 Local records going back as far as 1642 indicate that the land was owned by the Priory of St Andrews as part of the Priory Acres and it was known as the "Ruch (pronounced "ruff") Flets", which in the Scots tongue, means "rough, flat lands".The house was bought by George and Margaret Cook and Anna & James Meldrum in 1952 and turned into one of the UK's first country house hotels.The hotel is still in the same family and has been rated by The Automobile Association as one of the top 200 hotels in Britain since 1999.