A Down-to-aarth pub with star appeal

Two decades ago, the term gastro pub was popularized as a new breed of British public houses began attracting more customers for their food than the beer. A handful of such establishments became renowned, including London's Eagle, Anchor & Hope and Harwood Arms, with the latter even garnering a Michelin star for its twists on traditional pub grub.
The first and only to receive two Michelin stars was the Hand & Flowers (thehandandflowers.co.uk) in Marlow, southeast England, last year. The pub wears this unique trapping lightly, with no evident signs of such an accolade in the flagon-stoned bar or simply furnished dining room, with its numerous and necessary “Mind Your Head” signs. Even when it comes to the prices, the Hand & Flowers is exceptionally reasonable, with a £15 (€19) two-course set lunch and dinner for two at around £120, perhaps also ensuring that it is constantly packed.

It is only when you stray into the a la carte menu that the dishes boast a more culinary complexity. A whole Italian black truffle encrusted inside a foiegras mousse exudes a compelling aroma of fungal intensity when sliced open. Likewise, a slab of crispy pig's head with rhubarb, crackling and pancetta confirms chef Tom Kerridge's skill with earthy ingredients.
“I am not sure that the clients understand the concept of a two-star Michelin gastro pub, which is great,” says the 39-year-old, who worked his way through a number of local places in the Cotswolds and London before opening the Hand & Flowers in 2005. “It drums up custom because people want to come and see exactly what it's like.”

A main course of Essex lamb “bun,” with sweetbreads Hand and salsa verde.
In his generously apportioned frame, Mr. Kerridge exudes the bonhomie of a local grocer or butcher rather than an acclaimed chef, which is perhaps why he says that a pub is the environment in which he feels most comfortable. “Some people come in here and expect to get a haute cuisine in the country experience,” he says, “but we don't have a load of gardens or charge those sort of prices. We aim to have our food as tight and as fantastically worked as possible, the same as any other two-star restaurant.”

A dish of blow-torched Scottish scallops with warm beef bouillon, accompanied with a sprinkling of morels and apple, was one of my favorite dishes of the year. Despite the jellied beef stock being overly salty, the boldness and intensity of the flavors tipped the balance.

Mr. Kerridge doesn't offer surprises. “You can just sit here and have the set lunch and have a good time—that ethos is still there,” he explains. “It's food that people pretty much understand. We just try to make sure everything is better than you think it will be. With my cooking, I try to make sure there is nowhere to hide. What's on the plate has to be there for a reason—full stop, end of story.”

The main courses show his deftness with straightforward ingredients, such as the fillet of Lancashire beef with his homemade fries. The steak had a perfectly glazed crust, purely from the cooking on a grill, although the accompanying curly kale and crispy ham hock was over-chewy and undercooked. His Essex lamb “bun,” with sweetbreads and salsa verde, appeared to be a slightly larger version of the truffle, save for the extended bone of the lamb chop protruding at the top. Again, it was the hearty flavors that set it apart from the run of the mill.

Looking to the future, will Mr. Kerridge remain in his comfortable pub, slap-bang next to the road through town? “I would consider expanding beyond a pub environment, but not into a restaurant or a hotel,” he says. “I may consider more bar concepts or maybe a different pub, a fish and chip shop, a delicatessen, a charcuterie place, a butchers—those sort of places where I feel a lot more comfortable, rather than starched linen tablecloths, expensive wines and incredibly smart waiters. I am not antiexpansion, but we are not looking to do it for a long time yet.”

(Wall Street Journal)