A Gastronomic Night to Remember: The “Auberge Experience” at Brocket Hall

If there was ever a restaurant in one of the most beautiful locations then Auberge du Lac at Brocket Hall has to be it. Situated within the grounds of Brocket Hall’s famous golf course, this is one property which that you all need to know about and which is full of history. The stately home Brocket Hall, located in Welwyn is just 20 miles from London and was home to former British prime ministers Lord Melbourne and Lord Palmerston. It’s also the place at which Lady Caroline Lamb conducted her scandalous drug fuelled affair with Lord Byron and where Margaret Thatcher wrote her memoirs.

Driving into the estate is just as magical as eating and staying here and a lovely place for walking. The bright blue lake, views across the golf course and Brocket Hall – as well as a rather magnificent bridge where these photos above were taken. The illustrious country retreat which is renowned for entertaining royalty and heads of state over its two hundred and fifty year history is now enjoying a renaissance under new management who have added three highly acclaimed chefs to its ranks. Head chef Matt Edmonds, Jon Oates and Nyles Mullin.

As part of the “Auberge Experience” here at Brocket Hall, you can expect overnight accommodation (whose rooms are soon to be renovated), ½ bottle of Champagne and chocolates, 8 course tasting menu in the restaurant with accompanying wines to match and of course a full English breakfast the following morning. It’s a very decadent 24 hours and one which I highly recommend.

On the estate and overlooking the stately home, is a beautiful hunting lodge called Auberge du Lac which houses a stunning restaurant which once saw Jean Christophe Novelli as Chef Patron and later earned a Michelin star. While the restaurant doesn’t currently have a star (watch this space) the cooking feels and tastes very exciting. We started in the bar first over a expertly crafted negroni and some delicious canapés.

Some truly excellent bread later and we tucked into our first course. Roasted Jerusalem artichoke with wood sorrel. Such a fantastic introduction to this tasting menu and which gave us a little insight into the creativeness of the kitchen here. The flavours and textures were oh-so satisfying and exactly what we were looking for in a first dish.

One plate of food which looked perhaps a little ordinary was this dish of heritage beetroot – but flavour wise it was anything but. Underneath all the green was juicy chunks of earthy beetroot, creamy goats curd, apple and spiced granola for a little crunch. I also liked our next dish of the kitchens version of escargot Bourguignon which was so rich and satisfying.

There was two dishes which really got me excited about the future of Auberge du Lac and one of them is pictured above. Expertly cooked pan-fried John Dory, celeriac, black garlic, crayfish, sea fennel and lemon. All of the main ingredients such as the fish and crayfish were so well cooked I can’t even put it into words the combination of flavours – apart from describing them as rather astonishing. I loved that bit of lemon too which added some nice zestiness to it all. This is a dish which should never leave the tasting menu.

Another plate of food which I felt could become a signature of the restaurant because of its sheer enjoyment was this utterly divine hay ash Lakeland venison with truffle pomme Anna, turnip and chanterelle. Rich, indulgent, satisfying – I loved everything about this dish. The dish followed with a transition course to our desserts with the restaurants take on the classic Waldorf salad – Auberge style. Very deconstructed, very refreshing and absolutely delicious.

A short while later, a little more wine arrived at the table and so did our sweet courses. Miso caramel mousse with kinako shortbread, passionfruit jam and granita was much more interesting and satisfying then it sounded on first glance, while the restaurants version of “Tiramisu” was simply perfect. Again very deconstructed, but every bit as enjoyable to the classic – if not more.

The next morning to walk off that rather indulgent tasting menu we took an early stroll around the grounds and golf course enjoying those magnificent views with not a cloud in the sky. It also meant we were able to get a little closer to the main building that is – Brocket Hall.

Before heading off and back to reality, we couldn’t leave without trying the included breakfast offering. A continental buffet table of juice and cereals was on offer as well as a la carte options. We opted for a full English and some excellent fluffy pancakes topped with berries and syrup.

We had such a lovely stay here on the grounds of Brocket Hall and in terms of restaurant locations this was simply world-class. The views are outstanding, the food even better and the experience – something to remember. My only negative about the experience during the Winter would be that the rooms, hotel, hall and golf experience all felt all quite disjointed – but perhaps in time this is something that can be worked on. On a Summers evening however that walk down from your room to restaurant would no doubt be rather magical.

NB: My stay was complimentary. All views are as always, my own. My views are not influenced by anyone other than my own palate and slightly poor eyesight.