Lunch at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Part I
I had the fortune to join to my friends for a lunch at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons in Great Milton, Oxford. This is Raymond Blanc’s two Michelin star restaurant. Set in rural Oxfordshire 20 minute drive from Oxford. At our arrival we’ve been escorted to our private bar/waiting room, where we had the restaurant’s own champagne with appetisers.
We went for the set menu which has consisted 7 dishes with ingredients according to the season and 5 different selected bottles of fine wines to go with. No worries, if you are vegeterian, they will cater for your needs as well. And being a French owned restaurant kids are welcome too.
Before we dived into our food orgy we had a wide selection of in-house baked breads, which kept coming around up until the deserts.
Unlike in Britain on the Continent soup plays important part in our diet. Our first dish was a chilled tomato Gazpacho soup. It was more of a consume than the usual soup. Very clean with the tomato’s distinct flavour.
This followed by the lemon and fennel marinated organic Scottish Salmon, garden radish, yuzu cream. The fennel with the lemon and the bit of juiciness and saltiness from the caviar on the top truly brought the tender fresh salmon to its glory melting away in my mouth. Then the yuzu cream and mandarin (I think) marmalade gave an unusual sweetness at the end, but it worked for me.
Our first of wine to go with this two dish was Triennes Sainte Fleur 2010, which wasn’t working for me after the soup. With the fish it was better, but this wine is a pretty aromatic and rich type of white. Nonethless this is a great wine from Provence.
The “warm-up” for the main was soft-fried egg’s, watercress purée, Jabugo ham. Simple, but delicious combination of flavours was all about this dish. The egg seemed like it has been poached (not), and in addition we found some roasted nuts (ground I think) sprinkled on the top, which was nicely added the crunchy texture to this dish with the saltiness of the Iberian Jabugo ham.
The wine we got served for this dish was my favourite white of the day. It was a 2007 Le Soula Blanc. It has complex and fresh flavours.
First I got the apricot flavours with citrus notes. Very easy to give away yourself and shut the word out and enjoy this wine until the whole bottle is finished off. Lovely wine for the sunny summery days.
The main was one of the highlight of the menu for me as a meat eater. The Welsh (we’ve been told, but on the menu was Cornish – not as I would notice the difference) lamb was melting away in my mouth with the superbly fresh petit pois. The hint of sweetness of the garlic purée lifted out the saltiness of the bacon and the gravy. Assiette of Welsh lamb, peas, bacon ans spring garlic purée at its best!
The delicious tender lamb was accompanied with the Bandol 2008 La Bastide Blanche. This is a full-bodied red wine. Obvious dark berries flavours, with plum and tobacco. Flavours lasted throughout the main meal which I had greatly enjoyed.