Horncastle Restaurant Guide

2023 Review: “Still going strong” – this comparatively un-foodie pub has thrived in this gourmet village by offering an attractive and traditional backdrop for easygoing British cuisine, realised with wit: fish finger sandwich, steak, top burgers and so on.

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“Wonderful food” that provided some reporters with their best meal of the year has developed a very loyal fan club for Ryan & Liam Simpson-Trotman’s well-established rural venue, in a converted pub. You don’t have to eat from the taster menu – there’s an à la carte option with two courses for £65 per person – but the most ambitious offering runs to eight courses and £120 per person.

This “thatched-roof, quintessentially English pub” on the Phillimore Estate wins raves for its “outstanding food” (not least a “stunning value” set menu) – perhaps no surprise given that it’s run by David Holliday and Alex Sargeant, ex-of London favourite the Harwood Arms. It’s “great in the summer sitting outside” but “great in the winter” too, courtesy of its “cosy” interior (and “they also have a burger barn if you‘re looking for something more casual”).

“Old-fashioned, but in a top-quality way” – this Thames Valley stalwart enjoys “an outstanding location on the Thames” at Sonning Eye and is “like a step back in time”. Owned and run by the Emmanuel family since 1972, its interior is “comfortable and rather cosy and romantic too”; and you are well looked after (“even though we were the only diners on that particular occasion there was no sense of being rushed”). The odd reporter feels its “solid British menu” (with the speciality of their signature spit-roasted duck) is “due an overhaul”. But that’s a minority view – most of its (silver-haired) fans like it just the way it is. Top Tip – exceptional wine from the list: “it’s a Bible”. (The future direction of the business is slightly unclear. In September 2023, it was put on the market for £12m with Michael Emmanuel announcing: “It’s not easy to say goodbye to a place that has been the heart of our family for so long, but we’re eager to see the next chapter of its storied history unfold”. The asking price subsequently dropped to £8m several months later and as of October 2024 the restaurant’s website reads: “The French Horn has not been sold and is still being run enthusiastically by the Emmanuel family.”)

“Other restaurants in the vicinity attract more hype – and even have stars – seemingly because they have a ‘TV chef’, but they really aren’t as good and cost much more” than Michael Mcdonald’s high-quality fixture (one of the top-100 most commented-on spots outside London in our annual diners’ poll). Some compare the experience to being “like dining in a back living room” – not all together a surprise as it’s part of a house that was in fact once home to TS Eliot – but the main events here are the “beautiful precise flavours” of the “excellent and reasonably priced” food and “wonderful polite service”.

“Excellent pub food in Chilterns countryside” is to be had at this cosy seventeenth-century country pub in the hamlet of Roke, near Wallingford. The straightforward menu specialises in grills, and if you still have room for cheese afterwards there’s a notably good selection.

“Lovely as ever and long may it continue” – Giancarlo & Katie Caldesi’s “welcoming” country venue (their flagship is in Marylebone) provides “wonderful Italian cooking”, including “silky-smooth homemade pasta” and “top-quality, tender calf’s liver in white wine”.

“Exceptional wines, especially the selection from California” have always been the main talking point from a culinary point of view at this well-known Berkshire property, run as a passion project by Sir Peter Michael and his family for the last 26 years (and boasting an amazing cellar of 30,000 bottles and 3,000 bins). Widely acknowledged as “a lovely place” (especially if you stay in one of its 49 rooms), it once held two Michelin stars, but currently holds none despite cuisine that rates consistently well in our survey and inspires no complaints (“the cuisine on this occasion reached new heights. Exceptional locally sourced fallow deer, cooked with wonderful accompaniments including parsnips and pear plus some great spiced cubes of potato. Just delicious and exquisitely presented. Desserts all excellent”). We’ve maintained its rating, but in October 2024 it was sold by the family to Apex Hotels, so change is likely afoot.

The Mutton at Hazeley HeathWith an illustrious heritage, The Mutton is certainly one of a kind.Located on Red Hill, alongside the famous Hazeley Heath, overlooking Hazeley Farm, The Mutton echoes style with an array of gorgeous spaces available to book. 

“The big ol’ Compleat Angler hotel might be thought a bit dated but I rather love it, right on the bank of the Thames at Marlow”. This “pretty dining room” is right over the water and is “one of Atul Kochhar’s finest” with “excellent customer service” and “delicate and finely cooked dishes”.

New luxury 4 silver star Crowne Plaza Reading East, provides a stylish, contemporary look and feel to suit the business traveller, leisure and spa guest. The hotel, set in landscaped podium gardens, delivers exceptional dining experiences. Serving both modern British & authen...