By Luke Cross
The Apple Tree, Oxford Road, Gerrards Cross. Tel: 01753 887335.
YOU often hear people saying Gerrards Cross is not what it used to be.
One area that this definitely applies to, and which I pay special attention to, is that bastion of any local community – the public house.
The pubs in Gerrards Cross have seen a fair few changes over the years and Mitchell and Butler now dominates the area.
There was a time when the French Horn would be rammed with young people on a Wednesday night, making the Apple Tree just over the road look like a lonely place – I used to feel a bit sorry for it.
The food was typical Beefeater grub back then and when I did stop in for the odd pint, there were often some familiar, friendly faces.
The place did have some character, but even so, I was pretty excited about the £660,000 makeover in March and the prospect of an upmarket gastro-bar – one of Mitchell and Butler's fine-dining brands along with the impressive Royal Saracen's Head in Beaconsfield.
When we arrived last Thursday, the place was still buzzing from a manic lunchtime.
The decor is a different league from what it was before, making the inside feel bright and welcoming rather than dark and tired, and they have added an expensive-looking decking leading out to the garden.
There is now a selection of premium lager and a wide variety of fired pizzas, pastas, salads, fish and meat.
I opted for the fish of the day, which was the Red Snapper served on spaghetti in a tomato, garlic and herb sauce and hollandaise sauce.
My colleague Greg went for a lasagne.
The food arrived within a few minutes and the service was good.
But while the fish was fine, it was not particularly exhilarating.
I just ate it feeling a little indifferent, with few adjectives in my head besides 'nice.'
Greg on the other hand was delighted with a 'mouth-watering' lasagne – a fine balance of pasta and mince without too much cheese.
In my eyes The Apple Tree looks a lot nicer than it was, but then again it has lost a bit of its local charm.
The food is more expensi