Britwell Salome Restaurant Guide

2023 Review: Chef-patron Olivier Bouet, who had presented “excellent rustic French cuisine” at this Chilterns village gastropub for five years, recently moved on, and the new owners reopened in July 2022, announcing their plans for an ‘eclectic modern British menu with South African influence and popular grill favourites. Every item on the menu will be made on the premises’. It’s a big change of style, hence for the time being we’ve left it unrated.

“The cheese toasty eaten in a cowshed is excellent” at this “Home Counties middle-class rural equivalent of street food” on a family-owned dairy farm, with hay bales to perch on. It’s pretty basic, so you need to “wrap up in cold weather as it’s in an open-sided barn” – and you’ll “need to navigate around the Audis, Volvos and Mercedes in the car park”.

There’s “an unashamed emphasis on pork” (as per the name) at this “excellent find in Wallingford”, co-run by the founders of local offy The Keep, and launched via crowdfunding; “the scotch eggs and doughnuts are justifiably lauded” and all part of the “comfort therapy” the venture provides (be it via bottomless brunches or a range of small plates). Locals “feel very lucky to have such a lovely restaurant nearby”, while out-of-towners scouting for a new home are “hoping we find one, as I want to come back soon!”.