Le Champignon Sauvage

[el nino]

I went for lunch at the Campignon Sauvage yesterday and was once again very impressed with their lunch deal. I went for the crab risotto with sweetcorn veloute(frothed up as a cappuccino), the pork with black pudding, soured cabbage and sage jus and the sublime marjolaine with tonca bean ice cream.

I was amazed by how well the sweet corn went with the crab even though "amaze " is probably not the word to use, as David Everitt Matthias always surprises you with unusual combinations. I was told that the black pudding with my pork had just been made the day before and it was to die for!! It was actually the best I have had anywhere, and believe me, I have tried it in many restaurants.

To finish "tonca bean" ice cream, has anybody heard of such a thing before? The taste was truely amazing and went very well with the praline and nutty meringue layered chocolate desert. I of course finished with petit four (rhum baba, choc brownie, coconut congolais, nougat, almond ball, frangipane, choc truffle, marzipan and white choc, fruit paste and fudge). I loved every aspect of this eating experience and can't wait to go back.

[MobyP]

El nino -

Do you live near by, or in London? Do you stay the night, or make the journey especially?

[el nino]

hi moby(anything to do with? ),

i live in london ,but spend a lot of time travelling around england to eat out.i specially like the cotswolds , i have been as far as gidleigh park in the past but as that was a real waste of money,i save myself time and trouble and usually stick around the midlands.

if you are thinking of visiting cheltenham ,i recommend you stay at the greenway .

[MobyP]

Hi el nino - and welcome.

Yes I am in fact the Moby. But I thought life as a rock star was a bit 2001, and the career opportunities as a host on eGullet were simply too good to pass up.

[Andy Lynes]

Matthew Fort gives Le Champignon 18/20 in the Guardian this week. I'm returning this week, this time paying my own way, so will report back.

[magnolia]

to finish "tonca bean" ice cream , has anybody heard of such a thing before?,

Angela Hartnett (chef at Menu) just mentioned tonka beans on Women's Hour (she seems to be a regular these days) and described them as a cross between coffee beans and cocoa beans, though I understand they are used as a vanilla substitute. Expect to see these on a lot of menus, they're bound to be the Next Big Thing.

[Andy Lynes]

Apparently Matthew Fort had no idea what Tonka beans where: "Tonka bean ice cream (whatever that might be). ", despite being Heston Blumenthal's editor, who has used them for quite some time now.

[the greek]

Tonka bean has a flavour of a cross between vanilla and bitter almonds. To help release the flavour you should dry roast it first.

[Andy Lynes]

Thanks for a definitive answer "the greek" (straight from the horses mouth as it were).

[MobyP]

Thanks for a definitive answer "the greek" (straight from the horses mouth as it were).

Tell me that wasn't a trojan joke, pleeeease?

Edited March 1, 2004 by MobyP (log)

[Andy Lynes]

No, it wasn't, I'm not that clever.

[Andy Lynes]

The Mrs and I left the unparalleled luxury of our hotel (the Cheltenham Travelodge, £5.00 for the night) and took a romantic stroll through the underpass for a pre-dinner drink at a hotel on the opposite side of the A40 that actually had a bar. It was then but a short mini cab ride to Le Champignon Sauvage and thankfully the real start of the evening.

Four hours of relentless shopping had left me with a ravenous appetite and I fell on the delicious cheesey puffs and mini pizzas that accompanied the champagne.

Although the dirt cheap du jour (£23.00 3 courses) was very tempting, the dinner was part of the first couple of days my wife and I had had to ourselves in 2 years so the a la carte was really the only option.

A stunning amuse of medicinal looking green parsley couli with parsley root froth served in a tall shot glass and a foie gras royal with egg yolk and brioche cream was an early highlight. Seared scallops and baby squid, pumpkin puree, squid ink sauce is something of a signature dish and was made for an impressive start to my wifes meal. I had the much lighter option of roasted fillet of cod, pear and turnip, light veloute of chestnuts which demonstrated the flip side of the chefs cooking.

Then came a couple of extra courses sent out as gifts from the kitchen that again demonstrated the lighter and richer sides of David's cooking : a fillet of john dory with oats and groats and thinly sliced kohlrabi stuffed with wild garlic and some sort of grain or seed or pulse with a difficult to pronounce name (which I will need to check again with the resturant to identify) then a sweetbread with a cocoa nib crust, parsnip puree and liquorice jus which was simply outstanding.

