Our pro says...

We waltz into this luxury Hilton with greetings from every direction. It’s overwhelming, though we agree the intentions are good. The restaurant is nearly empty on Saturday lunch, perhaps explaining the watchful staff. *I wasn’t recognised.

Of the other initial courses, it’s my crab on toast that wins: a soft emulsion of rich brown and sweet white meat in the shell, topped with brioche crumbs and popped under the grill. Alongside is a smoky crab brioche with lemon butter. The friend’s caesar salad is brave visually – nori seaweed makes a theatrical stack up top – but the Cos lettuce and its polite dressing (apparently there is zesty yuzu and crispy garlic) is bland.

Homemade Genovese linguine with aged parmesan marches onto the table next. The impressive-looking nest of linguine is less impressive to eat. The pasta is fresh but where is the aromatic oomph? I always think a burger is a laudable test of a restaurant’s worth. The one I order, The Betterment burger, pink gamey beef, Montgomery cheddar, with chips, hits the spot though it’s nothing remarkable.

Veg accompaniments are best. New Forest wild mushrooms with smoky egg yolk smile with intense savoury earthiness. Although, confit Basque peppers arrive, flabby, corpse-like. Enjoyable is the onion side, carved into a flower, caramelised and sweet, dipped into a gentle chive sauce. Yet we’re not inspired to stay for pudding – maybe it’s the atmosphere. Credit to front of house, however – they present a small chocolate cake with a crunchy bottom and creamy girth for the chum, whose birthday it is.