The story
The Stag at Mentmore in Cheddington is a community-owned modern British gastropub at The Green, Mentmore, Buckinghamshire, and it holds 2 AA Rosettes (2026). The Good Food Guide also lists it. The kitchen works with seasonal produce and sits between traditional pub fare and more inventive plates.
Head Chef Martin Lee leads the kitchen. He is a three-time National Chef of the Year semi-finalist and previously worked at Hartwell House. Evening menus pair pub classics such as burgers, pies and steaks with more elaborate contemporary dishes. Reviewers singled out roast duck breast with blackcurrant jus and a dark chocolate crémeux with cherry and kirsch compote.
The interior was refitted during lockdown and now has parquet flooring, a backlit bar and a wood-burner. The pub has been owned by 42 local shareholders since 2020, and the beer garden opens in summer. The ale list includes 1847, brewed for the pub by the Tring Brewery, and the wine list moves between Old and New World bottles.
Recognition
Details
History
An impressive stone edifice just off Mentmore’s village green, the Stag was famously rescued from closure and taken into community ownership by 42 local shareholders in 2020. An extensive lockdown refit has resulted in a classy, capacious modern interior with parquet flooring, a backlit bar, pricey-looking wallpaper and a wood-burner. Best of all, though, is the congenial feel to the place, helped by happy locals and friendly, laid-back staff. The menu holds plenty of interest, especially in the evening when ‘pub classics’ (burgers, pies, steaks) are joined by more elaborate, contemporary compositions. Adventurous touches abound, although some ideas work better than others. To start, a diminutive fillet of coconut-cured sea bream made a fine pairing with tangy grapefruit segments – though sugary candied chilli was a questionable addition. Likewise, pickled beetroot happily partnered a boldly flavoured goat's cheesecake with a topping of grated walnut – but was the blob of apple jam needed? There were no complaints about a juicy main course of roast duck breast with mouth-watering blackcurrant jus, boosted by some assertive spicing: cinnamon in the well-filled duck-leg pithivier; star anise in the shredded cabbage. Our sumac-marinated pork chop was also a neat, highly savoury idea. Puddings can be equally intricate affairs, note the rich, intense (and highly enjoyable) dark chocolate crémeux with cherry and kirsch compôte. Otherwise, drinks include 1847 ale (produced for the pub by the local Tring Brewery), and an adroitly annotated wine list hopping between the Old and New Worlds. In summer, the beer garden comes into play at this proudly community-focused enterprise.
2 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence
Location
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