Ambitious new plans for village pub

Brazilian chef Nilton Campos has taken over at the helm of the Wheatsheaf in Henfield after carving up a successful career in his home country, New York and London.

The Wheatsheaf promises to be a friendly social hub where guests can pop in for a drink or sit down to enjoy home-grown, locally sourced food.

As a young boy Nilton grew up on a farm – and he plans to develop the garden at his new country pub to make it a relaxing outdoor area where guests will share the space with some of the produce he is growing for the kitchen.

Nilton said: “We want to establish a relaxed identity where people can enjoy some really good quality modern European cuisine, with a Brazilian twist.

“Everything will be home-made, even down to the bread. We have returned the pub to its original name, the Wheatsheaf, revamped the inside area and knocked through a large hatch, so our customers can see what we are cooking in the kitchen.

“This is just the first phase – we will then move on to the garden, growing as much of our produce as we can. What we don’t grow ourselves will be fresh and locally sourced.

His partner in the venture is his friend of more than two decades Matt Jacomb, who has helped to shape the Gastropub scene in London for the past 25 years.

The Wheatsheaf opened its doors for the first time last week and began serving evening meals within days. This week the kitchen is adding its lunch service too.