At this point, my wife Gill's appetite completely failed her and she was unable to eat more than a mouthful of her red-legged partridge, homemade black pudding, soured cabbage which caused her no little distress as she said it was delicious. Oddly, I had no such difficulty with my braised breast of veal stuffed with snails and nettles.

Pre-dessert was the now infamous space-dust encrusted creme brulee which we followed with a shared frozen prune and burdock root mousse with a wonderful toasted almond ice cream which if there was any justice would be available in tubs from your local supermarket.

Believe it or not, wines starts at £11.00 a bottle with the majority of the list priced at £30.00 or less. Yes you can splash out, but I'd be very surprised if there is a 2 Michelin star restaurant anywhere with fairer priced wines. We enjoyed a mouthwateringly good Coudoulet de Beaucastel Côtes-du-Rhône '99 (white) for a frankly piddling £22.00 and the bill was around the £125.00 mark plus service for 2 menus (£44.00), champagne, wine, dessert wine and coffees.

[Andy Lynes]

Chef has advised me that the grain in the John Dory dish was Quinoa (pronounced keenwa), a herb seed loosely related to spinach and part of the broad leafed Goosefoot family, Chenopodiaceae. Qunioa is a cereal supergrain from Peru and was apparently the main staple food for the Incas. It was a source of both carbohydrate and protein until the conquistadors arrived and, as Jenni Muir puts it in her "A Cooks Guide to Grains", "actively phased out quinoa (and the Incas) in favour of maize, barley and potatos".

[Winot]

We ate there on Saturday night for Mrs. Winot’s birthday and had a very enjoyable meal, but came away feeling that, with a couple of exceptions, it offered good solid cuisine rather than fireworks.

As has been said elsewhere, the room is comforting rather than flash and the atmosphere warm and welcoming. The wine list is extremely good value – we had two half bottles of St Veran and Gigondas at about £12 each and the excellent manzanilla I started with was only £2.50.

The amuse was an artichoke veloute with peanut froth in the ubiquitous shot glass. This was an excellent start with the flavours marrying extremely well. A deeply comforting and yet luxurious experience.

Then came the starters – red mullet on a duck confit for me and pigs trotter and cheek risotto for Mrs. W. The fish was perfectly cooked with a robust flavour and the skin was quite highly salted which I liked but may have been too much for some. The flavour didn’t clash with the duck but there wasn’t a real synergy and I ended up respecting the dish rather than worshipping it. The risotto was comforting and tasty but again no wow factor – I reckon we could have had a decent bash at this at home and we’re competent rather than skilled cooks. Both portions were on the large size.

The mains were red partridge and black pudding on soured cabbage for me and brill with eel cream and white onion fondant for Mrs. W. Again these were good solid offerings with an excellent black pudding and a decent couple of hunks of partridge but not orgasmic. The eel cream was a very good idea.

By this point we were perhaps slightly disappointed but the meal rallied with the space dust pre-dessert and a fantastic pre-cheese for me of a scrumptiously-oozey cheese beignet on onion marmalade. The cheese tray was one of the best I’d seen and Helen’s explanations and advice were excellent. She then presented the selected cheeses in a wheel of increasing flavour on the plate which was a very clever touch. The home made biscuits were also noteworthy.

However the outstanding dish was Mrs. W’s lightly frozen prune and burdock mousse which was the most extraordinary explosion of flavours that I would have loved to spend time picking apart but despite the generous “have as much as you want” from my now-full beloved disappeared surprisingly quickly.

Mint tea for two and petit fours (most of which we had bagged up) finished us off and we waddled back to our hotel – the excellent Kandinsky.

Total damage was a reasonable £140 including a well-deserved tip.

[tony h]

Le Champignon Sauvage, August 2004

First impressions – what a small place. 10 or so tables is a small-ish room with curious contemporary art on the walls – some less accomplished that others - but decent enough. Good spacing between the tables.

Wonderful welcome for Mrs Cook (Everrett something or other) – very much in charge but set a very good atmosphere.

Amuses - crispy flaky cheese pastry of mouth watering proportions and mini-pastry with rich tomato & olive topping. To describe as a mini-pizza would be a poor description. Lovely.

