Artichoke

"At last the French booking agency cum restaurant guide has come to its senses, and, not for the first time, Laurie Gear and Ben Jenkins demonstrated why this restaurant has been in the Good Food Guide top 50 for so many years. This was possibly the best meal we’ve had here, once again demonstrating the positive attitude to developing new dishes and combinations of flavours and ingredients that always has been the marker, with special mention in this respect for the “seasonal vegetables” dish which was so good we even thought there might possibly be a chance of our being persuaded to become vegetarians, although that would mean missing out on many of the marvellous dishes set before us here. The 8-course tasting menu is de rigueur for us and, headed up by the lovely black ale bread with malt vinegar butter which went beautifully with the amuse-bouche of pumpkin velouté topped with roasted seeds to set the taste buds trembling. A starter of superb smoked haddock tartare with russet apple and perfect horseradish cream had us smiling in appreciation of the match of textures and tastes, and our curiosity about the next dish of seasonal vegetables was soon satisfied when we were assailed by the nose of black truffle which blended so well with the Lancashire bomb cheese, enoki and roasted hazelnuts in a sort of umami taste attack. Absolutely mind-blowing! In a departure from the usual local sourcing of ingredients, the next course was Landes quail with perfect stuffing and a memorable quail tea, and that was followed by skate just how it should be served, off the bone with a super shellfish sauce and cauliflower brought to new heights. My wife chose venison for her main course which was tender and full of the proper game taste one expects from smoked saddle, while I opted for duck, another wonderful confirmation of this kitchen’s skills and highlighted by delicious smoked morteau sausage and a lovely maple and clementine glaze. The soaked goat’s cheese balanced perfectly with quince, crab apple jelly and celery led us into one of the best pre-desserts ever with rhubarb presented in two guises, poached with crême brulée and lemony biscuits, and in liquid form as a cocktail with ginger. The stunning chocolate dessert, a dark chocolate tart with nuts, pear slices and pear sorbet made for a suitably excellent ending to an outstanding meal. Dining experience rating: 18.5/20"

"This was our fourteenth visit in the last three years to the Artichoke and in that time have become good friends with owners Laurie , Jackie and head chef Ben. So therefore when the announcement came on Monday 7th October that they they had finally earned the distinctive honour of holding a Michelin Star ?? I couldn't have been more pleased. The food here has been so consistent and we've even noticed that on our last three or four visits this has definitely risen to the next level. The imagination and creativity using excellent local produce in order to put these fabulous dishes in front of their customers is amazing. Their front of house team has also been very good over the years which is now under the leadership of manager Jerek. Once we heard the exciting news we really couldn't wait to pay another visit and luckily that happened to be yesterday. So on a nice bright saturday we headed from east to west and enjoy another nice afternoon in the lovely little town of Amersham. As soon as we entered the restaurant you could still clearly see that everyone was still on a high from receiving the fantastic news. So after our nice friendly welcome we was escorted to our table in front of the fabulous wine rack which obviously used to be a fireplace. While we were given the menus to look through they poured us a glass of complimentary champagne as part of them celebrating the achievement with their customers. There are five menus to choose from the Lunch , A la Carte , Lunch Tasting Menu and a short six course and long eight course Tasting Menus. We decided to choose the eight course tasting menu as since it had been a few months since our last visit all the dishes were new.?We started with the fabulous Chiltern Black Ale Bread which this time came with a Bee Pollen Butter. This was followed by a delightful little Amuse Bouche of Taramasalata , Cucumber & Kohlrabi to cleanse the palate before we moved onto our first course a Seafood Ravioli with Pumpkin Veloute & Sea Herbs. The next course was definitely one of the highlights a Truffle Choux Bun with Lincolnshire Poacher , Cep Ketchup & Salsify and with the mixture of hot and cold this dish was stunning. We then moved on to our next course of Pan Fried Duck Liver which together with Poached Quince & Spiced Bread was a little taste sensation. This was followed by the Atlantic Halibut with Squid , Mussels , Seaweed and a beautiful Shellfish Miso. Now it was time for the main course to which their is a choice of two a Venison Saddle smoked with Douglas Fir and served alongside Venison Salami , Beef Dripping Potato , Red Cabbage & Beetroot and the other a Chalgrove Estate Partridge with a Black Pudding Tartlet , Morteau Sausage & Golden Raisins. Both dishes were amazing but I have to say my choice of the Partridge was without doubt the highlight of the day. During our little rest before we moved onto the next course it was nice of Laurie & Ben to come over for a quick chat and therefore gave us the opportunity to personally congratulate them on their prestigious award. Now we moved onto the cheese course a delightful little combination a Panna Cotta of Blue Murder with Roasted Walnuts , Black Figs , Apple & Celery. This led us onto a delicious palate cleanser of Poire William Sorbet with Poached & Pressed Pear a mixed seed Tuille & Vanilla Cream Cheese. Now it was time for dessert which was a very good Blackberry Baba with Somerset Apple , Brandy Ice Cream & Sorrel. This was paired with a Familia Castano Dulce Monastrell sweet wine with flavours of Plum Jam & Dried Figs which was nice & light and therefore a So another fabulous lunch at the Artichoke is brought to and one in which I'm looking forward to repeating again in the near future. It really is worth making the the trip to this great little town of Amersham and enjoy for yourself a fantastic dining experience at this amazing restaurant. Even if you can't make it for lunch you could stay overnight in one of the hotels on the opposite side of the road.?Congratulations once again to all the team at the Artichoke on receiving a Michelin Star perfect match. We then finished with a coffee & Petit Fours to end a fantastic lunch. "

