Review - The Lamb Inn, Crawley

The splendid renovation of one of Oxfordshire’s most charming country pubs is something that must at once be said about the Lamb Inn at Crawley, near Witney. Of greater moment to us foodie types, though, was the arrival earlier this year of new bosses Matt and Rachel Weedon, he a much-plaudited chef of national renown.

My first experience of Matt’s cooking came in the magnificent surroundings of the Lords of the Manor, in its idyllic setting in the Cotswold village of Upper Slaughter. He gained a Michelin star there in 2008.

The previous year the same honour was bestowed on him at the equally glamorous Glenapp Castle, a country house hotel in Ayrshire. Before that, Matt put in three stints at the top-rated L’Ortolan, near Reading, where he honed his kitchen skills under such mentors as John Burton Race, Martin Burge and Alan Murchison, celebrity chefs all.

Running a pub, for owners Brakspears, is a new experience for him and Rachel but one they are clearly taking to very well. “We’re really excited about the place,” Matt tells me. “It’s providing a great opportunity to create a really special place with a relaxed warm and friendly vibe.”

I first wrote about this stone-built 18th-century pub, a part of which was once the village shop, as long ago as 1984. Curiously, in the light of its present ownership, the customers were just beginning to develop a taste for Brakspear’s beer. Its landlord, British Airways pilot Peter Travers, had turned himself into a drayman to bring in supplies from Henley on his drive back from Heathrow.

“We’re rather off the beaten track for the brewery’s own delivery lorries,” Peter told me, “so I find the best thing is to pick up nine-gallon barrels for myself in the car.”

These days supplies of Brakspear’s are much closer to hand, following the company’s move to the Wychwood Brewery in Witney. Bitter, Oxford Gold and the new Brakspear Black are all delighting the Lamb’s growing number of regulars. There’s Ringwood Boon Doggle too.

Since Rosemarie and I don’t consider beer a suitable prelude to dinner, we opted instead for gin and tonic on our first Lamb visit under the new regime. That we felt able to drink anything alcoholic at all owed everything to the fact that we had chosen to travel there by taxi, having taken the S1 bus to Witney.

The growing fashion for gin is reflected in an excellent range here. We chose Brockman’s, a new one on us, with a delicious taste of berries, blue and black. Mention of berries reminds me that among the excellent range of drinks is a home-made sloe gin using berries gathered by Rachel. By a strange coincidence, their source was Nether Wescott, the scene of my last sloe-harvesting.

Saying where things come from is a commendable practice at the Lamb. You see it on the menu, both in the description of dishes on one side of it and an “our suppliers” list on the other.

Thus we learn of Loch Duart Salmon, Butt’s Farm (South Cer-ney) pork and beef, Cackleberry Farm (Stow-on-the-Wold) eggs and Flying Fish in Devon for sust-ainably sourced fish and shellfish.

Close-to-hand suppliers include Bicester’s Ampersand Butter and Witney’s Oxford Oils, the products of which (a nutty rapeseed oil in the case of the second) came with the splendid home-made bread that began the meal. Severe restraint had to be practised with the cheese and onion brioche to leave room for anything else.

My starter supplied an excellent demonstration of Matt’s ability to combine superb tastes and eye-catching presentation in his dishes. This was a wonderful platter composed of generous quantities of smoked Loch Duart salmon, shavings of fennel, Cornish crab, guacamole, ginger beer jelly and lime dressing.

Rosemarie couldn’t resist this spring’s first taste of asparagus in a richly flavoured soup that teamed this miraculous vegetable with potato. A happy surprise came half way down the bowl with the discovery of whole spears of asparagus lining the base.

She chose for her main course one of the more ‘pub grub’ style dishes that Matt produces. This was his Gloucester Old Sport pork burger, with smoked bacon in a toasted brioche bun, with grain mustard mayonnaise and coleslaw.

You’ll find other dishes in this sort of robust, no-nonsense style on the lunch menu, which includes fish and chips, fish finger sandwiches, beef brisket in a toasted bun with melted cheese, and a roast beef and horseradish sandwich.

My main course was in Matt’s fancier mode, being a roasted lemon sole on the bone. This was far from being a whopper, but quite satisfying (and utterly delicious) none the less, teamed with wild mushrooms, brown shrimps, buttered new potatoes, cep sauce and sprouting broccoli. Our white rioja (El Coto de Rioja, 2014) was an ideally citrusy accompaniment.

Though tempted by cheese to follow (Cropwell Bishop Stilton, Collier Welsh Cheddar, and Simon Weaver Cotswold Brie), I decided for once to spare the calories.

Rosemarie ordered the caramelised lemon tart with raspberry ripple ice cream. She declared it to be as perfect as everything else encountered here.

The Lamb Inn 
Steep Hill, Crawley, near Witney. OX29 9TW
01993 708792 lambcrawley.co.uk

Opening times: Tuesday to Friday 11am-3pm, 6-11pm; Saturday 11am-11pm; Sunday 11am-6pm
Parking: Large adjoining car park
Key personnel: Matt and Rachel Weedon, below
Make sure you try the... Smoked salmon, shaved fennel, guacamole and Cornish crab (£9), Wye Valley asparagus and potato soup (£6.50), roasted lemon sole with mushrooms and shrimps (£19), Gloucester Old Spot pork burger (£12), lemon tart with raspberry ripple ice cream (£7).
In ten words: Top-quality, locally sourced food served at characterful country pub