The
New Inn at Kidmore End is just that — with the emphasis
on new. Just over a month ago the business changed hands with
Peter Kay and two others taking the helm of this beautiful
country pub.
The garden at the New Inn, Kidmore End
They
have maintained its original charm — the décor
is contemporary and up-to-date, yet they have managed to
retain the traditional look with the beams, oak floor and
the attractive
fireplace in the bar. The balance is perfect and creates
a comfortable and relaxing environment for you to enjoy.
The New Inn is reached by quiet roads away from the rushing
traffic of the towns so you should feel relax when you arrive.
This is one of those wonderful finds, it truly is a bolt-hole
from the hustle and bustle of Reading and Henley, yet is
near enough for you to be able to get there with the minimum
of
hassle. And once you are there, it’s somewhere that is
hard to leave — and you don’t have to; there
are six beautiful and stylish rooms away from the pub.
The rooms are stunning and are all equipped with state of
the art mod cons and attention to detail including high speed
up
internet connection and plasma television screens, making
them perfect for the business user. All the rooms are named
after
wine regions; you can choose from Chianti Room, Semillon
Room, Merlot Room, Champagne Room, Rioja Room and Shiraz
Room. Prices
start from £75 a night (per room) and includes a full
breakfast. Why not take advantage of one of these rooms and
treat yourself, maybe over Henley Royal Regatta or the Festival?
There is a stunning garden at the back of the pub where you
can relax on the superb patio with a cool drink and be surrounded
by nothing but the beautiful countryside. There is plenty of
seating which will be a fabulous bonus to an already lovely
pub in the warmer months.
Immediately on entering the premises customers are made to
feel that all the staff and the landlord genuinely care about
what their customers want and want to make sure that they
have a fantastic evening — and they succeeded.
Peter and his partners only took over a month ago, but they
have kept Rae (front of house manager) and John (general manager
and chef). Peter has many years of catering experience and
Rae and John have been at The New Inn for three years. All
three of them feel very strongly that this is a local pub that
serves exceptionally high quality food and welcomes families,
drinkers and diners alike. Whatever your needs are, a quiet
meal for two, a family occasion, a business meeting or merely
a place to escape the hustle and bustle, somehow The New Inn
cleverly combines all of this in one place.
The emphasis is on always serving high quality and fresh
food. They have fresh fish delivered daily, so what they
have delivered
is what is on the menu and effectively once they have sold
out that’s that! But it means that you are guaranteed
variety and it’s not mass produced meals. Rae ran through
the fish specials with us (her memory is amazing!) and then
there is the main menu. The fresh meat is supplied by Donald
Russell, a royal warrant butcher from Aberdeen and is of the
highest quality and flavour. There are the ‘smaller plates
for the smaller appetites’ and they are more than happy
to cater for children (away from the usual ‘would you
like chips with that?’) with smaller portions – just
ask. They can cater for different dietary needs and John
is confident that as he makes everything from scratch himself,
he knows exactly the contents and can adapt to suit your
needs.
Starters are from £4.95 with soup of the day through
to Griddled Stornoway Black Pudding with creamy Dijon mustard.
I chose Shredded Peking Duck drizzled
with a hoi sin and plum sauce set on mixed leaves and Dan had the Oven Baked
Wild Mushroom and Sun Blushed Tomato Tartlet on a bed of mixed leaves with
a fresh herb dressing. Both were superb.
Mains were delicious; Oven Baked Cod with Parmesan Mash and Herb and Sun Blushed
Tomato dressing and Dan had rack of lamb with Dauphine potatoes and a redcurrant
jus. The lamb was pink and the knife glided through it — it was delicious
and cooked to perfection. The cod was divine and with the side order of mange
tout the meal was a mixture of flavours and textures and beautifully presented.
Desserts … always the ‘should I, shouldn’t I?’ but
you most definitely should here! The Belgian Waffle was lovely although I have
to
be honest, my chocolate brownie was even better.
There is really no end to what The New Inn can offer you as they are always
looking to see what it is that the customer wants and they are evolving all
the time
and take on board any comments made. As the staff are all enjoying being there
they are alert to the pub as a whole, when something isn’t quite right
they want to know why, so that they can rectify it and move forward.
They have a lunch time offer on Tuesday to Friday when you can get two courses
for £7.95 and Monday to Thursday nights you can get two courses for £12.50.
These are only available through bookings in advance. Also, I would advise
booking for a Sunday lunch as they have had to extend their serving times to
cope with
demand.
What really makes it work is the love that the staff have for the place, the
respect they have for each other and a rare ability to really work as a team.
With their attention to detail and consideration they show towards their customers,
they really do want you to come back and ‘see them soon.’
Visit them on Chalkhouse Green Road, Kidmore End, their website at www.thenewinnrestaurant.co.uk
or call on 0118 972 3115.
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