Break up your journey at The Pheasant Inn, a pub with rooms that promises moreish meals and easy access to the M4.
24 January, 2020
With
a journey time of just one hour and 30 minutes from
London (by car), we’d advise arriving at The Pheasant Inn a
couple of hours before your dinner reservation – which will leave
you time to drop your bags, freshen up and nurse a pint in a cosy
pub corner – the Pheasant Inn’s hearth.
Choose from four room types – Small Double, Medium Double, Large
Double and Twin Room – starting from £115. Across all rooms
(refurbished by London-based interior designer Flora
Soames) you can expect certain design staples including plush
fabric headboards, framed artworks and oversized lampshades capping
urn-shaped bases. As beds go, these – dressed in luxury Egyptian
cotton bed linens – near the top of our “cosiest” and “comfiest”
lists – we suspect it’s something to do with the duck-down duvets
and mattress toppers. With that in mind, a lie-in is a near
certainty. As a reminder: check out is at 11am.
Ah, the perpetual breakfast dilemma: will it be the full English
or the continental breakfast? It turns out both are equally tasty
here – the former, including smoked streaky bacon, Kelmscott
sausage and slow-roast tomatoes, while the latter offers fresh
juices, pastries and granola topped with a hearty dollop of yoghurt
from Normandy. The veggie breakfast – think potato rosti and creamy
avocado – also makes a compelling case.
Lunch is from noon to 5pm; dinner is from 6pm until 9.30pm. Both
mealtimes offer a varied, well-priced menu that caters to vegans,
vegetarians and pescatarians – try the moreish mushroom wellington
with mustard creamed leeks and wilted spinach and the pan-fried
halibut served with spinach and new potatoes. Finish with the lemon
posset, decorated with raspberry coulis and crunchy ginger biscuits
or the apple-and-pear tarte tatin to share (note: prep time is 10
minutes, but it’s worth the wait). If you’re visiting on a Sunday,
avail of the sharing menu additions – the 16oz Wiltshire
chateaubriand, served with Yorkshire puddings, garlic-and-herb
roast potatoes, seasonal vegetables and red-wine sauce is
scrumptious. If you’re gathering with a larger gang, it would be
wise to book out the private dining room, which caters to groups of
up to 20.
The bar stocks 30 whiskies, 10 vodkas and nine beers, with wines
sourced from Berry Bros. & Rudd, Bibendum and other specialist suppliers. We recommend
ordering a Pheasant Ale, pulled from painterly, ceramic tap
handles, and then hunkering in for the afternoon/ evening.
Perch on a vintage leather stool or plop yourself fireside with
the pooch (dogs are welcome here), the papers and a pint.
Alternatively, hunker down in the bar’s adjoining cosy snug where
you can play board games or catch the day’s races on the big
screen.
Modcons include free WiFi (though a little patchy), Roberts
radios and smart TVs.
Book a room for a Sunday night, and you can stay for free if
your restaurant tab is over £100. Free parking is available to all
guests.
The Pheasant Inn is plotted just off a main road, so you’ll need
a car to travel towards more scenic pastures. Head to the market
town of Hungerford for antiques shops and fairs or to
neighbouring Marlborough for a spot of lunch
and a stroll along one of the widest high streets in England.