Encore, The

The Encore in Stratford upon Avon is a splendid coming together of the conventional and the contemporary, an eclectic fusion of styles which has marvellous visual appeal and creates a welcoming and relaxed atmosphere. Bright zebra prints grace some of the chairs, while deep brown leather on others shows how the old and the new can exist in harmony, while stone fired ovens and log burning fires alongside the open kitchen and floor plan produce the same results.

Located in an 18th century building, The Encore is also quite close to the world famous Royal Shakespeare Theatre. The pub downstairs has a friendly ambience and offers a good selection of excellent beers and real ales, while the restaurant upstairs provides an unusual mix of traditional British food with continental touches. Following the recent refurbishment, they have emerged as an excellent dining destination in the town, while their attention to detail and excellent service ensures a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

The simple but up-to-the-minute menu offers lots of comfort appeal, with homely choices like pizzas, steaks and pasta, with some more global dishes to keep things lively. To set the right note of fashionable sociability there are sharing plates, box baked Camembert with onion marmalade and toast, Greek mezze with taramasalata with humus, tzatziki, feta and flatbread, or a pizzette with garlic, rocket and Parmesan.

Amongst the starters, there is freshly made soup, confit duck terrine and plum compote, beetroot cured salmon with horseradish crème fraiche, seared pigeon breast with roast cherry tomatoes and black pudding or red onion tarte tatin with goat's cheese and rocket. 

The salads offer a traditional Caesar salad with chicken, marinated anchovies and parmesan and crispy duck with mouli, spring onions and plum sauce while pastas range from linguini with chilli, crab and crayfish to tagliatelle with cream and smoked bacon.

These days no self-respecting gastropub can afford to be without its pizza range; expect to find a classic Margherita of tomato, mozzarella and basil, or the Siciliana with parma ham, roast artichoke, olives and mozzarella. Those who love rotisserie fare will enjoy the different variations of chicken, with roast garlic lemon and thyme or sticky barbecue sauce. A loin of pork with honey roast pears and black pudding is an interesting addition to this list and all these are served with salad garnish and frites.

Proper main courses could include mackerel fillets with chorizo, peas, tomatoes and baby potatoes; escalope of Scottish salmon, crayfish, broccoli and hollandaise; calves? liver with smoked bacon and truffle mash or grilled swordfish loin with mango, chilli, coriander salsa and new potatoes. A wide range of supporting dishes includes Belgium frites, creamed potatoes and green beans. For desserts resort to the blackboard, where there is always a good display, often with some of the local cheeses to set the buffs alight.

To complement the food, there is a well chosen wine list that traverses across the old and New Worlds to bring fine wines and champagnes.

More information, including full menus, is available on their Website. Please note that the E-Mail Contact is for enquiries only, not for bookings.