"`Not the best evening we have had here and possibly the last, nothing hugely wrong perhaps because this was our first time upstairs and it was a busy Saturday. From the start the cucumber foam amuse bouche was not very impressive perhas it needed a couple of additional touches the rest of the meal was OK if rather small portions we ate from the short a la carte but they seemed more part of a "tasting" menu, having a young waitress reciting the ingredients in a very blurred French? accent was not a helpful addition. We were rather underwhelmed."

"A very pleasant Tuesday lunch with friends. Tasting menu and wine flight."

"Once again this was another fabulous visit to the Artichoke which is set in the lovely town of Old Amersham. There's always a friendly welcome on arrival as there was once more on this occasion. When you arrive the staff will have a nice little friendly chat with you before being escorted to your table. The food created by Chef Patron Laurie & Head Chef Ben has always been excellent and they often change at least one of their many menus which is great especially if your local and a regular diner as there will always be something new for you to try. This is one of the main reasons why we try to visit whenever we can. Another reason is they also have a great young french team of waiters & waitresses who are very friendly , engaging & professional.?Our table on this occasion was right next to the open kitchen giving you a great view and to see all the hard work that goes into creating the fabulous dishes that appear in front of you. While the team of chefs are busy working hard Laurie & Ben are on the pass adding the finishing touches to make sure every dish is perfect before it's sent out. They have an amazing selection of menus to choose from which caters anywhere from a quick lunch to the Full Eight Course Tasting Menu. We decided to choose the Tasting Menu as it was the most recently changed and full of New dishes.?While enjoying our aperitif the Chiltern Black Ale Bread arrived accompanied with the heavenly Lamb Fat Butter. This was then followed with our Amuse Bouche which was a Cider & Pickled Onion Veloute. It was now time for our first course the Lyme Bay Crab with Heirloom Tomato , Passion Fruit Dressing & Basil. This was a beautiful dish that really refreshed the palate and a delightful way to start. Our next course was the Wye Valley Asparagus with Lincolnshire Poacher & Nettle Pesto a perfect blend of freshness from asparagus with the creamy texture of the cheese. We then moved on to the next course the Quail Breast served in a Cup & Saucer with Quail Tea , Confit Leg & Mushroom Cannelloni. A very clever dish and full of flavour. It was now time for a fish course the Chalk Stream Trout with Artichoke Barigoule , Almonds , Rye Bread & Brown Butter Hollandaise which was an absolute delight. Next to come was the main courses to which there was a choice of two so we decided to have one of each. The first being the Saddle of Scotsgrove Lamb with Lamb Sweetbread , Cream Cheese Tortellini , Broad Beans , Peas , Carrots & Nasturtium. The other main course was a Loire Valley Poussin with Wild Garlic Kiev , Mushroom Ketchup , White Asparagus & Leek. Thsee were two amazing dishes and perfect for spring time. Now we moved onto the cheese course which did divide us as it was a Cheese Soufflé with a Stinking Bishop cheese sauce. My wife who loves Stinking Bishop was in heaven but it was a bit strong for me so as much as I tried I couldn't finish it all. This was followed by our pre dessert & a delight it was to Gariguette Strawberry with Lemon Verbena Cream , Strawberry Sorbet & Shortbread. This was served with a Strawberry & Cremant Cocktail. We then finished with a stunning Warm Chocolate Tart with Raspberry , White Chocolate & Lemon Thyme Sherbet. If I could have brought some home I would have it was amazing. We then finished with Coffee & Petit Fours bringing to an end another fantastic visit to this great restaurant. I would highly recommend a visit not just for the excellent food & service at the Artichoke but also the Old town of Amersham has some delightful friendly hotels where you can stay making it ideal for an overnight stay or a lovely weekend away. I'm definitely looking forward to my next visit which hopefully won't be to far away.. "