star had written: "What a lovely surprise". We couldn't think of anything better than that.


The Valley Hotel and Café. Address: The Woodlands, The Valley, Sandsend, Whitby, North Yorkshire, YO213TE 01947 893272.
Scones, cakes and a range of coffees throughout the day and also a lunchtime menu available. Open for lunch, afternoon tea and dinner.