Restaurant Elizabeth and Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons
WHEN I was an Oxford undergraduate in the early 1960s, the pinnacle of dining out was reached at the Restaurant Elizabeth, opposita Christ Church in St Aldate's. The intimate panelled room on the first floor, its leaded casements looking across at Tom Tower and Christ Church meadow, had an exclusiveness and luxury which were matched by the rich food and magnificent wine list. Kenneth Bell had started the restaurant in the mid-Fifties, and in those days of better-heeled students and dons it thrived. Nevertheless, Bell decided to move on in 1966 — to Thombury Castle in Gloucestershire — and passed the Elizabeth on to his Spanish head-waiter, Antonio Lopez.
Thirty years later, Mr Lopez is still in charge, and little has changed. One might indeed say that it was set in aspic. I recall most of the dishes currently on the dinner menu were to be found there 35 years ago, and the wine list still offers treasures — at a price. Sadly, neither jeunesse doree, nor even golden oldies, still flock there. On my first visit, a Saturday, the newer, dark- green-painted room was about two-thirds full; on my second, midweek, we sat amidst the panelling, one of just two couples in the place. There is little justice in this, for the aspic is fundamentally Escoffier's, and at about £40 per head for three courses, cof- fee and a decent claret, the pricing could not be said to be excessive.
Mr Lopez has a Spanish chef, Salvador Rodriguez, and the menu offers, as always, a breath of the Mediterranean as well as French classic cooking. Thus tara- masalata is there, and moussaka on the lunchtime prix fine, plus piperade, a deli- cious creation from the Basque country of lightly scrambled eggs full of onions, tomatoes and peppers, with which I start- ed on my first visit. Amongst other starters were a well-structured chicken liver pâté, mussels sprinkled with bread- crumbs and baked in butter and, as a plat du jour, a delicate mousse of scallops sur- rounded by a creamy saffron sauce. Another plat du jour was breast of pheas- ant in a port wine sauce; it was much enjoyed, as was entrecôte maison au poivre vert. Best of the main courses tried was the succulent carre d'agneau dauphi- nois, roasted to order for two: a glorious whole rack of the best lamb I have tasted in years, cooked pink and served with dauphinois potatoes and a rosemary- infused gravy.
The Elizabeth introduced me to crème brill& over 30 years ago, and it is still as luscious as ever in its heart-shaped cocotte, along with correctly made syllabub and excellent sorbets of champagne or raspber- `We got here very fast - the roads were good and icy.' ry. Another time-warp is the coffee: Cona, still made in an ancient machine at the table, the water heated by a baby spirit- lamp — as if one were at a chemistry prac- tical. The Elizabeth may be old, but with fine service, freshly cooked food, comfort- ing surroundings and well-kept wines, it has certainly not gone to seed. At the price, it offers good value and deserves to be much better patronised.
Raymond Blanc appeared on the Oxford scene in the mid-Seventies, when he opened Les Quat' Saisons in undistinguished premis- es in Summertown. His cooking, however, was superb, and such was his success that a decade later he spread his wings to a fine manor house in Great Milton, some ten miles outside Oxford, which is now an ultra- luxurious 'restaurant avec chambres', with a spa extension now contemplated. Monsieur Blanc is also poised to move back into Oxford itself in April, with the 120-seat Le Petit Blanc near the Phoenix Cinema in Wal- ton Street, a brasserie designed by Terence Conran, where he promises meals for about £20 per head, and house wine at under £10 a bottle. We wait with bated breath.
Meanwhile, the Manoir remains the acme of opulence, with a dinner menu out of which you will be unlikely to see much change from £100 a head and which makes for indigestibly rich reading. Lunch is another matter. Every day except Sunday, a prix fixe three-course menu is offered at £29.50, which means that a couple should get out, with aperitifs, wine and coffee, for that same £100, service compris. When one considers that canapes are served with the drinks, an amuse-gueule comes before the starter, and exquisite petits fours with the coffee, this seems fair value.
Moreover, even though choice is limited to two dishes per course, no punches are pulled in either ingredients or preparation. Maybe it was unintelligent to limit the choice to boudin noir et purée de pommes de terre, or confit de canard et foie gras presses en terrine, as two rich, meaty starters, but both were delicious, and the choice of grilled brill aux deux beurres with Provengale vegetables or roasted shoulder and leg of suckling pig with a marjoram- scented juice was fine, as was their precise cooking. Our dessert of caramel soufflé, in an individual dish, with an almond-covered prune and Armagnac ice-cream served alongside, was memorable. Service was impeccable and friendly, and the conserva- tory, looking out on to well-tended gardens, a pleasure to sit in, even on a wintry day. M. Blanc certainly knows his stuff, and it will be fascinating to see how his new baby turns out.
Restaurant Elizabeth, 82 St Aldate's, Oxford; tel: 01865 242230.
Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons, Great Milton, Oxford; tel:• 01844 279881.
David Fingleton
Previous page
