After the success of their first ‘Two Stars in One’ dinner last Autumn, top Cotswolds hotel Lords of the Manor recently revisited the tasteful formula.

This time, their executive chef Matt Weedon — now the holder of a coveted Michelin star — was joined by fellow Michelin maestro Alan Murchison, Chef Patron of L’Ortolan at Shinfield, near Reading.

Between them they cooked up a gastronomic seven-course banquet which delighted the diners who were treated to a veritable feast of flavours, and had the added fun of trying to guess which chef was responsible for each course.

It is always a pleasure to drive out into the Cotswold countryside to revisit Lords of the Manor at Lower Slaughter, which, to me, is the epitomy of perfection when it comes to country house hotels.

The rambling former rectory has eight acres of landscaped gardens and parkland in which to wander, service is faultless and, whatever the season, you cannot fail to unwind.

In the last year, the hotel has had a major refurbishment, so it is better than ever, but still totally in keeping with its roots.

Head chef Matt Weedon joined Lords of the Manor just over a year ago from Glenap Castle, where he gained his first Michelin star, and in January this year he was awarded a star at Lords of the Manor. The menu is based on Matt’s love of French food, but focusing on quality ingredients sourced from local suppliers whenever possible.

Alan Murchison has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants for more than 16 years. He has been Chef Patron at L’Ortolan since 2001, and two years ago, he bought the highly-acclaimed Hibiscus restaurant in Ludlow and relaunched it as La Becasse.

‘Two Stars in One’ kicked off in fine style with Champagne and melt-in-mouth canapes, before we moved through to the restaurant, all anticipating an extra-special dinner. Matt and Alan had, of course, pulled out the stops to create a menu that was both both innovative and exciting. We all marvelled at the combination of flavours and how beautiful everything looked on the plate.

To start the meal, from Matt came a small-but-perfect hit of flavour in a dish featuring a wobbly bavarois of crab, with sweet white crab meat, some honey mango and pink grapefruit to cut through the richness — and topped off with a crispy crab tuile. It was absolutely delicious.

The next course from Alan was equally impressive. A narrow slice of flaky hot smoked salmon was served with beetroot and some lively horseradish. It worked perfectly.

Alan continued with an architecturally impressive sandwich creation which featured a slab of foie gras encased by ‘walls’ of wafer thin pain d’epices (gingerbread). Green leaves were balanced like bridges between holes in the gingerbread. It was pretty, clever and tasted fabulous.

Next up was the fish course, courtesy of Matt, which showcased delicate John Dory with caramelised sweetbreads and, coincidentally, some more gingerbread — this time carrot batons coated in crispy gingerbread crumbs. The fish was wonderful but, try as a might, I cannot understand the attraction of sweetbreads — currently one of the trendiest of meat products.

Alan offered a gorgeously tender roasted loin of lamb next, accompanied by some braised shoulder, with fabulously smooth basil-enhanced pomme (potato) puree.

The last two courses were created by Matt. Firstly, a pungent twice-baked Stinking Bishop cheese souffle accompanied by cubes of pinot noir jelly, a hazelnut dressing and swirl of intense truffle honey, and then a sweet hit from his rhubarb and vanilla custard dessert — which sounds pretty ordinary, but was anything but!

Each of the seven courses was matched to wine, chosen by head sommelier Fabrice Bouffant, who explained each of his choices to us. Food and wine matching is one of the best ways I know to spend an evening!

Coffee and more indulgence in the shape of a selection of divine chocolates and petit fours rounded off a truly fabulous meal.

I am hoping that Lords of the Manor will repeat this successful formula and look forward to seeing who Matt will team up with next time.

The Lords of the Manor Hotel, Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire GL54 2JD, tel: 01451 820243