Humphry’s Fine Dining Restaurant at Stoke Park awarded Best Local Menu at the Berkshire & Buckinghamshire Life Food and Drink Awards 2013

Last week at the inaugural Berkshire & Buckinghamshire Life Food and Drink Awards 2013, Humphry’s Fine Dining Restaurant (3 AA rosettes) at Stoke Park was awarded ‘Best Local Menu’ as well as being Highly Commended in the ‘Restaurant of the Year’ category.

In celebration of this fantastic achievement Head Chef of Humphry’s, Chris Wheeler, has devised a special ‘local lunch menu’ that will be available from Tuesday 17^th September until Saturday 26^th October. The menu, priced at £25 per person for two courses and £29 for three courses, features some stunning dishes that use ingredients from many local producers. Guests will be welcomed with a complimentary raspberry bellini using fellow award-winner ‘Beacon Bottom’s’ Blossom raspberry syrup (Food Product of the Year at Berkshire & Buckinghamshire Life Food and Drink Awards 2013).

“We are absolutely thrilled to win this award. At Humphry’s we always aim to support local suppliers and to offer our guests fresh local produce in our menus. We are delighted that the readers of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire Life and the judges have recognised this and thank them hugely for this award,” commented Chris Wheeler.

Starters will include: ‘Daws Hill’ Cider and white onion velouté and marbled terrine of chicken and Aylesbury duck with a fig and rhubarb chutney and toasted orange brioche. Mains include: pan-fried ‘Humphry’s’ home smoked salmon with sauté potatoes, confit peppers, fennel, courgettes and aubergines, ‘Chilterns’ rapeseed oil salsa and duo of ‘Royal Berkshire Pork’ – roast tenderloin and braised belly of pork with black pudding mash, Savoy cabbage, baby turnips and ‘Twyford Tipple’ jus. Desserts will feature: ‘Copas Farm’ apple crumble tart and ‘Tim’s Dairy’ greek yoghurt and blueberry cheesecake with lemon curd sorbet.

Tucked away in the sprawling verdure of the Buckinghamshire countryside, Stoke Park is an exquisite five-star luxury country club, spa and hotel.  The spa was recently awarded its Five Bubble status by the Good Spa Guide. Although just a mere 35 minutes from London, this stunning hotel emanates a distinct feeling of lush tranquillity far removed from the bustle of the city. Stoke Park’s history is peppered with notable figures and momentous occasions; originally designed in 1790 by James Wyatt, George III’s architect, it has since become a favourite locale for filming. Firm Bond-fan favourites like Goldfinger and Tomorrow Never Dies were both filmed on location here, as was the famous ‘mini break’ sequence in Bridget Jones’s Diary.

Humphry’s (previously The Dining Room) launched in 2011 and was awarded two AA rosettes just months after opening and earlier last year it was awarded its third AA rosette. The menu at Humphry’s offers modern British cuisine with a twist. Chris began his career as Jean Christophe Novelli’s right-hand man at LeProvencein Lymington and later helped him to launch Maison Novelli before joiningStokeParkin 2003. For the past 10 years Chris has steadily been buildingStokePark’s culinary reputation. Humphry’s was voted one ofLondon’s “Top 20 Best out of Town Restaurants” by Harper’s Bazaar.