Twitchers can twitch well at Titchwell on the north Norfolk coast. It is one of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds’ most visited reserves with something for everyone in all seasons. There is beach and dunes and tidal marsh seawards; and coming inland, freshwater marsh and reed beds and wet grazing meadow with judiciously placed hides.

All year there is a chance to see barn owls; in winter, wild fowl like widgeon and Brent geese and golden plovers wing in; spring, the avocet come to breed; in summer, marsh harriers quarter the reed beds in which the bearded tits nest; in autumn, rare passage migrants pass through – ruffs, godwits, little stints and curlew sandpipers.

From the outside, the hotel is not particularly attractive, unless you are a fan of Victorian brickwork, as it was built in 1890. The bar, lounge and dining area is also personally not to my taste, but is to that of the owner Margaret Snaith, who clearly likes big leather sofas, and glass tables and white walls making it a bit minimalist. And I’m not a great fan of those big white lilies whose scent can be quite over powering like (I imagine) the scent in a Turkish bordello. But the saving grace, as far as I was concerned on a cold and wet early March afternoon were the real fires, dutifully roaring.

Margaret and husband Ian bought the place in 1988 and with son Eric as the chef, it is very much a family run business. Over the past 20 years the Snaiths have made it into a stylish place to stay and a popular place to eat. The bar does tapas all day and a wet and windy afternoon was made most pleasurable by being able to read in front of the fire, drink IPA at an agreeable £2.50 a pint and snack on cockles, real pork crackling (don’t choose if you have dodgy teeth) and marinated sardines, all of which were under £3 a dish.

There are 26 rooms, half of which are at the back away from the A road from Hunstanton to Cromer which may make it a bit noisy in the summer if you have one of the rooms at the front. But you should ask for one of these first floor rooms if you want to look out across meadow and marsh and dune to the beach and the North Sea beyond. The rooms at the back are light and airy and have been built recently in a quadrangle around an attractive herb garden.

They have tiled floors, heated ones in the bath room, and the furniture is of washed pine and the fabrics reflect homely and rustic Norfolk tastes. Each is named after a herb in the garden. One detached room is offered to honeymoon couples and is called the Potting Shed - not the most romantic of names. But it packs some ‘wow’ as it is large and luxurious and features a huge bed and a heart-racing stand alone roll top bath, all in all an inducement to consummation …

Many of the pictures that grace the walls of the hotel, both the public areas and the rooms for guests, are moody originals reflecting the extraordinary light of this north Norfolk coast. They are by local artist Claire Riseborough and she has captured the shifting layers and patterns of the land and the sea and the sky in an abstract way. Walking in the late afternoon on the beach, with the rain having blown away, the greys and blues and mauves of the big wide sky were stunning, and the reflected light in the pools of the salt marsh made the water look like liquid mercury. On the beach, sand from the dunes was being blown seawards, curling and twirling in mesmerizing patterns. It’s no wonder that artists like Claire are attracted to this coast.

Dogs are welcome in some rooms at Titchwell and ours were well pleased with their own towel, bean bag and bowl with tasty little doggy snacks in it. Cats, budgies and even a hamster have stayed and Margaret is eager to make everyone’s stay as comfortable as possible. She is present and pleasant, just the sort of person you want as front of house manager.

The evening meal was taken in the conservatory restaurant in which the rattan furniture was more to my taste. Candlelight is all very well but it was so dim that I had difficulty locating my Bloody Mary. But when my eyes became accustomed, I appreciated the straight forwardness of the menu BEEF, SQUID, LIVER, LAMB, etc (followed by a brief description of how it was prepared and what accompanied it) and the rounded prices.

It seems pretentious to have a dish at £8.95; nobody sitting down to a meal in a decent restaurant is going to quibble over five pence. As is the trend, much of what was on offer was locally sourced – a half dozen Brancaster oysters £9 and Brancaster mussels poached in white wine, cream, lemon and thyme £6 as a starter or £9 as a main dish. Although not available when we stayed, regular main courses are local lobster, crabs from Cromer and venison from Holkham.

Being within whiffing distance of the North Sea, it seemed appropriate to have fillet of wild (can you also farm them?) seabass, salt cod rosti, honey braised chicory with black olive oil for £17 and deep fried haddock with hand cut chips and minty mushy peas for £11. A crisp Valle Dorado Chardonnay from Chile at £15 a bottle was enjoyed both with these main courses and the local oysters and mussels that preceded them. A complimentary chilled pear and orange smoothie refreshed the pallet nicely between courses.

The following morning the sun shone brightly – a little too brightly for the conservatory. But a large patio umbrella was manoeuvered by Garfield from Jamaica so that we didn’t have to squint at our fresh fruit and yoghurt. The full English was completed with excellent slabs of granary toast cut by hand with ample butter (not wrapped in foil – a pet hate) and lip-smackingly good homemade marmalade with just that hint of tartness that sets you up for the day…

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