Restaurant review: Raymond Blanc Le Manoir Oxfordshire

Le Manoir has had two Michelin stars almost since it opened in the early 1980s. We ate there two nights in a row while we were staying in the hotel of Le Manoir. It was very pleasant experience and overall we were pretty impressed by it. It is worth saying that the Raymond Blanc Le Manoir restaurant is an amazing place to visit.

What did we eat in Raymond Blanc’s restaurant?

Before dinner both night, we had drinks in one of the sitting rooms where we could enjoy some good canapes. They were all vegetable based and the combination of crunchy and sloppy couldn’t be better.

As I mentioned before, the hotel grow its own vegetables and herbs, including mushrooms. I think the freshness of all ingredients came across very strongly through out all the food, like this gorgeous pre-starter of goat cheese and vegetables.

My starter the first evening was a risotto of spring vegetables.  This was a very classy risotto indeed. Perfectly cooked, and with massively fresh vegetables from the garden. The best part was the green Chevril sauce which tasted like it went straight from the garden to the plate. It was simply the best. On the menu this did not look exciting but it was great.

My husband had the veal sweetbreads. He liked it so much that he had it two nights in a row. I am not a fan of sweetbreads, but every time my husband orders them I try them with a hope I will finally start to like them. I still don’t like them but these were the best I ever tried.

On the second evening I had the langoustines. They were ultra fresh, and cooked very lightly with red miso and asparagus.  I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes fresh perfection.

Main courses were also strong, particularly the meat ones. Over the course of two nights, we both had the Angus beef fillet with red wine sauce. It was very high quality meat, full of flavour and served with morels and spinach. The meat was tender and the balance of flavours was unbeatable.

Particularly charming and delicious was a pigeon main course. They cooked it in salted pastry case in a shape of a pigeon and then carved at the table.  This was great theatre as well as being a delicious dish. There is something quite special about food being prepared at your table, don’t you think?

The other main dish we tried was the Dover sole which was slightly wooly and tasted a bit overcooked and bland. Dover sole is my favourite fish ever and I love when the meat is more firm.

One of my highlights were the puddings. Strawberry theme pudding was gorgeous. Everything from marshmallows to mille feuille type cake were of strawberry flavour. Also, as always, the best was the combination of sloppy and crunchy.

Apart of these delicious dinners, we also enjoyed the fabulous breakfast. The Bircher muesli were incredible. In lot of hotels, they are usually far too sweet and far too sloppy. But in Belmond Le Manoir they are perfect. Full of nuts, and fruit and the sweetness is just right.

What is the price?

Raymond Blanc Le Manoir restaurant is not cheap.  Three courses a la carte was £175 per person, and that was without a wine and drinks before and after the dinner. If you want, there is also an option of tasting menus (£ 190 pp), including vegetarian menu. Experiencing the taste of fresh vegetables across all courses, I would bet the vegetarian would be absolutely amazing.

Would I go back?  I most definitely would. The service was amazing and very professional, yet friendly. I can imagine a lunch in the summer would be amazing with pre-lunch drinks in the beautiful garden. Raymond Blanc Le Manoir restaurant is simply a place you need to visit if you live in UK.

Have a chic day

Petra

xx

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