Merlins Cave, Chalfont St. Giles

Steve of N21 left this review about Merlins Cave

Driving home on a Sunday afternoon round the M25, only for it to be its usual clogged self, so took my usual alternative route through the Chalfont’s that takes me past this one and thought we would break the journey here and look the place up again, as we haven’t been here for many a year.
Wow ! Now that’s different. Still the same to look at externally, but internally it’s been transformed by the Youngs Makeover team into a swish gastro pub. The old two bar boring pub of my remembrances has been swept away and a smart and very modern gastro pub restaurant put in its place.
Normally I would decry a traditional pub being remodelled in a modern style but in this case it’s definitely an improvement.
From the front you enter into the main bar room with a very modern bar serving area facing you. This area either side of the central door is still set up as a lounge pub drinking area with plenty of comfortable seating by the front windows. Then behind the bar is now a big square open plan extension that functions as the restaurant section. This has large glass sliding doors which open onto an external patio area and the large grassed garden, which was always a feature of this one, is then beyond with plenty of modern garden furniture.
I think it was owned by Charles Wells before but is definitely in the Youngs Pub Co. stable now and the usual three ales you find of Youngs Ordinary and Special alongside St Austell Proper Job were prominent on the bar. I went for the Propper Job and it was in fine form.
Much better and will definitely look it up more frequently from now on. I think calling it the only pub in the village below is a bit demeaning to the Fox and Hounds a short walk away up Silver hill and definitely is not a true statement now that the Feathers opposite has reopened as a pub after spending a bit of a time as a restaurant.

On 11^th July 2023 - rating: 7
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