langdon hall country house hotel & spa

i haven't been able to stop thinking about langdon hall since my last visit there almost a year ago (scroll to the bottom for last year's posts). the place is honestly too beautiful and gorgeous to forget and - dare i say - visit only once. maybe this is some sort of addiction on my part? if that's the case then i'm not ashamed to admit that i brought my parents to langdon hall for mother's day this year not for them but for me, to get my "langdon hall fix". the first step in curing an addiction is accepting that i have a problem, right?

okay, maybe a teeny tiny bit of me also wanted to show my 'rents this elegant hotel & spa in cambridge and dine at their 5-diamond award winning restaurant. we arrived at langdon halll (twitter: @langdon_hall, facebook: langdon hall country house hotel & spa) about half an hour before our lunch reservation to walk the gardens. we certainly worked up an appetite!

i wasn't able to get a reservation for sunday (langdon hall had a special sunday brunch for mother's day) so we opted for lunch on saturday instead, which is the standard lunch served from monday to saturday 12:00 pm to 2:30 pm in the restaurant's main dining room.

pierre frick alsace gewurztraminer ($70)

house-made sour dough bread & butter 

appetizer 
wood roasted chassagne farm quail ($20)

lentils, green vegetables, hazelnut dressing

cured wild salmon ($18) 
cucumber, geranium, new potato and soft herbs

lamb tartare navarin ($19) 
spring vegetables, daisy leaves, garlic chips

carrot terrine (complimentary) 
heirloom carrots cooked in their own juice, coconut milk, wild ginger pickle, raw carrot, fresh carrot greens, nasturtium

chilled poached snow crab (complimentary) 
grape pickle, gel & sweet wine jelly, grated foie gras torchon, dried sumac (from the property)

main course 
halibut ($28)asparagus, hen of the woods, chicken skin, champagne cream

wagyu flank steak ($28) 
buttermilk fried endives, grain of paradise mascarpone, preserved lemon jus

dessert 
sticky toffee pudding ($14)dates, rum caramel, stout ice cream

butterscotch ($14) 
chocolate sorbet, fried churros

what a treat! yet another brilliant langdon hall meal in my book. much like my last two dining experiences at the restaurant,chefjason bangerter (@chefbangerter) effortlessly embodies all the fresh seasonal ingredients from the property's ever-evolving garden into his creations. the vivid reds, greens and yellows appropriately reflect the coming of spring with vibrant flavours that are clean, simple and crisp. underchefbangerter's leadership, the langdon hall menu continues to blossom and is now better than ever.

as i spoke to executivechefjason bangerter, passion simply exuded from him; his love for the property and desire to push canadian cuisine to another level was apparent. as common with top restaurants, the menu features local ingredients when possible and relies on the inn’s own gardens for produce and garnishes. even a drink like the langdon collins ($15) is finished off with real lavender flowers, adding a light floral essence and isn’t overpowering like syrup.

there are many ways to dine at langdon hall, but if you have the time and resources, their tasting menu ($165) is a top choice. the experience combines so many ingredients and meticulously plated creations, really creating an encounter that exemplifies what makes the restaurant impressive.

take the first bite, a cube of west coast albacore tuna sitting on top of the fish’s bone (the actual specimen is actually an east coast tuna). the bite is sublime as the tuna melts onto the tongue leaving a light citrusy herb finish, it’s over before you even know it.

even if you’re not staying the night, arrive earlier to stroll through their gardens; they’re opened to the public (it leads to their spacious outdoor pool) and a visit before dinner service may allow you to pick the chefs' brains as they gather ingredients.

we were lucky to havechefbangerter himself show us around the property and sample a delicious crispy radish plucked from the ground and dipped in butter for a

this post contains images of our recent tasting menu dinner at langdon hall country house hotel & spa cambridge on. we took my sisters for a special meal bychefjason bangerter. we drank two bottles of domaine zind humbrecht gewürztraminer 2012 alc. 14% by vol. alsace. we ate house made butter; house made sourdough bread; amuse bouche - chilled nova scotia lobster, peas and garden purée; ontario asparagus - early garden sprouts, sturgeon caviar, squid ink aioli; white asparagus - cured goose egg, chive flowers, hazelnut gribiche $22; chilled nova scotia snow crab salad - fragrant vegetable nage cured quebec foie gras, grapes, sumac; langdon hall terroir - foraged leaves/flowers/lettuce weeds/berries, buttermilk sorbet; ontario marinated lamb tartar - black radish crudité, mustard pickle, wild ramp pickle; b.c. halibut & spot prawn - morel mushroom, sweet peas, berkshire lardo, pea purée, prawns; coconut chocolate ganache with coconut ice cream (lactose free dessert); ontario monforte dairy true blue - duck fat fried sourdough, maple sugar, candied walnut; and ontario strawberry consommé - farmed and wild berries, rhubarb, lavender sugar.

...i had been seeing some really nice photos of food made bychefjason bangerter. from looking at the menu, it seemed like i would really enjoy all the items because they had ingredients that i really like.

when i dropped into langdon hall recently, executivechefjonathan gushue was exactly two weeks away from one of the most prestigious culinary competitions in the country. the 2012 gold medal plates canadian culinary championships is taking place in kelowna, bc this weekend. the event spans 2 days with a mystery wine pairing (fri, feb 10), black box competition (sat, feb 11) and the grand finale (sat, feb 11). the nine chefs participating were chosen at regional competitions held throughout october and november of 2011. i am particularly curious about this year's match-up because of such nationally recognized competitors aschefgushue and alsochefrob feenie from vancouver. i also feel that our representative from the november 14th event in ottawa will be a force.chefmarc lepine opened his restaurant, ateli