Visited September 2006

Lunch at Le Manoir was an imaginative birthday gift from my son who I am delighted to say has inherited my love of delicious food and wine.  Yes, it was one of those horrible big "0" birthdays but my visit here today has made getting old (er) almost worth it!

Because of the terrible traffic on our way here we were 30 minutes late for our booked time but the staff ensured that we did not feel rushed even though we later discovered they stopped serving lunch at 2.30PM.

We were greeted, taken through to the lounge offered drinks " a glass of champagne perhaps?" but we all chose G&T's which we enjoyed whilst perusing the menu du jour and the wine list.  The service was impeccable and the Sommelier made suggestions for wine.  Once our decisions had been made we were served our appetiser plate, four mouthfuls of flavour, but I cant remember them all, trust me, they were good!

We were then taken through to a small dining room and served a small glass of delicious Gazpacho.  There was an assortment of breads to choose from including bacon, beer and baguette.  You can see what the starter choices were on our menu du jour .  I was able to taste the Foie Gras but thought my risotto was the best choice.

Our wine choices were a bottle of Circus Viognier and a bottle of Collioure Paulilles, we also ordered a bottle of Evian water.

I tasted the lamb, one of the main course choices, which was melt in the mouth but my cod was absolutely delicious.  Everyone was impressed with the vegetables which were very fresh and beautifully cooked.

We asked to see the cheese trolley and so of course were tempted but we only had one plate with four selections and enjoyed a half bottle of Madiran Berthoni to accompany them.

Then on to the puds!  We tried one of each of the available choices, of course they were delicious.  Our coffee was served on the terrace accompanied by the most scrumptious petites fours and chocolats du Manoir.  The ladies had a Brandy Alexander and the men a Cognac.

 We rounded off our experience of Le Manoir by strolling through the beautiful grounds and visiting the vegetable garden.  The food and service were absolutely of the highest standard so Le Manoir lives up to it's incredible reputation and I can't recommend it highly enough for a special celebration.  What a wonderful day!

Cost £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £

Yummy Factor 10/10

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