Since moving to Marlow back in August 2018 we have become familiar with the establishments of chef Tom Kerridge, so we jumped at the chance to attend Pub in the Park. Pub in the Park is a music and food festival exhibiting the work of some of the world’s best chefs through pop up restaurants, accompanied by some great music acts. The festival started in Marlow in 2o17 and this year has expanded to seven other cities, but we were lucky enough to experience the original venue of Higginson Park on Saturday afternoon.
The Hand and Flowers – Kerridge’s Fried Chicken with ranch dressing and pickled slaw
As you might have guessed, we love our food and Pub in the Park was a great opportunity for us to sample some of the best dishes Marlow has to offer. All dishes were £5, which meant we were able to try a good selection.
To get ahead of the queues our first stop was The Hand and Flowers where we picked up Kerridge’s Fried Chicken with ranch dressing and pickled slaw. The glaze was beautifully spicy which was cooled by the ranch dressing. We were even able to watch Tom making the dish at the Chef demo tent!
The Coach – Chicken Kiev with Cauliflower Cheese and Parsley Puree
We then popped over to The Coach to try the Chicken Kiev and Cauliflower Cheese. This is a dish that we’ve always wanted to try and we were not disappointed. This was chicken kiev like you’ve never tried before with a super crispy breadcrumb coating, juicy chicken and fresh parsley sauce.
The Hind’s Head – Scotch Egg
We couldn’t walk by The Hind’s Head pop up stall and not try a classic Heston scotch egg. The breadcrumb coating was beautifully crispy, the pork was excellently seasoned and the quail’s egg yolk perfectly runny with satisfying burst when we cut it open. This is not one to miss!
Berners Tavern – Braised Beef Mac & Cheese
The braised beef mac & cheese from Berners Tavern was the stand out dish of the afternoon. The beef melted in the mouth and the cheese sauce was creamy but super cheesy. The ultimate comfort food!
Naked Dough – White Chocolate Chip and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
One of the stalls nestled in the food market was Naked Dough. With a variety of flavours to choose from we opted for white chocolate chip and chocolate chip cookie dough (double scoop!). A great treat to end our day of indulgence and one for the sweet-toothed among you.
There are still five more Pub in the Parks to go so more info and to buy tickets head to the website.
Thank you Tom Kerridge and the Pub in the Park team for a great afternoon, we’ll see you next year!
In the heart of the beautiful Beaconsfield old town is the Crazy Bear hotel. This quirky hotel opened in 2008 and is located in a fifteenth century coaching inn, the oldest documented building in Beaconsfield. The hotel boasts two restaurants, with the Thai restaurant just a short walk from the main hotel.
We visited the Thai restaurant to try the signature 12 plate sharing menu. This usually costs £62.50 per person, but we had a Time Out voucher which reduced the cost to £33 each and included a glass of champagne.
After having our glasses of champagne poured, we started with:
Shrimp crackers with sweet chilli dipping sauce
Crispy seaweed
Steamed edamame with Japanese chilli powder and rock salt
Wagyu beef tartar in mini taco shells with ponzu sauce and wasabi
Sea bass sashimi with chilli, crispy garlic and ponzu sauce
The highlight was, surprisingly, the edamame beans; they were fresh, crisp and steamed to perfection. The salt and chilli gave the beans a fresh taste which perfectly cut through the umami flavours of the crackers and beef tartar tacos.
Wagyu beef tartar in mini taco shells with ponzu sauce and wasabi
After demolishing our starters, the main course was brought out. This was made up of:
Roasted mandarin cherry valley duck
Honey roasted loin of pork
Crispy pork belly
Tiger prawn pad thai noodles
Chargrilled aubergine in black bean sauce
Steamed jasmine rice
The mixed plate of pork and duck (pictured below) was definitely the centrepiece of this meal and did not disappoint!
Roast duck, honey roast pork and pork belly platter
Prawn pad thai noodles
Chargrilled aubergine in black bean sauce
We were feeling very full at this point, but were able to make room for our dessert of:
Lychee cheesecake with kaffir lime jelly and bitter chocolate sorbet
Lychee cheesecake
This sharing menu is ideal for people who love Thai food and want to try as many dishes as possible. It’s also a great way of trying new dishes you wouldn’t normally order. You get your Thai classics like Pad Thai, and some more unusual dishes like beef tartar tacos.
The Crazy Bear Thai restaurant is a beautiful venue, with classic wooden beams contrasting with the quirky interior. The staff were friendly and the service was quick. The restaurant has a brilliant atmosphere and was busy and bustling so booking is a must. As Thai food lovers, we will definitely be returning.
As you walk down Marlow high street you can’t miss The Ivy, with it’s large, welcoming windows and shoppers gazing longingly as they walk past. There seemed no more fitting a place to start our reviews than here (plus, we had a gift voucher as a Christmas present!).
