Michelin starred dining, without the Michelin star – or the impossible booking procedure. That is what The Artichoke is. The restaurant sits in the heart of a beautiful old town high street, which is full of luxury delis, old-fashioned pubs and a few standard chain restaurants. Without being pretentious, it is easily the best restaurant in the area.
Fabulous restaurant really is 5 star. Food great. Service unpretentious. A real treat. Serves the only champagne I've ever liked
Everything about this worked. From the moment we walked in, we could see that this was polished and slick. Unfussy and professional service. Mainly French staff. I thought that we had drawn the short straw with the table – we were parked directly opposite the kitchen, where you could see the chef-proprietor and his various underlings beavering away quietly, only partially hidden by an opaque glass screen. My reservations were entirely unfounded and when conversation lagged I could make time disappear by watching the various mousses and foams being created in front of my very eyes. Indeed, it was so quiet that I wondered whether this was a pretend kitchen and that the real shouty, Gordon-esque- steaming pans-clattering restaurant kitchen hell was somewhere off stage left. Starting with my usual glass of Kir, I foolishly forgot to request extra cassis – no matter, it was perfect. From the very tasteful muted, slightly Skandi decoration (great lighting) to the fact that there was no
Michelin restaurant in a beautiful village.
4 weddings and 1 funeral being shot in the same area. Great service. Nice food. And great wine cave. A must do.
An exceptional and truly memorable experience all round. Both the food and service were incredible and couldn't be faulted. The staff were warm and professional, each dish was delicious and executed to perfection and the position of our table allowed us to see the talented chefs at work. We came for a special occasion and the experience we had felt very special indeed. Thank you! Money well spent.
A total delight from start to finish, amazing staff with incredible knowledge, particularly the sommelier. The food produced in the kitchen is sublime and the little extras are delightful and just incredible. Still on a high today from our meal last night, thank you.
No photos sorry to busy having a lovely time.
Had a beautiful Tasting Menu here with wine pairing. The food was very tasty and the wine pairing was explained why it was chosen for the course. The service was excellent and the staff absolutely brilliant. Some would say it's expensive but it was well worth it for those special occasions. You wouldn't believe from the outside (apart from the MICHELIN star plaque they received in 2019) that it would be such a beautiful restaurant and experience. Highly recommended.
A truly wonderful experience at the Artichoke for a very special celebration with dear friends. The food was outstanding and the staff were exceptional from the moment we arrived. So many small touches that elevated our dining experience. One of our guests had a very specific dietary requirement and this was dealt with amazingly. I simply cannot recommend the Artichoke enough. A very big Thank You to the whole team who made this special evening truly a night to remember.
We went to the Artichoke in Amersham for our Wedding Anniversary on the 31st May '23. Food, service and ambience were fantastic. I do just want to highlight one specific thing that reflects really well on the restaurant and was dealt with brilliantly: I have Coeliac Disease which means I cannot eat anything with gluten in it. I rang the restaurant beforehand and they assured me they could provide me with gluten free food. Reassure, when we arrived, we chose the tasting menu and whilst there were a few changes, they provided me with a delicious and gluten free version of the tasting menu. My wife had the normal version and it was interesting to see the differences (very minor). I really appreciated the extra effort the front of house team and the chefs made to achieve a gluten free experience for me. Thank you, really well done. It shows the quality and professionalism of a place when that kind of effort is put in for one diner.
Outstanding! Visited the Artichoke in Amersham for the first time for our wedding anniversary and it just blew us away. We had the seven course tasting menu together with the wine flight and we cannot recommend it enough! If you haven't been it can appear at first glance to be quite pricey, and certainly isn't in our normal budget for dining out either, but honestly it was worth every penny. I wouldn't go in a big crowd; keep it small and intimate and definitely get the wine flight alongside the tasting menu if you're able to. The Sommelier is super helpful and his wine pairings were brilliant; even wines we normally think we don't like tasted amazing when paired with just the right dish. Would thoroughly recommend the Artichoke!
