A large imposing building facing the Old Steine's Park and Royal Pavilion on one side and the sea on the other, The Royal York Hotel first opened as grand houses in 1771 before being converted into a hotel in 1819.

Named after the Prince Regent's brother, Frederick Duke of York, in Brighton's heyday it was a fashionable Georgian then Victorian retreat.

The hotel played host to kings (including William IV), ambassadors (the Duke of York once sent a piece of sturgeon there from the Royal Pavilion for the Russian Ambassador to enjoy), prime ministers (Disraeli and Lloyd George) novelists (Dickens and Thackery) and even aviators (Wilbur Wright).

In 1929 the building was taken over and run down by the local council which used it as offices, before it was bought by developers, who also own the nearby Lansdowne Place Hotel, and renovated before reopening as a hotel earlier this year.

So, post-transformation, will the Royal York do justice to its glorious past?

First impressions are good, a bright clean lobby with a decent looking bar on the right, and restaurant to the left.

We ride the lift to the top floor where we've been allocated one of the eight apartments. Ours is cavernous, with one double bedroom straight ahead, and another on a kind of mezzanine overlooking the large living area, complete with kitchen factilities, the obligatory flat-screen TV and comfortable sofas.

There's two bathrooms, one with a shower adjoining the upstairs room, where we meet a teething problem - the heated towel rail doesn't turn off, which is fine for sauna-lovers but not great for everyday use. We put that down to the hotels recent opening - thankfully there's a bathroom downstairs.

The bedrooms are minimalist with some regency-style decor. Something feels less than luxurious about the apartments though - perhaps it's the plain kitchen cabinets, the attempt to mix old style with new, or maybe it's the quite basic bathrooms. It feels as if corners have been cut but the beds are very comfortable at least.

The crowning glory is a large roof terrace, accessed from the upstairs bedroom. We are lucky enough to be facing out to sea, with fine views of the beach and down Marine Parade.

In other rooms the Regency theme works better. At times it's gaudy and over the top, but it's suitably different to the same old 'minimalist boutique' trend. Two king rooms overlooking Old Steine have the most elaborate decor, one with a green theme the other purple. If you can stomach the colours the rooms look excellent. The standard doubles that we looked at are a bit cramped but have decent sized bathrooms.

For dinner in the elegant restaurant with bright bay windows we started with the Mediterranean fish soup. Melt in the mouth fish with just the right amount of spice in the soup, complemented by excellent paprika alveoli. A main of Scottish fillet steak is superbly succulent, about the best I can recall. Service is excellent, and the wine recomendation of a Chilean Merlot Reserve is superb and not too pricey.

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