Driving through the Cotswolds I always like to imagine the signposted towns and villages are, in fact, signalling the surnames of the local gentry: ‘Did you know, we saw both the Barringtons and the Rissingtons in Norfolk this summer. Have you seen Lady Ingleshams’s geraniums this year? Marston Meysey; lovely boy but thick as mince’. As I was travelling from Oxford, I had around half an hour’s worth of drive in which to amuse myself before arriving at The Five Alls in Filkins...
Visitors unfamiliar with the area may wonder why they are turning off the A361 from Burford onto a road signed for Broughton Poggs, and it is because in 1954 the two villages were merged together into one civil parish. So cute. So Cotswolds. Here you’ll find all the honeyed stone, Farrow and Ball paintwork and enviable floral displays your heart could desire and, as you come to the Filkins side of the parish, you will find that most desirable of sightings in any village: the local pub. The Five Alls was taken over earlier this year by Tom Downing, former General Manager at the Crazy Bear in Stadhampton, and attracts a wide-ranging clientele – including the glamorous Chippy set – but it is clear that the new management has proudly retained the heart of the local community, with regular music and games nights.
Step inside, and the appeal is immediately apparent. The design is cosily inviting; stripped wooden floors contrast with intricate William Morris prints and seductively dark paintwork. The building must have a pretty big footprint but it is something of a warren, comprising a number of rooms with larger spaces for eating and smaller intimate snugs for drinks, plus there is a private dining room. It all coordinates beautifully, down to the ochre tones of the plush velvet seating working in harmony with the golden coat of pub Lab, Mabel, and the strawberry blonde – ok, ginger – fur of Dougal, the resident cat.
The welcome and care shown by all the staff, including attentive manager Robert Wilks, easily match the warmth of pub’s interior. We were shown to a table in one of the two dining rooms and before we had to ask, were supplied with water and the Sunday Lunch Menu (which includes some options from the standard A La Carte in addition to more traditional roasts). The kitchen at The Five Alls has wisely chosen to #shoplocal and dishes on offer showcase the best of the best: meat from popular Cotswolds Butchers, Jesse Smith, sourdough from the award-winning Mark’s Bakery, and trout fished from the famous farm at Bibury.
This made my starter an easy choice. I opted for the trout paté which married the sweet, smokiness of the fish with a fresh citrus hit. I was there with my husband and daughter for a last ‘family Sunday lunch’ before our baby girl flies the nest. She went for the Scotch Egg with curried mayonnaise and, as she generously allowed me a forkful of that lovely jammy yolk, I reflected on how much I’d miss her before turning to my husband’s choice of Crispy Duck Salad. He too, was sufficiently moved by the occasion to feel the need to share – although it should be stated that portions are so bountiful we were all able to be selfless without fear of denial.
Although the wine list looked particularly well chosen, we opted for pumps over bottles. The teenager enjoying her signature Moretti (she’s embracing her Italian heritage), the husband very pleased with his best bitter and me in my happy place with a pint of cider. My happy place got even happier when the mains arrived. I wanted to be adventurous and try the Cauliflower Three Ways, but my carnivore-self got the better of me, and I went for the 30-day aged rump of beef. Cooked on point, meltingly soft and accompanied on the plate by a huge puff of Yorkshire Pudding and sweet roasted root vegetables with a deeply meaty gravy. Rich nutmeggy cauliflower cheese came on the side along with a dish of buttery savoy cabbage and broccoli. There’s no better treat than eating food prepared by someone else who doesn’t have to be mindful of every gram of fat passing my lips.
Daughter went with the rolled belly pork (she’s a sucker for crackling and stuffing) and husband chose the trout, which was served as a large Supreme, prettily paired with vivid green stems of broccoli and just-cooked tomatoes drizzled in a sorrel vinaigrette.
A quick note here on the pace of service, which is perfectly judged. Dishes come with enough of a pause to make the next welcome, water is topped up regularly and there was a friendly degree of checking in to see how we were getting along. Very well, thank you. This meant that dessert felt like a very reasonable suggestion rather than a challenge to accommodate. We tried (devoured) a particularly silky and almost ludicrously wobbly coffee panna cotta with amaretto crumb, a dense cocoa-rich chocolate tart balanced with tart raspberry coulis and a towering sandwich of choux pastry and vanilla crème with a wicked salted caramel layer.
After eating, we went to have a peek at the rooms, of which there are nine. Each elegantly furnished and filled with the sort of thoughtful details which make an overnight stay a real treat: Roberts radios; kettles and Nespresso machines; fresh milk in the fridge; easy to access wifi; and posh toiletries (Noble Isle!) in the spacious bathroom. Rather brilliantly, along with a welcome note giving all details of your stay including when and where breakfast (included in the room rate) is served, you’ll find a map of Filkins & Broughton Poggs with sights of interest highlighted. If we had been staying overnight, I think this would have been the point at which we would have put on our walking shoes and attempted to walk off some of our lunch before repairing back to the bar for cocktails by the fire. Ah well, next time for sure.
