Replacing the Terrace restaurant, André Garrett at Cliveden will have a modern British menu, with inspirations taken from the grand dining salons of Paris.
Garrett, who joined Cliveden House as executive chef earlier this month, wants to emulate the success he had in the seven years he spent with London Park Lane restaurant Galvin at Windows.
"My seven years at Galvin at Windows have been so fulfilling in many ways and, even though leaving is sad, I am happy that I am leaving behind a strongly-built ship,” he said.
“My aspirations now are to put Cliveden’s restaurant on the gastronomic map and make it a destination. I want to be in the top 50 restaurants in the UK, in the Good Food Guide and have at least one Michelin star.”
On the menu
The 68-cover restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner daily, with a set lunch menu priced at £28 for three courses. Speaking of the dishes that will be on offer, Garrett added: “I buy the best and treat it with respect, not over-embellishing, but letting the produce sing.
“There are signatures within the new menu - there’s a cocotte of lobster with a thermidor glaze; a sole Veronique, a beautiful classic Escoffier dish, that I have recreated; and a game consommé with Jerusalem artichokes from my time at Guy Savoy in Paris.”
Cliveden House was bought under a long-lease agreement by Ian and Richard Livingstone from the administrators of Von Essen Hotels in January last year. General manager Sue Williams explained that Garrett’s appointment was a ‘perfect match’ for the hotel’s new gastronomic aspirations.
She said: “André takes classical dishes and reworks them in a clever yet appropriate way. He does not modernise for the sake of it or become too caught up with technique. Too often food can be all about technique and not about real understanding. André has a complete understanding of fine dining and gastronomy. What he does is very clever, authentic, elegant
“I describe André’s new menu as inspired by the classics and governed by - but not exclusively limited to - the English seasons, which is true to the grand country house tradition of Cliveden. It is quite a confident thing to do as he is not trying to be showy.”
Berkshire boost
The design of the new restaurant will subtly reference the long history of the grade I-listed property while introducing a less formal, lighter feel to the room which has views over the River Thames. The restaurant will remain ‘unashamedly classic’, with fine-bone china, traditional silverware and an emphasis on service.
Andrew Stembridge, managing director of Cliveden and its sister property Chewton Glen, concluded that the location of Garrett’s new restaurant will perhaps be the biggest draw for the growing population of ‘gastrotourists’.
“Nowhere else in the country outside London is there such a constellation of stars and awards as this area,” said Stembridge. “Within ten miles of Bray are two three-Michelin-star establishments, a two-star and I don’t know how many one-stars.
“It is a great thing - the more the better. People see the area as somewhere to visit; they can stay with us for a night and then go to the Hand & Flowers for lunch or stay at the Waterside Inn and then come to us for lunch.”
André Garrett at Cliveden will open on 18 November.