The Reservoir
London Road, Charlton Kings, Cheltenham, GL54 4HG
01242 529671
Only the small pile of sand bags by the back door gives away the fact that the Reservoir was closed for four months last year due to heavy flooding.
Situated in Charlton Kings, on the outskirts of Cheltenham, the former Waterside Inn has been given a gentle refurbishment by new leaseholders Andy and Susan Proctor, in conjunction with Greene King.
Located on the busy A40, opposite the reservoir that lends it its name, the pub went through a succession of owners over the past few years and it had an unenviable reputation.
To stamp a new identity on the pub, the Proctors ripped out the carvery, removed the pool tables and dartboard, gave the place a lick of paint and a new carpet, and reopened the pub in March.
Andy and Susan are no novices when it comes to running quality food and drink establishments. They ran the Hinds Head in Bray for Heston Blumenthal when it first opened and Susan also worked at Michael Parkinson's Paley Street pub.
Before that, the couple worked in Michelin-star establishments in the Bath area, and it was during this time that Andy became friends with Michelin-starred chef Martin Blunos. Andy worked front-of-house for Blunos at his now closed two Michelin-star Lettonie restaurant.
Blunos has a small share in the Reservoir and he is overseeing the food, which is quite a coup for this unpretentious roadside pub. Although TV and consultancy commitments mean that he won't be in the kitchen all the time, he has certainly been cooking in these first few weeks.
Admired by Marco Pierre White, Gordon Ramsay and Heston Blumenthal, Blunos is one of the best chefs Britain has produced, but for this — his first pub venture — he has gone right back to basics.
Using as many local suppliers as possible — including Foxbury Farm at nearby Brize Norton and Martin's Meats, which specialises in meat from farm-assured traditional and rare-breed animals — Blunos has created a short and simply-described menu.
For a chef renowned for his classic French food, it is refreshing to see simple dishes where the provenance of the ingredients is more important than the teetering towers and fancy presentation.
Blunos has nothing left to prove, which is why he can get away with serving ham, fried egg and triple-cooked chips or fish cakes (he uses ling or pollock) on spicy tomato relish with rocket. They just happen to be faultless versions of these pub staples.
The four main courses include braised blade steak, which is cooked for several hours in stout and served with mashed potatoes, and half a chicken, which he roasts with a mixture of wild garlic from the garden, butter and herbs rubbed under the skin. It is already the biggest-selling dish.
Even more refreshing from such a well-respected fine-dining chef is the menu of snacks aimed at drinkers at the bar, or for people to order as starters. These include superb pigs
in blankets (short, stubby bangers from Foxbury Farm wrapped in streaky bacon and put back in the oven to crisp up) and ham hock and pork fingers (basically cubes of jelly-encased brawn), to nibble on over pints of Old Speckled Hen.
And the simplicity extends to the sandwiches. Sausage sarnies are exactly
that — really good sausages in good bread, with no unnecessary garnish. Blunos even encourages the use of Heinz tomato ketchup and Sarson's vinegar.
"Well, this is a family pub, not a gastropub or a restaurant," he says. "This is what people want to eat." And how right he is.
Mark Taylor
Pub facts
Owners: Andy and Susan Proctor, and Martin Blunos (a Greene King lease)
On the menu:
Starters: asparagus, poached egg and hollandaise (£7.50); fish cakes on spicy tomato relish with rocket (£4.50)
Mains: beer-battered fish with mushy peas and triple-cooked chips (£12); half Reservoir chicken (£12.50)
Desserts: spotted dick and custard (£4.50); rhubarb and cardamom burnt cream (£4.50)
Menu innovation: A separate menu for home-made bar snacks and sandwiches, including pigs in blankets with chutney (95p), ham hock and pork fingers with grain mustard (80p) and cheesy fries (£3.25). Sandwiches include ham and home-made pickle (£5.25) and bacon with oven-dried tomato (£5.50)
Wine list: There are 12 whites and eight reds, ranging in price from £15.65 for the Italian Pinot Grigio Provincia di Pavia and Argentinian Trivento Shiraz Malbec to £25 for the Gavi Jolanda. There are 14 wines by the glass, priced from £3.65 (175ml) and £5.25 (250ml) to £4.50 and £6.50.
Standing out from the crowd: The pub has a large, lawned garden with space for 60 food covers. There is also a serving hatch directly from the kitchen to the garden, which will be utilised in the summer and, therefore, improve serving times. There are four rooms above the pub and there are plans to refurbish these for B&B purposes next year.