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We continued our support for the hospitality industry on Thursday evening with a return to one of our favourite places the Artichoke restaurant in the delightful town of Amersham. It's always a pleasure to visit here as the food and service is usually to a very high standard. Our visit this time as we know was going to be a little bit different. When we arrived we were given the usual friendly welcome before being asked to sanitize our hands. Once this was done they escorted us to our table in a prime spot in front of the newly designed open kitchen where we were greeted by owner / chef Laurie who it was great to see again. All the staff were wearing face shields which although we understand it really does make it hard to hear what's being said at times. They had also spaced out the tables leaving plenty of room in between each one. Once seated the sommelier came over to ask if we'd like an aperitif so we chose to have a glass of rose sparkling wine to start the evening. Now on to the menu where there was a choice of either the six or eight course Tasting Menu or the A la Carte. Our choice as always was the eight course tasting menu. We decided not to have the wine pairing and mentioned to the sommelier that we would like to try the Spanish Albarino to which he said was a good choice and would be an excellent pairing for the menu.
So now it is food time which started with a delightful Amuse Bouche of Sea Trout & Apple. Along with this came the Chiltern Black Ale Bread & Malt Vinegar Butter. This led us on to the first course of Cornish Crab with brown crab cream , tomato water & summer vegetables.
So now we moved on to our next course a Courgette Flower with lincolnshire poacher , borlotti beans & nettle pesto. This was followed by the Pan Fried Foie Gras with confit bacon , cauliflower purée & blackberries that was absolutely delicious. Our fish course was a Poached Brill with basil butter , brown shrimp , coco beans & violet artichoke.
So now on to the main course where there was a choice of two. So with this my wife chose the Confed Landes Poussin with girolles , cep ketchup , leeks , carrots & Foie gras. While for myself I had the Saddle of Lamb , sweetbreads spiced with ras el hanout , yoghurt , apricots & lettuce.
Now it was time for the cheese course which was very interesting but the combination of flavours really did work well together. This was a Goat's Cheese Souffle with smoked pepper sorbet & truffle honey. Next to come was desserts which started with the Cambridge Cream with strawberries , buttermilk ice cream , breton sable & strawberry soup. This was followed by the Oakchurch Raspberries with white chocolate ganache , gateaux savoie , ale ice cream & green almonds.
We finished with coffee & petit fours to round of the evening of excellent food from Laurie & Ben and great service especially from our waitress Alexa. I would highly recommend a visit to the fantastic restaurant. Wishing them all the best and look forward to seeing you all again soon.
#SupportHospitality
A palette of talent and skills discovered in every dish of the Tasting menu and married with the expertly chosen wines of the flight. These culinary experiences are rare and delivered with great care by a team passionate about seamless service. Thank you to the masters and chefs and to Emanuela for making this special occasion truly unforgettable!
Had a nice meal here. Good food and service, and fair value. Would recommend.
The staff was very accommodating and friendly from the point which we arrived. Each dish was very well presented and thought out. We have an eight course tasting menu. it held its own next to you some of the Michelin restaurants which we have visited.
Front of house stuff is fully French, and the restaurants had an air of elegance.
The one sommelier was wonderful, opposed to doing a full wine flight we went for a large glass each. He helped us figure out exactly which flavors would be to our likings and best accompany the entire meal. He really knew his wines!
A little work could be done on their cocktail making skills. This was the one area which my husband and I were slightly disappointed and confused. Luckily the cocktails were not representative of the meal which followed.
We had a fabulous time at Artichokes last night! Food was exquisite, service to match, we were very well looked after and enjoyed every minute! Huge thank you to everyone who made it such a brilliant experience. We will definitely come back again soon!
Overall a very nice experience. The food and service was good and dish presentation very nice. Some dishes were not our favourites from the tasting menu but of course that’s personal preference.
Superb experience last night, food standards were matched by sensational service. Perfectly put together tasting menu, which was slightly adapted for my pregnant fiancé! Thanks guys!
This restaurant continues to impress. This must have been our 20th visit over the last few years. Wonderful cooking and attentive but not overwhelming service. The cheese course is marvelous. Can't wait for our next visit.
Really great restaurant. One of the best in the north west area around Greater London.
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