21 April - Field To Fork, South Street, Epsom

6 South Street, Epsom, Surrey, KT18 7PF
01372 744130; www.fieldtoforkrestaurant.com

I visited Field to Fork with Barbara last month: http://oldhorsesnosebagclub.blogspot.com/2011/03/18-march-field-to-fork-south-street.html. 

Paul, Lyn and I had looked forward to trying out Field to Fork since we first discovered that it had opened, especially as it looked so promising from the outside.

The decor is very tasteful and modern. The service is excellent and the staff are very friendly and welcoming.

Starters: 2 x Oven baked scallops, leeks, champagne cream & puff pastry; 1 x Ham hock & parsley terrine, mustard apple chutney & toast.

While the ham terrine was very tasty, with a delicious chutney and crunchy toast, the scallop dish was disappointing. The champagne was thin and not very tasty, and frankly this with a few slices of scallop seemed over priced at £7.95 (the most expensive starter on the menu).

Mains: 2 x Bridge Farm sharing plate of pork: slow cooked belly, roast rack, black pudding, dauphinoise potato, roasted chantenay carrots & apple sauce; Slow cooked duck leg, hispi cabbage, sautéed potato,
caramelised red onion & shallot puree.

The pork sharing plate was very good - in particular the belly was tender and declicious. The duck leg had plenty of meat and had been butterflied(?) so the skin was wonderfully crisp and the meat was succulent and scrumptious.

Drinks: 2 x caipirinhas, 1 x Pepsi

The cairpirinhas were good, but not good enough for the £7 price tag. Little Dudley House, a restaurant I would say was a notch or more better than Field to Fork, charges £5.50 for a (slightly) better version.

So, for the most part, the food was very good (with the caveat about the scallop starter), the atmosphere was pleasant with a lively buzz and the service and staff friendly and excellent. What stops this restaurant from getting a four star rating, on this outing, is its pricing. We feel that, while the food is generally of a good standard, it is rather over priced.

Rating: THREE STARS

18 March - Field To Fork, South Street, Epsom

Chris and Barbara visited Field to Fork for lunch. It was by way of a recce for a possible future evening visit. Various club members had seperately noticed this new restaurant in the centre of town and wondered... Lyn and Hazel had even been there for coffee and noted the pleasant atmosphere.

We started with the freshly baked bread and green olives - both very good. Barbara followed that with the Beetroot carpaccio with walnut & Golden Cross goats cheese dressing, whil Chris chose the Bridge Farm pork & spiced apple sandwich with fries.

We drank a bottle of sparkling water and finished our lunch with an espresso for Barbara and a latte for Chris.

The atmosphere was, as the other Old Horses had previously noted, very comfortable and welcoming.

The food was excellent. Barbara thoroughly enjoyed her carpaccio. Chris thought the pork was delicious. His only complaint was that the amount of bread in the sandwich was too much (but then he had already eaten a decent amount to start). Barbara was very impressed by the espresso, which she takes as a sign of a very good establishment.

The service was very good - prompt and helpful.

Cost: less than £30, including service.

Our rating: FOUR STARS

28 January 2011 - Little Dudley House, Dorking RH4 2JU

(01306 885550 - www.littledudleyhouse.co.uk)

A repeat visit to a venue that we really enjoyed on our previous visit (18th June 2010; http://oldhorsesnosebagclub.blogspot.com/2010/06/18th-june-2010-little-dudley-house.html). It did not disappoint happily, as we had bigged it up to the 4th Old Horse, Hazel, and brought her with us.

Starters: Smoked salmon (x 3) and guinea fowl terrine.

Mains: A Chateaubriand for two, Slow Cooked Duck Leg and Duo of Pork (Braised Cheeks and Roast Loin), plus an extra portion of 'Hand Cut Thrice Cooked Chips'.

Desserts: A bit of a gap in the memory here, but I do remember several of us having the Chocolate and Chestnut Torte.

Drinks: Caipirinhas x 2, Mojito and Long Island Iced Tea; water.

As before, we were unable to find anything to criticise. Excellent food, delicious drinks and wonderful service.

Our rating: FIVE STARS

12 November 2010 - Y Polyn, Capel Dewi, Carmarthen SA32 7LH

(01267 290000 - www.ypolynrestaurant.co.uk)

I've managed to delay this posting so very long, that I can no longer remember everything we had. I know I had a lamb stew which was utterly delicious, but that's it. And the menu has changed, so I can't use that to jog my poor memory.

What I can tell you is that I can heartily recommend this restaurant. The atmosphere is welcoming and warm, the staff are efficient and friendly, and the food is well presented and delicious.

Our rating: FIVE STARS