Sunday Lunch at The Great Bustard in Great Durnford
“Where shall we go for lunch on Sunday?”
A mixture of various venues was offered and after several suggestions we decided on The Great Bustard at Great Durnford, granted not exactly local for us living near Stockbridge but, we have tried most of the venues closer to home and fancied trying somewhere new.
We had time on our side, and we were in no particular rush so a drive through the Wiltshire countryside with the possibility of being rewarded with a nice Sunday lunch seemed worth the gamble on a lazy Sunday.
We hadn’t booked which was our first gamble, the distance, only to be told there was no room at the inn and then having to rely on one of the multiple chain restaurants that would be available if hunger and time became an issue was the second gamble, so, in for a penny in for pound and off we go to sample the fare at The Great Bustard.
Why didn’t we just call, check the availability and book a table I hear you asking, as I said a lazy Sunday in no particular rush and with a let’s see what happens attitude in place for the days itinerary we set off on our Sunday lunch adventure.
So, on our arrival, we were greeted with a cheery hello and a positive and welcoming “absolutely, if you don’t mind waiting for 15 to 20 minutes, we will get a table sorted for you”.
Now, at this point I’ll give you my first recommendation for the beer at The Great Bustard at Great Durnford, The Festival Real Ale, which I assume was a guest ale as I can’t find it on the menu as I look back on the day, was a lovely traditional ale that I selected from an extremely well stocked bar, lots to choose from whether you drink beers or prefer something from the back shelf.
In such pleasant surroundings the 10 to 15 minutes seemed to fly by, and we were seated in the main restaurant to the right when you look at the open style kitchen which remined me of a scene from Hell’s Kitchen without the bad language.
A bustling hive of energetic people moving with purpose and precision, signalling, instructing, designing, constructing and producing plate after plate of food, just waiting for us to give them our order. They didn’t pause, or stop for tea, they continuously moved in unison as a team without panic, without stress, just a group of professionals being observed from a far by the clientele.
Looking back on the day, we arrived at The Great Bustard with the intention of a beer and drinks for the ladies, ordering a Traditional Sunday Lunch and leaving with that warm satisfied feeling you get from a nice meal out.
However, the venue and ambience of the venue coaxed us into a feeling of “lets make an event of this one” so, we treated ourselves to the full-on experience of The Great Bustards menu and as we found out, to our delight its exceptional chefs.
Once seated, and left with the menus, the question of more drinks was asked by our waitress and, with the Festival beer being so good, I thought I’d take a look at the wine menu, with beef firmly on my mind I was drawn to the Rioja Tempranillo, Conde Valdemar, 2023, Rioja, Spain, a great choice as it turned out, intense red fruit aromas like blackberry and cassis, with a round, smooth palate.
To start complimentary bread, a herb infused focaccia (Sage) with a very pleasant herb infused butter (Pasley), I can’t say what you will find as they change the combinations of herbs on a regular basis, all I will say is that this was a precursor to a taste bud tingling ensemble to come.
Second course, an amuse-bouche of nibbles, placed in order of enjoyment for my palate, Chilli Beef Croquettes, crisp on the outside, firm on the inside, and as tasty a morsel as you could hope for to get the ball rolling in this culinary delight, Kentucky Fried Partridge with Hot Honey, as with most of the dishes the produce was supplied from the estate, what a superb way to keep local produce on the menu, flavoursome bites of partridge with a warming honey sauce drizzled over nuggets of meaty goodness, and lastly Hash Brown Bites with Black Garlic. Now I did say these are listed in order of enjoyment but, it was such a close call that as I sit here writing this review, I’m not sure which was my favourite of the three as they were all fantastic little nibbles.
Course number three, a Braised Durnford Lamb, Slow Cooked Egg and, Lamb Fat Soldiers. Just to quickly break this one down for you, it was a slow cooked lamb, in a sauce, with a runny egg, whole, perched on top and some colour sprinkled over the dish served with three thick deep-fried batons of bread which were deep fried in the meat juices. The description I have just given for this particular course was in all fairness the worst description of probably the best thing I’ve eaten in a very long time.
The lamb was tender, succulent and flavoursome to the extreme, with the addition of the decadent golden egg yolk, with its rich, creamy texture and deep golden colour, which burst over the meat when punctured was simply a thing of beauty on the tongue.
The batons of fried bread, failed in only one annoying way, delicious as they were, they didn’t have the ability to mop up the residue left from this sumptuous plate of food. If only Id left some of that focaccia to clean the plate, picking up the plate and using my tongue or a finger, a step to far me thinks but, temped all the same.
Beautiful just beautiful!!!
We wait in anticipation for the next course, a traditional roast beef lunch and served with the same quality of the previously delivered courses, a stunning Roast beef, roast potatoes, carrots, cauliflower cheese and a rich meaty gravy.
I was impressed with the delivery, the presentation and the overall quality of everything that was placed before us, for example the beef was served on perfectly warmed white plate, on a small bed of white cabbage, the beef place, just so, Yorkshire Pudding, standing proud, waiting to be joined by carrots served with a carrot remoulade and topped with a carrot pesto. Cauliflower Cheese, irresistibly crisp on top after spending some time under the salamander and baking to golden perfection, all combined on your plate constructing the perfect traditional Sunday lunch in fact boarding on an emotional experience to be honest, it was gorgeous.
Some words of advice, leave some room for the pièce de résistance, the desserts, yes if you wish, a plain ice cream, or some cheese, maybe just a coffee and, with a giggle, I remember that we had all of these but, the desserts were to die for, my choice from concise but well-appointed menu designed to minimise decision fatigue was the salted caramel sticky toffee pudding with Ice cream.
The arrangement of hot and cold treats, sweet and savoury flavours and the clever addition of crunchy nibs of salted caramel to hold the ice cream in place as it was seated on top of the warm and luxurious pudding sponge was inspired.
There had been thought given, not only to presentation but, taste, texture and the warm cuddle that a sweet treat I think should give you after a magnificent journey through course after course of loveliness, a clever talent chef put this one together, my compliments Chef, in fact my compliments to everyone for a superb Sunday Lunch and a dining experience at The Great Bustard in Great Durnford.
We finished the meal with an arrangement of cheeses, coffee and their own fudge squares which were yummy. Granted not a meal not for the faint hearted, arrive with an appetite and if possible have a friend, relation or your driver deliver you and collect you when you have finished, time stands still with the addition of good company, this is one to savour, a special occasion or if your chef is on holiday and cooking for yourself seems like a tedious exercise.