The Walnut Tree

Food to die for! Lobster Thermidor tart, Venison and that chocolate Torte, all heavenly. Dined Saturday evening. Wonderfully relaxed and very friendly service. Fantastic cocktails and great drinks menu. Beautiful location. What's not to love? ❤️ Second time visiting and can't wait to come back.

We went on a Saturday night, it was full and therefore the service probably wasn’t as attentive as you may have expected. I have eaten in many Michelin Star restaurants and have eaten here many times during several iterations. We had a nice night, but I have to say I was somewhat underwhelmed. I had the trio of lamb as my main, three bite sizes morsels accompanied by a few additional flavours. Served on a huge white plate, it looked so lonely! I eked it out and made it last 5 mins (£48). My wife on the other hand was served a huge bowl of risotto and a salad. I felt aggrieved by the imbalance. It’s not the first time I’ve been so taken aback by the price/weight ratio of a meal at a posh restaurant but on other occasions that has been offset by numerous surprise courses or copious amounts of bread to fill the calorie deficit. A single arancini ball (bang average as well) and a slice of (very tasty) sourdough (let down by curd like unsalted butter… Please, if you are going to do this at least have crystal salt on your table) just didn’t cut it. I left £300 worse off, in good spirits but in search of the missing calories. When I spoil myself and indulge in places like this I expect to spend the next week dieting to compensate not scratching through the fridge in search of snacks when I get home. Don’t get me wrong, all the food tastes great (if not spectacular) and the quirky restaurant charming as always, but, the balance just is quite right, rosette not star worthy for me.

We dined at the restaurant and were quite disappointed. We sat down and didn’t get attention to order starters for 20-25 minutes. We didn’t want to get their attention ourselves to see how long it would take for them to attend to us themselves. Another table that arrived after us had their starters served before we had even placed our order. The food was meh to say the best, lacked a wow factor and flavour. In between each course, it took an incredibly long time. Overall 3 courses took almost 3 hours. Two other tables of couples who both arrived after us, left before us. So it’s not just a slow running service, but something where consistent service is not delivered to all guests.

It was my first time here and we enjoyed a fantastic meal with top-notch professional service at the Walnut Tree. Thank you also for the inspiring wine recommendations. We will be back soon to this gem of an establishment in this exciting region. All the best and keep up the good work!

We had an outstanding dinner at the Walnut Tree. Peter and Mo did a fantastic job, both were very knowlegable on the menu and winelist. Just what give the little extra to the evening. The food was divine - big thank you to the kitchen team! We’ll be back!

Totally agree with many other reviews…. Total lack of consistency in service. You could tell who were the regulars. I have been here a few times over the years… I won’t return again. Felt totally forgotten about at our table while the maitre D was cringingly effusive with other tables. No checkback whatsoever and the bill took an age to arrive when it was finally remembered. If I hadn’t said goodbye on leaving I know we would have been allowed to just leave without even a thankyou. Flavours were ok… nothing wow at all and if anything the halibut dish was tasteless. Very disappointing indeed

Amazing food and welcoming service at this top spot. We’ve been going for years and their standards don’t change. Very good with people who are not regulars at Michelin star venues. Well worth the detour in short, a star!

Had dinner for joint birthdays last night and from the moment we arrived the service was excellent..their menu was very exciting the food was amazing to say we were spoilt was an understatement!!!! Thank you to chef and all the staff including bar we appreciate everything you done ✔️ Can't wait to come back ...

This was our splurge meal. It was also one of the best meals I had while in Wales. The food here is more about quality and less about quantity. If you are an American and reading this review, you will know what I'm talking about. We eat too much as a society. I'll admit it myself. I am used to getting and eating a lot of food. It is amazing I am not overweight. Anyway I went off on a tangent there. Sue and I read about this place in a travel book she had for Wales. We decided on the airplane that if we were going to have one really good meal while in Wales, it would be at the Walnut Tree. Not exactly around the corner from where we were staying in Barmouth, but we had plans to be down around this part of the country so it was a no brainer. We got here quite early on a weekday evening. The night was beautiful and we decided to secure a table outside. Before we left all of the tables were filled. Not sure if that was the case inside as well as the only time I was inside was when we initially walked in and asked if we could sit outside. Started out with a refreshing elderflower drink. We decided against alcoholic drinks as we were a distance away from our home base and had a long drive back to get there. The drink was the perfect drink for a warm summer night. After our drinks came, they also brought out a small fish cake to whet the whistle. A nice extra touch that was unexpected. Our food started out with a few appetizers. A Panzanella Salad along with monkfish with tomato, chilli and ginger. Good choices both on the starters. The monkfish (similar taste to lobster) was pretty damn amazing if I have to say so myself. I just did. For my main I had suckling pig, morcilla (blood sausage) and empanadilla. The suckling pig came bone in. It was fun getting every little piece of pig that I could get. Presentation was A+ and the quality was too. Nothing wrong with this meal at all. When it came time for dessert, our server (one of a few that took care of us on this night) asked if we had any room for "puddings". He pronounced it poo-dings. You have to love the Welsh accent. We did and made room for the orange and almond cake. A good palate cleanser. This was a 5 star meal if there ever was a 5 star meal. Again, you aren't going to get a ton of food here, but you will happily leave satisfied and you won't have a gut bomb to deal with. I highly recommend this restaurant.

