Prévost

* Lee Clarke and head chef Sam Nash have moved on. The kitchen is now run by Rikki Hughes (former head chef at 263 Preston, before it morphed into Aven). Watch for a new review coming soon.* During 2021, Lee Clarke moved his restaurant from Peterborough city centre to Wansford, an exceedingly well-kept village just off the A1 near Burghley House. In its new home, the 16th-century Haycock Manor hotel, Prévost has gone up a gear and is quickly attracting plaudits. One fan was ‘blown away by the slickness of it all’, while another concluded ‘this place is extremely exciting’ – Clarke’s head chef, Sam Nash (ex-L'Enclume), has certainly made his presence felt. The Haycock’s stone-walled, softly lit interior leads to a light-filled orangery dining area where French windows look out on to gardens and there’s a birdcage theme to the decorations. The centrepiece, though, is an olive tree sporting myriad fairylights. This setting provides a suitable backdrop for notably accomplished cooking. Choose from three courses or a more elaborate tasting menu – all seasonally adjusted. At inspection, the three-course option offered remarkably good value, given all the extras brought to table. These began with three ‘snacks’, including a standout runner bean and elderflower consommé offering an evocative taste of summer in a little cup. Similarly impressive was a little bowl of buttery smoked Alsace (bacon) custard, dotted with nuggets of toasted sweetcorn and smoked eel – excellent with the first-rate sourdough bread and butter (from Oxfordshire’s Ampersand Dairy), which was freely provided and replenished. Mains offer a choice of two dishes: a brilliant-white portion of salty, succulent cod arrived in a strongly seaweedy kombu dashi sauce dotted with little brown King’s Lynn shrimps, complemented by tiny Jersey Royals and lightly pickled cucumber. The meat option, Longhorn short rib, was almost as good – the generous, tender portion might have been pinker, but the piquant pickled walnut, the little blob of puréed potato and, above all, the roast-beef jus made for a highly savoury treat. After a pre-dessert of whisky fudge (an intensely sweet morsel), the meal ended with an expertly presented pudding of strawberry segments matched with diced apple, offset by tangy sorrel granita (spooned on top at the table) and creamy sheep's curd – another unequivocal success. Abundant service from young, eager staff enlivens proceedings, and the lengthy drinks list offers ample choice by the glass; otherwise, the whistle-stop tour of global vineyards is best left to seasoned drinkers (there's little in the way of annotation).