REVIEW: The Great Bustard, newest Wiltshire countryside pub

On Thursday, October 17, I drove down to Woodford Valley, just six miles from Salisbury, to meet a friend for lunch at a new pub.

On arriving at The Great Bustard, you're faced with a small driveway which leads down to the car park, just a few steps from the restaurant entrance. The first thing both my friend and I noticed was how beautifully this new pub had been decorated: think cosy countryside dining, with ceiling to floor windows, a grand bar and open kitchen; a 'revived' 19th century inn as its website states.

Cosy countryside dining at The Great Bustard (Image: Newsquest)

We were greeted and shown to our table by waitress Eliza, who couldn't have been more helpful, as well as manager Gus who made sure we had everything we needed over the next few hours.

The menu is really unique; a lot of the dishes were unlike anything we had ever even heard of before, and I tried plenty of new things that aren't really offered elsewhere.

READ MORE: Wiltshire country pubs: The Great Bustard opens in Woodford Valley

As we were driving, we decided to go with a mocktail each, rather than a glass of wine (although the wine and cocktail list has a generous offering, and I'd certainly like to return to give some of those options a try). I opted for a lemongrass and apple mojito and my dining partner chose a cranberry sangria.

A lemongrass and apple mojito and a cranberry sangria (Image: Newsquest)We began with a generous assortment of starters to try, freshly prepared by chef Jordan. These were: bread and butter pudding with Roscoff and Spenwood (£6.50), cod cheeks with tartare (£7)  and partridge goujons (unknown).

The bread and butter pudding was the most intriguing, I can't say I have ever seen that as a starter before. It was beautifully moist and the generous coating of Spenwood cheese complimented the flavour well. 

The cod cheeks were tasty - one of the more basic options of some of the dishes I had to come but delicious all the same. The partridge goujons were wonderful, with meat sourced from Great Durnford Estate - just minutes away from The Great Bustard.

At this point, we were already beginning to fill up, but we had plenty ahead of us.

Amuse bouche (Image: Newsquest)

Next was the amuse bouche (complimentary with every meal), parker house rolls with flavoured butter. The parker roll was glazed with honey and topped with bee pollen and fennel. It was served with two butters: one with salt flakes and the other a cep mushroom butter.

The amuse is made from pickled mushrooms, roasted hazelnuts, whipped ricotta and cep veloute with fermented mushroom powder and hazelnut oil.

Wow - quite  a mouthful to say and eat. I'm not a mushroom lover, but eager to give it a go, I was pleasantly surprised. It wasn't overpowering in mushroom taste, but certainly flavoursome, and I loved the sweetness of the parker roll dipped in the mushroom and hazelnut amuse - it felt very autumunal.

By this stage, it was nearing 12.30pm and the restaurant was buzzing with people.

It wasn't time for our mains yet, we were told, as Jordan had kindly made us both the beef ravioli (£13.50), served on a bed of smoked eel and bone marrow as well as smoked trout, served with rye bread and a buttermilk and dill cream (£13). At this point, we'd covered a good chunk of the starter menu.

Smoked trout with rye bread and a buttermilk and dill cream (Image: Newsquest)

We couldn't manage it all between us, as we were worried we wouldn't even be able to attempt our main courses if we did. However, the smoked trout was possibly my favourite dish so far - so simple yet such contrasting flavours, and the beef ravioli was delicious too (enjoyed most by my dining partner).

Our main courses were served: my friend went for a 35 day aged Springbottom Farm rump steak with peppercorn sauce and frites, and I went for the Durnford Estate venison burger with charcoal mayo, pickled onion and bacon. On the side, we shared a portion of barbecue tender stem broccoli. My burger was very rich in flavour, beautifully cooked meat and worth every penny of the £19.50 it is listed for.

My friend's steak was cooked perfectly. She asked for medium, and that it was. Think tender and juicy - which not all restaurants are able to achieve with a steak.

Our main courses (Image: Newsquest)

The broccoli was fresh - definitely the vegetables we needed having eaten so much meat and fish. It was coated in a barbecue flavoured crumb.

For dessert, which, although we were full we were adamant to try, we tried three small portions from the menu: a cherry and chocolate delice, meadowsweet parfait with spiced custard and a pumpkin spice tart with white chocolate.

While I wasn't as keen on the pumpkin spice tart (unsurprisingly as I've never been one for pumpkin spice), the chocolate delice would certainly have been the one I'd have ordered in full size if I had the room, and as for the parfait, my dining partner said it came with the 'best custard ever'.

If you fancy a country escape, I would highly recommend The Great Bustard. It isn't cheap, but I don't think it pretends to be. Every dish had something unique to it, and it certainly isn't your standard pub menu. The pub itself is gorgeous, and I would urge anyone visiting to consider its rooms to stay in for the ultimate countryside retreat.