Pre-starter – simple gazpacco with astounding depth and thickness served in a small tall thin vase? – so thick that when you tilt the glass took about half a second for the delicious liquid to move. Wonderful long finish with occasional hit of sweet, sour, bitter and salt along the way. A very knowing dish.

Starters – sweetbread & oxtail open lasagne. Sweetbreads perfectly caramelised; oxtail was taken of the bone in satisfying lumps. All placed between several discs of pasta rounds perfectly cooked – still had a slight firmness to them. Came with cream sauces with various accompaniments. Deeply satisfying.

Ball & chain had crab ravioli with meat from knuckle (veal). Also quite superb.

Mains – roast pork: belly & cheek – resting upon puree of globe artichoke and accompanied with a variety of wild mushrooms - giroles stood out as particularly “wow”. The sauce was scented with 5-spice/star anise and had a depth an sheen that many a chef would envy.

B&C – lamb roasted with lavender – quite astonishing – lavender kept well under control.

Pre dessert – geranium brulee with greengage ice cream. Oh so satisfying. Plus – the brulee was made with popping sugar which exploded wonderfully & funnily when you ate it. Great to see a chef have fun.

Desserts – mine was a prune & burdock creation – mouse and ice cream rectangular stack with crisp layers and macerated prunes. The burdock was there really to buffer the prunes – which it did so well. Deep autumnal favours here.

B&C – caramelised pineapple – I’m a bit vague on this part – however it was met with suitable groans of pleasure.

Post meal chocs – about a dozen in total – way to much – but completely irresistible.

Also worth noting – the wine list full of very affordable wines – loads under 30 & 40 quid.

Well worth a trip and so incredibly reasonable compared to London – final bill 150 – easily twice that in L.

PS Stayed in Hotel on the Park – very curious affair – awash with teddy bears. Hmm.

Here the link: http://www.lechampignonsauvage.com

Edited August 29, 2004 by blind lemon higgins (log)

[MobyP]

tony - you're becoming so ridiculously well-eaten, I might have to start stalking you. A great review. Left me deeply jealous.

Edited August 29, 2004 by MobyP (log)

[DDarwood]

OCTOBER 2004

My first of six visits to Champignon Sauvage was for Saturday lunch, shortly after the restaurant gained its second Michelin Star. The dining room was relatively empty except for me and two elderly local hoteliers chatting to Helen Everitt-Matthias. Their conversation moved onto the quality of local restaurants and hotels and went something like this:

Couple: Have you heard of Michelin?

H. E-M : Yes…….

Couple: Would you like a Michelin Star?

(Pause)

H. E-M: Well,actually we have two (modestly)

Couple: Really?...........

(embarrassed silence)

I had to chuckle at the couple’s faux pas and Helen Everritt-Matthias’ phlegmatic response.

In many ways things have not changed: the residents of Cheltenham and its environs must still be relatively unaware – or insufficiently appreciative - of this gastronomic jewel in their midst, otherwise it would be packed out every night, as is the case with equally rated establishments in the south east; and Helen Everitt-Matthias remains as charming, courteous, tactful and modest as ever.

Indeed, lack of ostentation is the hallmark of Champignon Sauvage. Its façade blends in with the rest of the terrace of shops, restaurants and pubs on Suffolk Road so much that it is easy to miss the front entrance altogether. The lounge is the size of a sitting room, whilst the restaurant itself has only 28 covers. An eclectic but not flamboyant choice of paintings decorates its walls, and the tables, chairs and place settings offer only modest comfort and luxury. Prices continue to represent excellent value for money, whether it is the set lunch, the weekday set dinner, or indeed the Carte, given its luxury ingredients and masterful cooking. Nor does the chef visit the diners at the end of service to receive applause: David Everitt-Matthias, a previous winner of the National Chef of the Year, is highly skilled but low profile.

What has changed and what is bold is the confident development of the menu. This is based on the scrupulous sourcing of the freshest ingredients – Shetland Scallops, Gloucester Old Spot pig, local (Winchcombe) venison - and an imagination limited only by a judicious sense of which combinations actually work. Consider for instance the amuse bouche of game veloute with liquorice. Instead of two strong flavours counter-acting each other, the soft earthiness of the game is cut by the distinctive taste of the herb.

