REVIEW: The Cricklade Club - Brunch Menu

On first impressions, Cricklade is a quintessentially British town with local pubs, family restaurants, and boutique shops lining the high-street. However, The Cricklade Club café and bar is looking to change that perception. Located on Cricklade’s high-street in a former working man's social club, The Cricklade Club is one of Wiltshire’s best-kept secrets – or at least it used to be anyway.

On arrival at The Cricklade Club, the natural light bursting through the fantastic panoramic doors down the side of the café created an aura of openness and warmth that was in turn radiated throughout the establishment as the friendly team of staff welcomed you with the professionalism of a fine dining venue but the friendliness of a relative who you hadn’t seen in a long time. 

Having been shown to my seat, I was presented with a brunch menu that was far from the norm of any other venue I had been to before as fourteen different meals, each unique in their own right, stared back at me. 

With a strong focus on high-quality local produce, the brunch menu contained enough variety to accommodate even the fussiest of eaters whilst also being able to make each dish on offer exciting and bold at the same time.

Opting for the Rancho Tostada, a toasted tortilla topped with chilli beans, sweetcorn, red peppers, avocado, poached egg, sour cream, and chilli sauce, I made my way to the bar where I placed my order and was met with an array of craft beers and ciders to choose from. 

With so much variety, I was offered a taste of two different ciders and was given an expert analysis detailing the qualities of each before finally making my choice to go for the Core Blimey. 

A light refreshing cider that wafted a fruity farmyard aroma made the Core Blimey the perfect accompaniment to the sunny March weather outside as the melodic background music echoing around the dining area allowed me to relax and forget the business of the outside world.

Food arrived in a timely manner, roughly fifteen minutes after my order was placed, and the presentation on display clearly reflected the hard work of the talented chefs in the kitchen. The floury tortilla created the base of the dish and was topped with a tower of delicate ingredients that oozed freshness, creativity, and quality. 

The beans, sweetcorn, and red peppers were mixed together to form a mouth-watering combination of flavours as the avocado and poached egg infused the dish with a clean refreshing taste that helped to cleanse the pallet. 

The portion size was ideal for a brunch dish and having cleaned my plate I was left with the warm feeling of fullness but with space still left for dessert. A selection of baked delights from brownies to pain au chocolates was on offer and having been recommended the cheesecake brownie I sat down to devour the sweet treat.

On consumption, chocolate enveloped the tongue in every single bite as the addition of cheesecake only increased the intensity of flavours that cascaded around the mouth. Before I knew it the brownie was gone and my brunch was complete. 

The Cricklade Club identifies itself as a quirky, café and bar in the centre of Cricklade, but after tasting their brunch menu, it’s clear that it is more than just that. 

The Cricklade Club is a place where friends, families, couples, individuals and business people can come together to talk, laugh and enjoy fantastic food and drink in a comfortable setting that allows you to take a step back from the madness of the outside world.

A fantastic setting that incorporates high quality with a friendly and hands-on approach make The Cricklade Club the perfect place to spend your afternoon.