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LLANVIHANGEL GOBION
Contemporary cuisine at The Charthouse
Every once in a while, if you're lucky, you'll stumble upon a truly exceptional dining experience. For us, The Charthouse in Llanvihangel Gobion near Abergavenny is just one example of those little strokes of luck. My wife and I had spent the morning around Monmouth and Raglan and were on our way to Abergavenny for lunch when we happened upon The Charthouse.
The Charthouse looks like your typical village pub from the outside but step inside and that's where the similarity ends. The stylish, tastefully designed and contemporary interior is very welcoming. Excellent artworks from a local artist adorne the walls and the enthusiasm for 'local' was a clue to what we could expect from the kitchen. We were offered some drinks and seated in some comfy brown leather sofas while we made our choices. There appear to be two distinct dining areas, one each side of the bar/reception area.
I feel it's important to mention here that in similar establishments the service delivery can be quite stuffy and standoffish. Not so here. Down to earth and friendly with not a hint of pretentiousness. What you see is what you get and it's so refreshing.
We were shown to our seats in what I'd call the upper level and were offered warm, just-baked bread. Our starters duly arrived. I chose the Roast wood pigeon, potato gnocchi and caramalised almond salad which was absolutely superb - the wood pigeon was beautifully cooked and just how I like it. However the revelation was my wife's Steamed Cornish mussels, kiln roast smoked salmon, capers, parsley and cream. This was sensational (we always try each other's food). The full flavour of the salmon mixed with the cooking juices from the mussels and capers had us greedily mopping up the liquor until none was left.
On to our mains. I chose Madgett's Farm chicken, crisp truffle polenta, and Scottish girolles with braised baby gem lettuce, which was thoroughly enjoyable and reinforced my opinion that roast chicken is one of the best meals you can have and, even better, it was sourced locally - Madgett's Farm is near Chepstow. The combination of the supporting cast of polenta, girolles and baby gems was scrumptious. My wife, surprisingly, ordered Brecon venison Wellington, dauphinoise potato, braised carrots and buttered spinach. Surprising because I've never seen her eat venison before and she doesn't generally like pastry. The venison was unbelievably good - when I say melt in the mouth, it would be the understatement of the year. I can honestly say I've never tasted better, and, what's more, it looked fantastic with the braised and glazed carrots setting the whole dish off.
We weren't going to order sweets at the outset but, after such an excellent experience, couldn't resist - for me Baileys tiramisu; my wife chose Hot chocolate fondant and ginger ice cream. Needless to say both were stunning and the cheeky twist of adding Baileys to one of my favourite Italian desserts was genius, with a result of it being consumed with enthusiasm - completely indulgent and delicious!
Would I recommend The Charthouse? Absolutely. Head Chef/Owner Wesley and The Charthouse's talented team will soon be very popular on a good many BlackBerrys and iPhones. It's certainly become one of the best reasons for us to revisit the area, but do book first. In the near future I suspect its reputation will mean that simply dropping by won't guarantee a table.
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SISTER MAGAZINES
 
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