Throughout, the cooking is complex and multi-layered, true to the French classics but with innovation enhancing the finished combination. The generous starter of seared foie gras came with fried pancetta, gizzards, Maury syrup and balsamic dressed salad. This is a robust dish, not for the feint hearted. The same is true of a lasagne of oxtail and sweetbreads, where the light horseradish foam balanced the richness of the meat and offal. Hand dived scallops - plump, rich and perfectly timed - were balanced by pea and onion purees of exquisite smoothness.

Main courses include saddle of venison, with the texture of beef and meltingly tender. The sauerkraut which accompanied it was mercifully free from excessive acidity that can mask any dish. Pork belly and pig’s cheek which proved rich and unctuous, and not overwhelmed by the five spice seasoning.

French and English cheeses were in prime condition, as were home made biscuits which accompanied them. Crackling sugar in the pre dessert of geranium scented cream tickled our aural sensations. Fortunately, we were not offered headphones to enhance this experience!

Desserts are as rich as the other courses, albeit simpler in their presentation. Roast pineapple and molasses, with pineapple and angelica sorbet; proved a successful combination of sweet and hot, light and cold.

All the incidentals, including the crusty strong flour white rolls and petits fours are first rate. Wines, whether per glass or bottle, are excellent value for money.

With only three in the kitchen, and despite its limited space and unremarkable location the restaurant nevertheless goes from strength to strength. The sous chef (Sam) has recently been runner up in the Young Chef of the Year competition, an accolade which speaks volumes for the experience he has gained under David Everitt- Matthias.

Edited October 18, 2004 by DDarwood (log)

[Suzi Edwards]

Thanks for this lovely report, and welcome to eGullet! Feel free to tempt us with any reports of other places you visit!

[tony h]

Hello, can I confirm my reservation for tonight?

How’s your eyesight these days?

Eh?

Blind lemon, I presume?

Shit! sorry, who’s this?

David (Everitt-Matthias)

I was caught completely off guard – what I meant to say was - what on earth are you doing answering the phone – shouldn’t you be cooking. But all that came out was an inarticulate rambling of embarrassment with me trying to think what the hell I’d said and how much back peddling would be necessary.

Anyway – David remembered somehow that I was there recently (he reads egullet, gulp) and said that as they were about to change menus would I like to sample from the new. (How fantastic is that?) I said the only thing I didn’t eat was eggs – apart from that anything goes. When I put the phone down after about a nanosecond I went shit, double shit – he’s going to feed me brains, why didn’t I say no brains or things that slither or dangle or … oh my god, chef’s revenge.

I arrived half hour late (I got lost after driving from Stratford (conference) which also meant I couldn’t drink) and was met by the lovely Helen. David she said felt guilt about seeming to force his new creations on me so here was the menu if I wanted to decide. God no – personal chef for the evening? Go for it. Here’s my advice – if anyone of this calibre offers to create for you – for gods sake say YES. Christ, he tailored it around my posting on the board.

Nibbles arrive – variation on cheese pastry – one dry, one wet. Fabulous and gone in a bite.

Pre-starters – one was a veloute of parsnip with pine foam on top – imagine essence of parsnips – not the yucky dried out supermarket stuff but the parsnips we had in our youth – full of nutty wondrousness (OK they probably didn’t exist – but fake sentimental memories are as good as a real ones). Damn, I meant to ask him how he managed to squeeze some much flavour & freshness into a little cup – maybe another time. The other pre-starter was a small bowl magnetically attached to an oblique angled saucer (very cute) – inside was a breath taking cooked foie gras mousse/set custard with a kick ass concentrate of creamed sweet corn onto top. A superb combination, beautifully balanced.

First course – the biggest, boldest, master of the universe scallop I’ve every seen seared and with a pumpkin puree and very, very thick squid ink sauce. Dotted in the ink were seared morsels of squid. The scallop had a green herb toupee. Astonishing combination of simple colours – back, white, yellow & green. The vibrancy of the colours was reflected in the taste – this is the kind of dish I’d happily travels hundred of miles for – you won’t be disappointed if you do too.

Next was a croquette of pigs trotter on a bed of salted cod surrounded by a dice of beetroot & fava beans. The pigs trotter was diced finely and scented with little slithers of black truffle. I was worried by the cod – but no need – it was kept well under control. What was even better than the gelatinous trotter was the sauce – deep reduction with tones of white raisin. A lazy chef may have simply used apple, David is no lazy chef.

