The Bailiwick Free House
Englefield Green, Surrey
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Nestled at the end of a no through road, with a little terrace overlooking woodland that, in early summer, is a mass of greenery, this 19th-century pub feels blissfully rural – yet urban Egham is a mere hop away. Inside, the smart bar incorporates chesterfield sofas, wooden flooring, a log-burner, a few seats for drinkers but mostly dining tables; the restaurant proper is down a few steps at the back. A quiet jazz-funk soundtrack keeps things casual. The prospect of good food also draws folk from all around this affluent neck of the woods, and clues to the kitchen’s forte abound: the antler on the mantelpiece; the pelt flung over the banquette. The Bailiwick is on the edge of Windsor Great Park and Ramsay-trained chef/co-owner Steven Ellis (formerly at the Oxford Blue in Windsor) makes full use of the local venison, while his wife Ami takes care of the desserts. Their fixed-price menu (there are appealing bar snacks too) might begin with a pig’s trotter ballotine, an elaborate construction with wine-poached skin wrapped around the meat and a topping of crunchy pig’s ear crackling; a whole poached crab apple and a brawn croquette beneath a fried quail’s egg complete this accomplished rendition. Elsewhere, a luxuriously gooey, slow-cooked goose egg is presented with truffle-laced ‘soldiers’, Parmesan, caramelised onion, grated truffle and crunchy hazelnuts. To follow, venison remains a year-round enticement, perhaps cooked every which way: tender loin with kale and pickled spruce tips wrapped in a faggot; a dense homemade haggis croquette; the shank meat used to stuff a red onion – all part of a divertingly classy assembly made still more mouth-watering by an intense venison sauce. Similar care is taken with a dry-aged Boston ‘chop steak’, a flavour-packed specimen barbecued medium-rare and served with Caesar salad, braised beef with mash in a potato skin, and bone-marrow sauce. For dessert, lemon parfait is a pleasingly summery contrast to the main courses, beautifully presented to resemble a lemon encased within a refreshing lemonade jelly and accompanied by burnt meringue ('whisper-soft'), lemon verbena and candied zest. Service is ‘friendly, warm and attentive’, while the wine list contains a varied choice by the glass and carafe, as well as fizz produced in Windsor Great Park.
