The Latymer at Pennyhill Park

It is easy to see why Matt Worswick has hit the heights of the Good Food Guide Top 50 with his devotion to the showcasing of familiar ingredients in unfamiliar taste combinations, the excellent wine pairings and the unfailingly helpful and knowledgeable front of house staff. We were struck by how difficult we found it to say which was our favourite dish on the seven course tasting menu when asked by the staff, because they were all individually delicious in making their own particular contribution to the overall balance of the meal. Another plus point was the extra information relating to each dish noted on printed cards and “served” at the same time as the food. Attention to detail was very much in evidence, a good example being the ability to choose the five course menu wine flight with the seven course menu dinner, which we did, although we ended up having an extra glass as the list contained a couple of other tempting beauties. The meal started with the inevitable gougères, this time with a truffle sprinkle, little ice cream cones with smoky baba ganoush and a wonderful pairing of Iberico ham and bergamot gel, and then good sourdough bread was served with a lovely black garlic spread with a taste of liquorice. None of these counted as one of the seven courses, as would have been the case at some Michelin star restaurants we have eaten in recently. The freshness of the poached oyster was evident and enhanced by the Oscietra caviar and the contrasting pickled Granny Smith apple cubes and juice and the tang of calendula. Normally we would feel hard done by to find two vegetarian dishes on a tasting menu, but, given the fact that such dishes are apparently very labour-intensive to put on the table and that they were quite stunning, we could not but approve in this case. We love celeriac and when it is salt-baked, served with super remoulade and a lovage sauce and Australian truffle and taken to new heights by a brilliant truffle ice cream, we are more than happy. Risotto is risotto - or is it? Artistic presentation playing off wild oyster mushroom against wild, crunchy rice made to appear almost black by some excellent malt vinegar powder and then paying respect to the classic version with a background of parmesan made for a dish that would deserve its place on any menu. It was interesting to consider the air miles involved in the next dish - top-class Orkney scallop and Brixham crab brought together with pickled sea aster with possibly a different origin again, but what a meeting of terrific tastes, especially when accompanied by the best crab sauce we’ve had outside Cornwall! The superlatives didn’t end there, either. The duck main dish was outstanding, with mouthwatering roasted breast and sensational seared liver with a mustard jus and authentic Waldorf salad contrast. The menu finished on a high with two desserts, poached pear on a brandy snap base with a sensational toasted almond ice cream, and a brilliantly balanced chocolate delice, milk crumble biscuit and yogurt sorbet. In addition, even the fresh mint tea was of the highest order, as were the petits fours, and this confirmed our impression that the whole dining experience had been very carefully curated. The solitary false note for us was that the dining room had not been significantly updated since our last visit and was decidedly out of tune with the lightness and modernity of the cuisine. Nonetheless we have certainly joined those who consider that Matt Worswick is deserving of more than one Michelin star.

Beautiful crafted food in formal surrounding.

Used to be very good, before the change of chef. Since then the food seems to have slightly tailed off and the prices rocketed, last visit we struggled to find a red wine at less than £100.