Camellia South Lodge

Having watched Tom gain success on Masterchef we were thrilled to be able to sample his culinary skills at the Camellia, South Lodge. What a joy! The food was divine. Beautifully presented with a wonderful variety of flavours and textures. Well done young man.

As a party of 5 at Toms Masterchef experience we decided to order as many dishes as possible and every item was superb.I won’t be describing each item as it will seem like a Tom fan club offering. We were very pleased to meet Tom who deserves all the success that’s hopefully coming to him. The staff were looking forward to the new experience and we were very well looked after. Well done South Lodge for showcasing the talent they have in their kitchens.

4 of us went to try Tom Hamblets menu having watched him wow the judges with his classic training and modern ideas. We chose different dishes to sample as much as possible and were not disappointed. Scallops were cooked to perfection and the dish was stunning. Wife and I both had Turbot that was cooked perfectly and presented in a modern style. We ordered a side of mash with truffle and pecorino not Pecorelli he owns the place omg that mash wow. Again all 4 had different desserts I had one with chocolate and peanut, excellent recommendation from one of our servers Alan to have a chilled red dessert wine to go with it, perfect and unbelievable i need a bottle of that . We stayed late chattin...

Tom was our favourite on Masterchef from the start so was so excited when on the night of the final I managed to secure a booking. The food was good, don’t get me wrong but it didn’t have the wow factor. It felt, on the whole, lacking in taste and a tad disappointing. The pigeon portion was so small I thought it had been omitted from the plate! The side of mash potato was too overpowered by the truffle. After finishing the meal we discovered Tom was not cooking last night as it was his day off. This left us asking the question would it have been executed better if he had been there. I guess we’ll never know, so left feeling let down. I know Tom needs a day or two off each week but I would ha...

This restaurant had a nice decor. No salt and pepper on the table the customer can not be trusted with these. Service started off attentively but became less attentive as the evening went on. Cocktails were very good. When asked how they make their old fashioned the waiter didn't know anything about it which struck me as odd. Bread course was ok. Had lobster and pigeon for starters. Lobster- not nice at all seemed over cooked weird flavours and way too much foamy sauce. Pigeon- Was alright there were elements on this plate that were over seasoned Mains Hogget and Beef. Hogget- Quite nice flavours were good but the fat was not rendered down. Beef- Sadly not good real waste of an expensive ing...

We’re quite local to south lodge hotel so when the opportunity came to eat food cooked by another master chef winner from there we booked a table for an early Friday night meal. The restaurant is lovely, we used to enjoy lunch there quite regularly but sadly they no longer do lunch apart from Sunday. On arrival I mentioned a drink in the bar pre dinner. It was suggested by the waiter that we go to our table and have a drink. I’m pleased we took his advice and consequently we enjoyed a glass of English bubbly each whilst perusing the menu. Orders taken we sat back to enjoy the evening. Speed was the essence!! Very quickly my scallop appeared yes singular) and my husband’s lobster starter £10....

Dinner Tom Hamblet x Camellia The Champion of Master Chef UK: The Professionals 2023. A menu inspired by his time on the show. There 's no guesses why we were in this part of the UK.The beautiful hotel with stunning countryside? Well, that might be one of the reasons. Another was to experience some amazing food cooked by Tom Hamblet, who has taken up residency of the Camellia Restaurant from January to the end of March. A three course A la Carte menu £85. With options to add extras. For starters, we chose: Prawns.Gambero rosso prawns, celery sorbet, tomato fondue,olive, gazpacho. Roasted scallop, Jerusalem artichoke puree, marigold oil, artichoke crisps, pastry tube with buttermilk, and arti...

We went following Tom Hamblett's TV success and while disappointed this evening, remain interested to follow his career as we feel he has great promise. The menu consisted largely of dishes similar to those from Masterchef, a strategy I question. Certainly the combinations of starters and mains were challenging and lacked a certain flow, which led us to stare at the menu for some time. We had scallops and lobster to start the first of which was pleasant, but my lobster was bland and accompanied by a great deal of two types of sauce of identical consistency to the point where I couldn't see why they were not mixed (and halved in volume). The beef main was good, fillet the right texture, jus w...

My mother and I had been following the Masterchef Pro comp ' last year and were really keen to sample some of the winner, Tom Hamblet 's, food. We travelled a 4 hour round trip for the experience. We don 't eat at fine dining restaurants often but we are foodies. Firstly, the setting of the restaurant is very lavish and comfortable with warm low lighting. That said, the dinner experience was a little too dark for my mother so that 's something to think about if you struggle with eyesight and low lighting. The service was friendly, attentive and speedy/efficient. The food: I 'll start with the dessert because that was a real pleasure for us. We both loved the flavours of Tom 's end of series...