In celebration of our members' day out at Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons next Friday, we’ve been delving into The Good Food Guide archives to chart the course of one of Britain’s greatest chefs.
While the 1984 edition was in production, Les Quat' Saisons was moving from Banbury Road to its new home in the manor house at Great Milton. In lieu of a review that year, it was over to novelist Ian McEwan to report on his memorable meal at the hands of Raymond Blanc OBE.
I had heard the Quat' Saisons described as the best restaurant in England, and after parting with a troubling £92 for dinner (one cocktail, three courses, a bottle of wine, cheese, coffee, a 50-year-old armagnac), my wife and I saw no reason to doubt this. My negroni came promptly, perfectly mixed. There is enough space around your table to talk without being overheard and, even more important, you can eat without having to listen to other people's conversations. These are small but promising touches.
The à la carte has some resounding (almost pretentious) titles among the hors d'oeuvre (gâteau de foies blonds de pigeons, sauce porto au fumet de truffes, £6.25) and I was tempted when a waitress went by with sorbet à la tomate à l'émincé d'artichauts (£5.10) but we decided to eat our way through Spring. My feuilleté de pointes d’asperges de Provence au beurre de cerfeull (£7) was exceptionally good – the sauce delicate and light, the asparagus, like all the vegetables here, cooked to perfection, the pastry virtually weightless. My wife's oeufs de cailles au fumet de truffes et à la mousse d’artichauts (£7.50) was good enough to feature importantly in a dream she had that night. This is one of the richer, heavier hors d'oeuvre and it is important to keep your appetite keen for M. Blanc's centrepieces.
I strongly recommend the Nature Morte (£14.50), a selection of steamed sea foods served in their juices and scented with basil. The scallops were particularly good – fat, succulent ones, and the langoustines had plenty of flesh. The paupiette de saumon sauvage d'Ecosse à l'oseille et aux epinards nouveaux (£13.50) was slightly less interesting by comparison – more spinach leaves might have helped.
The house red, Gamay de Touraine, and the white, Sauvignon de Touraine, are both very pleasant, light wines from the Loire. They match the quality of the food and are good value at £7.50. Half-bottles are available too.
Do not deny yourself the bouquet de légumes (£2.50) with the entrée. Vegetables cooked and served with such care are a rare delight; the spring carrots in particular were beautiful, a reminder of how much flavour they can have.
There is such a lightness in the cooking that even the faint-hearted can take on board a dessert. A raspberry soufflé, the size of a small gasometer, was brought to our table with much commotion and pride, and the couple of mouthfuls I poached were wonderful. My wife came close to ordering another (she was eating for two), but the cheese trolley was upon us and she changed her mind. The cheeses of Maître Fromager Philippe Olivier have been widely celebrated and their variety and condition are probably unequalled in this country. I chose cheeses I had never heard of and I was too intent on new tastes to write down names. It would be worth driving 50 miles to the Quat' Saisons for the cheese trolley alone.
Throughout our meal the service was extremely good, but never obtrusive. The very amiable chef, M. Blanc, emerges from his kitchen later in the evening to chat to his guests and is quite happy to talk recipes.
