Lunch at The Hinds Head, Bray
Lunch at The Hinds Head, Bray
Exploring The Hinds Head
Heston Blumenthal is a chef I very much admire. Doesn’t everyone occasionally want some culinary magic on their plates? When an invitation pops up to visit his Michelin-starred pub, The Hinds Head, it’s an opportunity that I have to take up.
The Hinds Head is located in Bray, a super cute chocolate-box of a village. Hubby has the car, and we drive half an hour outside of London to see what the pub is all about.
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To Bray, for Heston Blumenthal’s country pub
From the outside The Hinds Head is fairly unassuming. Just looks like an average pub, to be honest. The inside is lovely though; all low ceilings and dark corners. The buttoned booths are shiny with dark mahogany leather, and the tables are old wood. Pretty.
The Hinds Head has been through a refurbishment, although clearly its been done sensitively, considering this old building was around in the 15th century. The upstairs bar is fashioned around an old hunting lodge, a memory of its origins.
We sit down with high hopes and, as the food comes out, we’re not disappointed.
Enough small talk – how’s the food?
The first dish is called snails hash, consisting of de-shelled snails on thin toast with caper berries, pistachio and walnut.
It’s a fair start, but not as good as the mushroom parfait. This smoked mousse of pickled wild mushrooms and popped rice is gorgeous, especially when spread on buttermilk loaf.
Next up are mains. Hubby chooses roast cod, which flakes at nothing harder than a stern look. Its lush, and even more so with the mussels and smoked anchovies in butter sauce. A frill of kale adds more dimension and texture.
I choose the duck breast, halved and roasted. It comes smoked with wild garlic – is there anything in this world better than fresh wild garlic? – and asparagus and celeriac choucroute. Om nom.
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Heston’s famous dessert
Our lunch at The Hinds Head end with Heston’s famous Quaking Pudding. It resembles a panna cotta, but its much more wobbly. A spoon slices through it, and inside is a fabulous amount of nutmeg and cinnamon. On the side, there are ribbons of green apple.
We also try the Bakewell tart, laced with pureed Amarena cherries topped and rich with crystallised almonds. A dollop of yoghurt ice cream accompanies. Very nice too.
So there you have it, our lunch at The Hinds Head has been absolutely fine. A visit also means that you get to see just how pretty the little village of Bray actually is. Til next time :)
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The Details
The Hinds Head, Bray
Address – High St, Bray SL6 2AB
Website – The Hinds Head, Bray
Phone – 01628 626151
Nearest Tube – No chance ;)
Our lunch at The Hinds Head was complimentary. This does not affect our review in any way. All views are our own and as ever we aim to provide useful and honest feedback.