I love everything about this restaurant. The food is amazing and doesn't cost the earth, but the price does limit the amount of times I eat here. The service is great and the cocktails are outstanding. The dessert menu is wonderful and the flavour is always there. The restaurant is pretty small but that's not a complaint, it does make the noise level high. The toilets are outside but again that's not a problem. The location is out of the way but always worth the journey.

The Walnut Tree is now under the management of reknowned chef Shaun Hill. He retired with several Michelin stars from the Merchant House in Ludlow, only to re-emerge at the Walnut Tree, presumably looking for a new challenge. I've eaten there 3 times in the past 12 months, two lunches and a dinner. All experiences have been outstandingly good and memorable. It has been voted best restaurant in the UK by Gourmet Britain recently and came 2nd to Hibsicus in another award ceremony. Rather than list what I ate, check out the menu on the website and see for yourself. I couldn't fault any of the dishes I had. The wine list is also superb. Here's a typical set lunch: plaice with shrimps and dill brawn with celeriac rémoulade confit fillet of salmon with creamed leeks grilled skirt of beef with dauphine potatoes and salsa verde buttermilk pudding with roasted figs Bakewell tart with vanilla ice cream The service is informal and friendly, and efficient. The outside loos didn't bother me that much...as it frees up more space for diners! The only suggestion I would make is that they need to improve wheelchair-access into the restaurant, which shouldn't be too difficult. The set lunch represents very good value - take a day off work, drive through beautiful countryside and treat yourself to a lovely 3 course meal for around £20.00

If it wasn't for the very very decent prices, and the superb wine list, I would say this restaurant was overrated. It was half-empty, and the atmosphere was more sedated than sedate. But the service is friendly, and there's no doubting the premium quality of the basic ingredients. Local beef and lamb are undoubtedly the best choices, for their distinctive rich flavour and for the skill with which they are cooked. I had an excellent starter of calf's brains, perfectly fried with capers (ideally to be spread on toast, but the bread was OK) and then the pork I had to follow was passable - the cheek was better than the chop. My dining partner had a rack of lamb of the highest quality. The desserts were pre-prepared and nothing to write home about. This place should either become less pretentious and serve food that's more basic and more focused on the quality of the raw material, or become more ambitious and upmarket and go for some serious cuisine. It's currently lost somewhere in between. But still worth checking out if you're in the area.

A bit of an enigma is the best way of describing this restaurant! It is set in the most beautiful of surroundings. It looks quite basic when you go in and I personally feel the restaurant could be decorated in a warmer tone but having said that. the food was outstanding as was the service. The staff were knowledgable about each of the dishes. The wine list was wide and varied. I didn't particularly like having to go outside to use the bathroom although I did approve of the White Company toiletries! Would I go again? Most definitely! If you are in the area, it is worth a trip - don't be put off by the programme Kitchen Nightmares - it is now under new ownership.

We arrived at the Walnut Tree almost an hour earlier than we had booked for Saturday lunch, but were warmly welcomed and seated straight away. The food was fantastic, from the complementary amuse-bouches followed by delicious fresh bread & brioche, to the starters and mains that were worth the rather extended wait. The pheasant and chestnut soup was so deep, rich and complex that I will remember it for a long time. The fish stew was also immensely rich and bursting with flavour. Meanwhile the brace of quail were just delicious, juicy and tasty with a savoury sauce and excellent veg. We were gutted that we couldn't squeeze in a pudding, so imagine our delight when the coffee arrived with gorgeous petit-fours (delightful chocolate, lovely gooey brownie and a shortbread each too). Although it was strange to have to leave the building to find the toilets, this is as nothing to the joy of being cooked for by people who obviously want to make delicious food, and succeed so splendidly. It's only an hour from Bristol, well worth the pilgrimage!