Address: High Street, Ombersley, Worcester W9 0EW

Telephone number: 01905 620552

Website: N/A

Date of visit: 17 July 2010

Approximate cost per head: Fixed price set meals only. Evening £36 for 3 courses, coffee and petit fours. Lunch £26 for 3 courses. No added service charge.

Comments on wine list/beer: Fairly extensive list well served by the New Worlds. Wines from around £20 to over £100. Mark up around 300%

Summary:

This is my first visit in the evening.

As usual, the place is packed and even managed to get 2 sittings on certain tables.

The Venture In describes itself as a French restaurant and it’s old school cooking. There is a lot of heavily reduced sauces and  cream. This is not a place to come if you are on a diet. The cooking is very similar to The Forbury Restaurant in Reading but at about £20 per head cheaper.

Two stories about the Venture In. Firstly, this is apparently one of Margaret Thatcher’s favourite restaurant. She now visits it about twice a year with her police escort. Her picture is fondly displayed in the bar. The other story is that the chef used to be at the Worcester Golf Club but his cooking was considered too “intricate” for the members taste.

On the night we went, we had the twice baked soufflé, soup and gravadlax. The soufflé which appears regularly was deemed as good as ever. My “home” cured gravadlax was what you expect – no more, no less. On the plus side – it was not heavily dilled and over sugared.

My main course of loin of lamb was served as noisette with a kidney tart – chopped and fried lamb’s kidneys in a pastry bottom. The lamb in my view had too much fat rolled around it. As it was served pink, the fat had not been rendered. Maybe the fat was unnecessary.

What I like about this place is that although you plate comes well decorated, vegetables are provided on the side, so you do not end up with two peas and a centimetre of carrot. They usually provide a generous helping of some vegetables deep fried with a coating of breadcrumb and a green vegetable. We had courgettes and carrots with breadcrumbs and green beans.

My friends had confit of duck and sole in a narge enriched with cream. The plates were clean at the end – a testament to the cooking?

For deserts we had chocolate mousse and crème boulee.

We had two bottles of wine. A Montagne 2005 at £30 was light and refreshing. We then had a Lebanese red at £24 which was on the acid side.

E