Starters:
Sesame Seared Salmon – Cucumber and Daikon with Black Bean Dressing
Buffalo Mozzarella – Crispy artichokes, pear and truffle honey
Mains:
Chicken Bourguignon – Flat-iron chicken with crispy skin, creamed potato, chestnut mushrooms and bacon lardons
Shrimp and avocado burger – Brioche bun, lettuce, tomato, rocoto chilli mayonnaise and thick cut chips
Dessert:
Chocolate Bombe – Melting chocolate bombe with a vanilla ice cream and honeycomb centre with hot salted caramel sauce
After choosing our drinks (Peach and Elderflower Iced Tea and The Ivy Craft Lager) we finally descended upon our starters:
Starters
Sesame Seared Salmon (3.5/5) The first thing we have to mention about the Sesame Seared Salmon starter was the presentation. We’re big believers in the saying “The first bite is with the eyes” and this starter did not disappoint. The food came out on a long plate with 5 neatly arranged parcels, sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.
The salmon had a subtle taste, and was complimented by the crisp, fresh cucumber/daikon. The black bean dressing had a deep, full and at times caramelly flavour, which was delicious but sadly often overwhelmed the delicate salmon, leaving a taste of black bean and not much else. While the flavours individually were fantastic, a bit of balancing is required to really get them working in harmony.
Buffalo Mozzarella (3/5) As with the salmon, the presentation of the Buffalo Mozzarella made the dish look very appealing and we couldn’t wait to dig in. With the mozzarella, artichokes, pear and honey came a cacophony of different flavours and textures, each delicious in their own right; the saltiness from the mozzarella contrasted with the sweetness from the pears and honey, followed by charred artichokes. However, we felt the flavours weren’t completely complimentary and resulted in a bit of a bizarre combination. At times, the texture of the artichoke was a bit “twiggy”.
Mains
Chicken Bourguignon 4.5/5 As soon as the meal was placed in front of us we were hit with a rich aroma coming from the sauce, and knew we were about to tuck in to something special. The crispy chicken lived up to it’s name, the creamed potato hidden underneath blended beautifully with the bourguignon sauce and the mushrooms were nutty and numerous. The portion size was very generous and each mouthful was a delight. To be really picky (and this is trying to find flaws for the sake of it), the chicken was the tiniest bit dry in the middle, and the potato was the tiniest bit too salty – but those are minor issues. We would definitely order this again.
Shrimp and Avocado Burger 2.5/5 The shrimp and avocado burger consisted of a lot of subtle flavours which unfortunately resulted in something fairly underwhelming. There were occasional hints of shrimp in the burger, and the rocoto chilli mayonnaise added some much needed flavour to what was an otherwise bland meal. Overall this dish was nothing special and we would not order it again.
Desserts
Chocolate Bombe 3.5/5 What can you say about honeycomb covered in ice cream, encased in chocolate and generously drizzled with hot caramel? It was sweet, caramelly, sugary, chocolatey and totally indulgent. The waiter pours the hot caramel over the chocolate dome while you watch as the surprise centre is revealed (and try to capture the moment on camera!). It was a nice, classic chocolatey pud.
Cappuccino Cake 4.5/5 This dessert was every coffee-lovers dream: a deconstructed cappuccino in cake form! The chocolate cake was rich and moist, and the coffee sauce added a contrasting bitterness. The dish was served with a milk mousse which completed the “Cappuccino” and was a quirky alternative to a traditional cream accompaniment. Absolutely delicious. If you wake up in anticipation of your first cup of coffee, this is the dessert for you!
Venue, service and overall impressions
The venue is beautifully decorated in a Victorian botanical garden-style theme with abundant plants and pictures of exotic animals lining the walls. The venue is softly-lit, bright enough for us to see the menus (although the couple next to us did appear to be struggling) while still retaining a nice ambience. The only issue with the soft lighting is that it was hard to take good photos of the food for instagram without the flash… but that isn’t a standard requirement so we held no grudges. The service was great, the waiting staff were attentive, friendly and professional and our food was served in a reasonable time.
Overall impressions were positive, on the whole it was a nice experience and a lovely way to spend an evening.
We give The Ivy Marlow Garden an overall score of 4/5.
Thank you for visiting our blog… or, if you are here by some typo-related accident; thanks for staying!
We are a couple of self-proclaimed foodies who moved to Marlow, Buckinghamshire in mid-2018. On our arrival, we set out to get to know the local area while eating, drinking and enjoying as much of the local offerings as possible.
After a few months, we decided that a good meal is better shared. As we were new to the area (and had a limited local social network to share with), the best way for us to do this was to build a following on Instagram and share our story there. This blog is the culmination of that vision, where we will be giving our reviews and opinions of the delights we encounter on our journey.
Marlow Eats 