Lets start with the good. The pub itself is homely and inviting, and the experience of dining with incredibly low ceilings, charm oozing at every turn in the bar area, and spaces between tables far enough that you were not forced to overhear the next table's conversations made for an inviting experience.
However, that's where all the good ends. it was a 3 hour 3 course meal, for no reason other than a good 30 minute wait between courses. Even 15-20 minutes passed between the main, palate cleanser and the dessert course. Service was slow, clumsy, inattentive and absent.
We had the Guinea Fowl and the Crustacean (a soup) for starters. Now, I don't ever feel like I need to mention to a restaurant supposedly of this quality that I have a sensitivity to MSG because surely a restaurant of this standard would not have to stoop to using products that include it? Nope, wrong. Whilst waiting for the main course, I could start to feel that pressure and numbness on my cheek bones - a sure sign of MSG present. The Guinea Fowl was decently cooked, and the flavours boring. Unsure of why charred baby corn was present as it served as a distraction than a compliment. The Crustacean soup was overpowered by the broth. The Portland Crab with it's delicate flavour didn't stand a chance - and the abalone fungi added a texture but not flavour as one could only taste the broth and nothing else.
Mains were equally, if not even more disappointing. The Pork neck was dry and overcooked. It was so dry you were forced to eat it with more sauce which made it even more cloying. The sauce was the perfect consistency but someone must have knocked over the vinegar into it as it was so sharp you found the dish rather trying to complete. The fish dish was really no better. For a Mexican British chef, you'd imagine he'd stick to his roots, but he's branching out into Asian flavours with both the Osmanthus and Chrysantemum broth and now a Yuzu sauce for the fish. The yuzu flavour way overpowered the Sea Bass (which unlike Cod, at least has some flavour), and took over the entire dish. The gentle flavours of the Cardoons and pickled mushrooms and onions didn't survive either.
Lets not even get onto dessert. All in all, after £140 worth of a meal, it was less than worth it's salt. I'd rather have gone to an amazing Gastropub with simpler but better done food and done without this experience. read more