Dishes to delight

Above: Sandie and David Barnard

Above: Barnard's Restaurant and Wine Bar

Unexpected surprises, they are the best kind. When you’re starving hungry and you come across a restaurant that can serve up a treat that satisfies. That’s what we found on a miserable and wet July evening when we arrived in Denmead, just five miles cross country from Portsmouth, at Barnard’s Restaurant and Wine Bar.

Husband and wife cooking duo David and Sandie Barnard have had their restaurant for the last 18 years, after moving from Cosham where they owned another fine establishment for five. But they haven’t always both been in the kitchen cooking, in the past they have swapped roles, taking it in turns to be chef and front of house, but these days they seem to have the perfect partnership: “We’ve worked well together virtually since we left school,” says David. “We know what to expect from each other. If something doesn’t taste quite right, we can feel comfortable telling one another what we think.”

The two of them seem to have it sussed – perusing the menu my companion and I were spoilt for choice. Starters ranged from homemade soup (which this evening was tomato and basil and was delicious: homemade and a perfectly-sized portion) to smoked chicken salad. My companion sampled one of the vegetarian choices, the Swiss cheese soufflé – surprisingly light and complimented perfectly with a red wine dressing.

The fillet steak with peppercorn sauce and hand cut chips went down well as a main course, which arrived with a dish of fresh vegetables. I also helped myself to a few to accompany my English lamb cutlets, served rather pink with a tartlette of mint and pea puree and roasted sweet potato. Other main courses to try include grilled lemon sole, griddled polenta and fresh guinea fowl with sautéed new potatoes and spicy chorizo sausage.

For dessert, we shared the vanilla pannacotta with glazed peach and caramalised peach sauce – delicious.

But if you can’t decide which to plump for or if you want to share, then try Barnard’s trio of summer pudding with clotted cream, Belgian chocolate ice cream and vanilla pannacotta.

Feeling comfortably full we finished our coffee and contemplated on what David and Sandie have managed to achieve over the last 20 years. I recall the words “hard work” coming up in conversation with David earlier in the evening – the secret to Barnard’s success.

The verdict (out of 5)

Service: 4

Atmosphere: 3

Decoration: 2

Food: 4

Value for money: 4

Book your table

Hambledon Road

Denmead

Hampshire

PO7 6NU

Tel: 023 92257788