Review on Crooked Billet
The trek through winding Oxfordshire lanes to Stoke Row can be tortuous, but crowds still manage to descend on this out-of-the-way country pub in their droves and if the exterior looks familiar, that's because the Crooked Billet has played a starring role in countless films, TV dramas and commercials. It's also attracted a motley crew of celebs over the years, from highwayman Dick Turpin to George Harrison and Kate Winslet (who held her wedding bash here). Chef/proprietor Paul Clerehugh has deliberately kept the lop-sided seventeenth-century cottage as it was: roses clamber around the exterior, logs are piled high in the huge inglenooks and real ales are drawn direct from casks in the cellar. It's all famously idiosyncratic.
The menu reads well, inspiration is global and the kitchen is fully committed to using local ingredients (although fish has to travel some considerable distance). You might kick off with a plate of Galway oysters, country rabbit broth with herb dumplings or tuna sashimi with avocado and chilli salsa before sampling stuffed chicken breast with warm chorizo salad and Puy lentils or fillet of sea bass with garlic shrimps, roast Mediterranean vegetables and salsa verde.
Cheeses often include representatives from Oxfordshire, and desserts return to the comfort zone for Bakewell tart and custard, sherry trifle and gooseberry fool with honeycomb. The wine list is as eclectic as the food, with a decent selection available by the glass. Don't miss out on the pub's renowned live music evenings.
Cuisine
Gastro pub / Eclectic
Chef
Paul Clerehugh
Restaurant Opening Times
Lunch: 12.00 - 2.30pm (all day Sat-Sun)
Dinner: 6.30 - 10.00pm
Accepted credit cards
Visa, Master Card