Michelin Red Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2008

Attractive red brick pub with tiny front bar, rear restaurant and telephone box in duck pond. Good value, precisely cooked British dishes, well presented and locally sourced. Comfortable bedrooms have character beds and modern bathrooms, Molières is best.

One of only 133 UK establishments to be awarded the Bib Gourmand for good food at moderate prices.

From Room At The Inn
AA Lifestyle Guide, edited by David Hancock

The Inn

After a decade in the London hothouse of Le Gavroche and the Connaught Hotel, in 2005 chef Simon Crawshaw swapped the city for this 18th-century red-brick pub deep in the Chiltern Hills. He hasn't looked back. Lost down narrow leafy lanes, with valley views across rolling fields, the place draws walkers for ale and sandwiches, and foodies for accomplished modern cooking. Step through the latch door to find a cracking snug bar, replete with blackened beams, a flagstone floor and a blazing log fire in the original brick fireplace - the perfect spot for a post-walk pint of locally brewed Marlow Rebellion. Rooms ramble beyond, and from the split-level rear restaurant the view of the duck pond and its gradually sinking red telephone box will keep you amused between courses.

The quirky individually decorated bedrooms are named after local shoots, all are done out in calming Farrow & Ball colours, with plump down duvets on big brass and wooden beds, an eclectic mix of furnishings, fluffy towels and Molton Brown toiletries in the tiled bathrooms.

The Food

Everything is freshly prepared on the premises from local ingredients, and Simon's daily menus are varied and versatile to please both the booted walkers who call by at lunchtime for soup and sandwiches and the evening diners who travel miles to sample his innovative modern cooking. In the bar, tuck into tomato, lettuce and potato soup, served with olive and pesto bread, and a thick sandwich filled with roast Oxfordshire beef, wild rocket and horseradish, or you may like to try the home-made beef burger or, perhaps, wild mushroom and tarragon risotto. If you have time to linger longer, opt for the excellent value set lunch menu, perhaps starting with chicken liver parfait with home-made piccalilli and following with steak and kidney pie.

The cooking style moves up a gear in the evening, with the short imaginative menu offering the like of seared scallops with chorizo and cauliflower fritter ahead of lamb rump with aubergine caviar and black olive jus or pan-fried cod with crushed peas and shrimp butter. Lemon cheesecake with confit of pineapple makes a tangy choice for afters. Don't miss the popular monthly live jazz and tapas evening.

London chef (ex Le Gavroche and the Connaught) Simon Crawshaw swapped the city for this 18th-century pub in the Chilterns. Down narrow leafy lanes, with views across rolling fields, the place draws walkers and foodies alike. Step through the latch door to find a snug bar, with beams, flagstone floor and log fire. The rooms ramble beyond - all four are done in Farrow & Ball colours, with plump down duvets, fluffy towels and Molton Brown toiletries in the tiled bathrooms.

From Full English: The 100 finest places to stay in England
published by the Sunday Times Travel Magazine

Tucked away in a tiny hamlet in the rather beautiful Chilterns, this inn is definitely worth finding.

The food is prepared by award-winning chef/patron Simon Crawshaw, with a great selection of real ales on hand and cosy but stylish rooms.

Eat in front of the fire in winter or out in the lovely garden on a warm night overlooking the famous red telephone box submerged in the pond.

The Three Horseshoes is a country pub in the Chilterns with a glorious garden and skyline busy with swooping red kites. It's one of the few UK spots to see the massive birds of prey - just hold on to the little 'uns. If you need another reason, the food, overseen by chef Simon Crawshaw (Chez Nico, J Sheekey), makes it one of the rare places that deserve the accolade 'gastropub'.

QUALITY chefs are scurrying out to the Chilterns like there's a plague upon London. The view seems to be that the provinces are now the place for aspiring chefs to make their names and their fortunes, a la Blanc and Blumenthal.

Certainly the last couple of years have seen an influx of chefs who've left the bright lights to bring haute cuisine to a little country pub. The newest arrived in November, Simon Crawshaw.

At 35, Simon decided that a life spent cooking at The Connaught, Chez Nico, Gavroche, and the Sloane Club, plus cooking for the Queen and for the Maharajah of Jaipur in India, has prepared him for one thing: a little pub of his own in the most tucked away spot in Bucks, The Three Horseshoes at Bennett End between Radnage and Stokenchurch.

He also thinks these parts are the ideal place to bring up his young family.

But I worry about Simon. Will people really trek out here in the dark of winter to eat, even though the food is great? Winter lunches when you can sit by the open fire, yes; summer evenings, certainly, with the gorgeous views over the garden and beyond. But winter nights? I hope so. It's worth the effort.

This is a charming ancient inn in a pretty hamlet which looks like it's been rooted here since time began. It has a pretty garden with a big duck pond in which a red telephone box is half submerged, a truly quirky sight with idyllic Chiltern hills beyond.

We braved a frosty night to drive down narrow single-file lanes to Bennett End to suss it out (and yes, there are less hazardous routes. For directions, ring 01494 483273).

Simon's idea is to provide quality food for every occasion, whether you want a simple but rather special sandwich, a light lunch or supper, or a celebratory meal with fine wine and all the stops pulled out. It's all made fresh in the kitchen and the menu changes almost daily.

Simon put together a selection of dishes for us to try, and if he was aiming to impress, he succeeded. This chef is an ace.

The day's amuse bouche was a quenelle of smoked salmon and poached salmon mousse sitting in a dainty puddle of gazpacho which fair tingled with flavour.

Then we tried a little portion of smoked ham hock terrine, which comes with a caper and gherkin dressing a rich dish to brighten any winter evening.

Plaice got an unusual treatment which worked splendidly: a fillet covered with Cornish crab crust then fried, and served on spinach with a smooth red pepper velout, giving what is sometimes a light dish a definite air of sophistication with its mix of flavours and textures.

Simon's roast rump of lamb was one of the best I've tasted. He says he takes great care in sourcing his ingredients and they're local where possible. This was tender and flavoursome and beautifully cooked, served with potato rosti, baked cherry tomatoes and puy lentil jus.

Dessert lovers won't be disappointed. They're all made on the premises, including fab ices and sorbets. We had a tasting of lemon posset with raspberries (a dream), apple and caramelised rhubarb crumble (wish I could make it like that), and bitter choc tart with sorbet and ice cream, and they were all superb.

With most restaurants, the la carte option is the most expensive while the set menu is cheaper. Here, Simon's set menu (£25.50 for three courses, £18.50 for two) is where he sets out to give you a taste of the high life. The la carte is a small selection of simpler dishes home made soup (£3.50); grilled salmon and tiger prawns, steak, or braised oxtails (£8.50-£12.50); and desserts including a selection of ice creams and sorbets (£4.50).