Next was a challenge – snail risotto on top of which was a very large and delicious piece of roast sea bass and a chestnut foam sauce. This was very earthy & autumnal – there was a herb intermingled with the risotto much used in the past but less so now (David told me but I forget) which added a curious depth – more out of unfamiliarity, I think. It took me a few mouthfuls to ignore the fact that the snails were there but once my silly slither phobia was out of the way was this was devoured.

Next came breast of woodcock on a bed of earthy vegetables held together by a discrete bed of mash potato all bound by a delicious deep red reduction. Here and there were dotted girolles and slithers of black wild mushrooms (I forget their name). The crowning accompaniment to this was braised cock’s comb – I never seen this before, anywhere, and it certainly got my attention. This was fantastic – a truly wonderful indulgent creation. The only problem was that I was complete stuffed by now. These were not tasting menu portions (as Helen pointed out, David doesn’t like to be mean – no problem there, then). From previous visit I knew to go easy on the bread - which is a very hard thing to pass up as I know how delicious they are – even so I was struggling and regrettable just couldn’t clear the plate.

As much as I wanted to I really couldn’t face dessert - so what do I do remembering that the poor guys been cooking for me all evening stuff that’s not on the old menu & what do I do – I order off menu!. What a lunkhead. I though it would Ok to just asked to taste a couple of ice creams – what I got in return was a stunningly presented set of three ice creams that looked like it had taken ages to perfect & refine. Dark chocolate, caramel & barley ice creams – not only that but I’m sure the base mixtures were different (i.e. not all egg custard based) to further increase the please and difference. I felt ashamed when I realised what I’d done.

And then something happened which has occurred only once before – I asked, no begged, them to stop sending food lest they wanted a repeat of the monty python exploding man. (The other place was Pierre Gagnaire, btw)

Then we met…

I am not going to give a blow by blow account of conversation expect to say that David is charming, self-effacing and very down to earth. Also extremely generous with his time. The big shock for me was finding out just how few people working the in the kitchen – him and two others. There were loads of questions I want to ask him but I kind of dried up - I was very, very humbled at this stage & who wouldn’t be after all that. It was a magical meal & superb evening. And I daren’t sign-off without mention the stunning front house staff.

The bill was ludicrously small to which I’m still embarrassed.

[Marlyn4k]

Fantastic! Great write up, great restaurant!

[MobyP]

Brilliant write up, Tony.

Speaking of, how did he know you were our Tony?

(Chef, if you're reading, I always book under Miriam Knobgag, to maintain anonymity)

Sigh. I hope I get up there soon. Very very glad he's using trotters. It sounds like superlative food.

[tony h]

Speaking of, how did he know you were our Tony?

←

He's a member & he reads & being quite smart he put 2 and 2 together – still, it took me by surprise as was the generosity of the meal. He didn’t even make on wine mark-up as I couldn’t drink that evening. But I wouldn’t expect that on future visits – he’d go broke.

Also on reflection, I recall that there wasn’t a single ingredient repeated which is quite a feat given the scope of each dish.

His member name is … yeah, like I’m going to reveal that.

[Suzi Edwards]

Jan Moir gets all superlative about this place in this week's Telegraph

[origamicrane]

to finish "tonca bean" ice cream , has anybody heard of such a thing before?,

Angela Hartnett (chef at Menu) just mentioned tonka beans on Women's Hour (she seems to be a regular these days) and described them as a cross between coffee beans and cocoa beans, though I understand they are used as a vanilla substitute. Expect to see these on a lot of menus, they're bound to be the Next Big Thing.

←

hi err.. i tried tonka bean ice cream at maggiores in covent garden and i thought it was lovely. Now as i got an ice cream machine at home i thought i might try making that flavour of ice cream. Well it seems that tonka beans are carcinogenic and is banned in america. Well they do say that the tastiest things are usually bad for your health.

for those that want to know more clickety click

http://www-ang.kfunigraz.ac.at/~katzer/eng...l?Dipt_odo.html

Edited February 1, 2005 by origamicrane (log)

[tony h]

Jan Moir gets all superlative about this place in this week's Telegraph

←

A worthy review - if you havent been - go! its that good.