The newly renovated Seven Stars Ripley is the jewel in the crown of Surrey pub gastronomy. Serving the most delicious food – think classic pub dishes; homemade, hearty portions, fresh, fine and locally sourced ingredients – but with a modern twist.
It is well worthy of a seven star review (five would definitely not be enough!) as we found out on our recent visit on a relaxed Wednesday evening at the beginning of March.
We had originally booked for a Friday night but due to the impending M25 closures for the bridge installation we asked to push forward to Wednesday. Ollie the owner and landlord graciously accommodated us last minute and despite springing the review on him with two hours to prepare he served some of the tastiest food we’d had in years with a great ambience and service to match. (Interestingly, the pub was fully booked for that Friday – so releasing our table for two turned out to be a good thing for all in the end!)
The first thing you notice as you walk into The Seven Stars is it is brimming with charm, great homely décor, interesting wall art and sporting memorabilia and a long welcoming bar, with a huge selection of local beers, ales and spirits – always with smiley faced staff member behind it. This cannot be faked! This was also our third visit to this new landmark establishment in the heart of Ripley so we can ascertain this. We’d been to one of the soft launch opening nights in November and back for a meal in December – all were wonderful and on point. New owner Ollie Bailey (co-owner of The Running Mare in Cobham with Adrian) spent two months renovating the 1536 manor building to get it back to its former glory.
The Seven Stars has long been one of the landmark bars in Ripley and is now a vibrant social hub for the Ripley community and beyond. Look out for their monthly quiz nights, singers and sporting calendar as it’s a great place to watch sport.
FUSS FREE FOOD (TO MAKE A FUSS ABOUT!)
The Seven Stars offers a simple one-page food menu containing just 21 tantalising Starter and Main dishes you would traditionally expect from a pub. BUT, and this is a huge “but” the modern take on the old classics is totally sublime! For example, you would regularly see ‘Pork Belly’ on a pub menu but The Seven Stars has created ‘Slow Roasted Pork Belly, Glazed in Apple Cider Sauce served with Black Pudding and Caramel Sauce’ – the attention to detail and infusion of flavours and creative ingredients is so innovative and really does work.
Take our Starter for example, ‘Pan Seared Scallops Marinated in Nduja Butter served with Cauliflower Puree’ was a taste explosion. The pairing of sweet to savoury is unreal and the scallops were cooked to perfection, seared and on point. Bobby Davro, our restaurant reviewer whose tastebuds were “playing up due to a mouth ulcer” (he told me in the car 5 minutes from The Seven Stars – too late to kick him out) did say the best dish he’d had in months.
We washed this down with a glass of ice-cold Whispering Angel Rose which perfectly suited the fun mood as our attentive waiter Christian deflected some awful jokes from the worst restaurant reviewer ever (Bobby No-Tastebuds) joked with us about the ‘Jus/Jew’ on the pork and the Muslim references to the scallops Nduja Butter. Which led to a lot of belly laugh conversations about religion, atheists and the fact that Christian was brought up as a Christian and The Seven Stars was a homage to Jesus. It was heavenly though!!
Onto Mains and oh my goodness, they were a spectacle. The ‘Pancetta and Crispy Pork Special’ was so delicious, served with apple mash and honey glazed carrots with a tangy jus – it really hit the spot! Bobby went for the ’Rib Eye Steak with Pepper Sauce, Mash and Seasonal Veg’ he loved it and said it was lean, succulent, packed with flavour. I didn’t believe him so had a few mouthfuls to make sure– it was amazing. Cooked medium rare to perfection. Had a few more bites just to make sure as my tastebuds were just fine.
DESSERT HEAVEN
This was (as we were briefed by Ollie) was supposed to be the most impressive course, the Apple Crumble, Sticky Toffee Pudding and Lime Cheesecake were all freshly made that day by Ollie’s gorgeous wife, she is definitely a connoisseur of desserts.
The winner was just slightly the ‘Lime Cheesecake’; the consistency of the cheesecake filling with the lime just blew us away. I used to travel and would have coffee and cheesecake at every destination. This outdid all of those, the biscuit base was firm but not too sweet and crumbled perfectly. It was served with a jug of cream which I didn’t think it needed initially but actually made it even creamier and more delicious (if that’s possible) Well done 8 Stars!
‘The Sticky Toffee Pudding’ was amazing too – a tantalising cube of the moistest, tastiest sponge with a delicious toffee sauce drizzled all over. Plus, vanilla ice-cream and blueberries to garnish. It really made us main and starter fiends stop and think about the dessert course much more. If you neglect dessert courses – you can’t at The Seven Stars – they are that good.
I had no more room but as Christian mentioned their New Cocktail List has just been introduced it felt rude not to. As I was driving they did a half measure Espresso Martini and it was gorgeous, frothy top and served with an abundance of coffee beans. 80’s icon Bobby stayed true to his roots and tried to order a Pina Colada, then Sex On The Beach but settled with a perfectly made Strawberry Daquiri.
Having undergone a huge interior and exterior makeover, The Seven Stars Pub in Ripley, opened its doors on November 28th to happy customers who came down to celebrate the new venue whilst enjoying delicious canapes and fine local wines and ales. The Seven Stars has long been one of the landmark bars in Ripley and is now a vibrant social hub for the Ripley community and beyond.
See www.thesevenstarsripley.co.uk to make a booking now.
