The Swan at Coombe Hill Review

When I leave a restaurant feeling slightly uncomfortably full but happily so, it has clearly done something right. Though the Swan at Coombe Hill is at a bit of an inconvenient location (a pub opposite a petrol station on an A road and that is really only accessible by car doesn't really seem an attractive choice for those wanting to drink), it is worth making the effort for a meal out that is the food equivalent of snuggling up on the sofa after a long day.

It's one of those places that exudes warmth and cosiness. The decor is simple; smooth, warm, wood flooring with lots of space between cosy tables that still feel spacious and a gently murmuring atmosphere that is never too noisy but still feels lively.

The menu is unashamedly comfort food and lots of stodge. But this is good stodge. The food is not fatty, greasy or unhealthy but the sort of stodge that feels wholesome in its fillingness and leaves you with a warm glow in your tummy. The Swan typically offers pies, good hearty sausages, soothing soups, traditional English puddings and lovingly tender meat and fish dishes. There is also a reasonable choice for vegetarians. My vegetarian companion, a pretty fussy eater who doesn't really like eating out (why I want to hang out with them I'll never know), enjoyed a brocolli and toasted almond soup for starter, which was an interesting twist on a classic, and a deliciously soft artichoke potato cake with griddled goat's cheese and a balsamic reduction.

I went for whitebait for starter after a lot of conflict (the warm duck and chorizo salad and homemade trout pate both offered a lot of temptation) but was so glad when it arrived. Firstly, at the risk of sounding greedy, the portion was large and this, I feel, is imperative to eating out. Hospitality comes from generosity and it's hard to feel welcome at a place where you are given a clinical white plate with a few meagre strips of whitebait looking scared and lonely in the middle of its white circumference.

Thankfully, this is never an issue at the Swan. Everything plate or bowl we ordered was positively bursting with its delectable offerings. The whitebait was perfectly cooked, the crisp fried breadcrumbs providing a perfect contrast to the yielding softness within. The homemade tartare sauce that came with it only made this dreamy duo a perfect trio; lemony and thick without ever being rich or cloying.

The lamb tagine I had for the main was equally balanced. Beautiful, soft, nubbly grains of golden couscous soaked up the rich meaty juices of the tagine's sauce. And what a sauce it was, deep, rich with the flavour of the meltingly tender lamb running through its stream of warming spices.

The only disappointment for me was my dessert - a bread and butter pudding. I suppose it was my own fault for ordering something that you picture in your head from an idealised childhood. But this was barely a bread pudding at all. Rather than crisp bread oozing with sodden sweet currants and a doughy middle, it tasted more just like a rather bland slab of spnge dotted with a few token sultanas. My companion's dessert, a sticky toffee pudding, was much more satisfying. Punchy, soft and sweating its syrupy sweetness from every pore, it fulfilled my desire for a nursery style pudding.

The service was also slightly disappointing. Dishes arrived very promptly, making the meal feel slightly rushed from the perspective of someone who likes to linger over a meal for as long as possible.

But as I left the restaurant feeling sleepily full of comforting carbs, it is hard not to think of the Swan as anything other than a fantastic traditional English restaurant that more than delivers on what any establishment ought to - simple, wholesome food that warms the stomach and the soul.


http://www.swanatcoombehill.co.uk/