L'Ortolan

Reading

This Gallic stalwart has serious pedigree, but chef Tom Clarke has raised the bar higher still.

Having honed his skill at Raymond Blanc’s two-star Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons and one-starred L’Oustau de Baumanière in Provence, chef Tom Clarke is well versed in French cuisine. For the past three years, he’s presided over the kitchen at L’Ortolan, Reading’s only Michelin-starred restaurant, which has held onto the accolade for 16 consecutive years. Combining masterful technique and the highest-quality fresh Berkshire produce, Clarke has breathed new life into a destination that was once the preserve of what one of the restaurant’s former head chefs (the tempestuous Nico Lanedis) referred to as the ‘gin and tonic brigade’.

While never having lost that certain charm which has held it in good stead throughout various name changes, refurbishments and kitchen teams, things have definitely evolved food-wise since the restaurant’s early days on this quiet, villagey edge of town. For one, it’s now illegal in France to serve its controversial namesake, the small, rare songbird that was trapped, fattened, then drowned in Armagnac. Dishes under Clarke’s watch are less decadent than old-school Gallic and more of a modern, decidedly international, take on French fine dining.

The wisteria-clad former vicarage has a dramatic front-room bar for cocktails and aperitifs, all dark wood and vin rouge-coloured walls, while the brighter, white-tableclothed dining rooms are more formal in style. Service here can err on the side of rigid at times, so a little sass goes a long way when my mother and I are served ‘two tarts’ with a playful smile from our chatty, attentive waitress. Said tarts were sumptuous triangles of orange and yuzu, refreshingly citrusy and offset by buttermilk ice cream and pickled butternut squash shavings. Other dishes from the very reasonable £35 three-course set lunch menu are equally well balanced in terms of flavour. Torched mackerel with bonito and wasabi is presented with edible petals and rounds of green apple, creating a phenomenal texture combination. Tender beef onglet presented on truffle pomme purée with kale and wild mushroom is hearty and satisfying, proving Clarke’s knack for sound, classic flavours as well as the more experimental stuff for which he is renowned.