The Botanist in Marlow maybe regarded as a cocktail bar but it is a secret gem in terms of food.

The popular eatery, who are based on West Street, recently revealed their brand-new menu which was launched on October 22, and it’s no surprise that the restaurant was packed during its launch.

And the funny thing is, I had been in there a couple of times but only for a drink, so to have a meal in there was a different experience for me.

I was taken back at how beautiful the Botanist was laid out because as soon as you walk in, you think it’s just a cocktail bar.

But after walking past the bar, you see a sea of tables, both big and small, which has the foundations for a great night out.

And to top of the atmosphere that the restaurant has, Paige Tull, who is the restaurant’s sales and events manager, revealed to the Bucks Free Press that the music played at the Botanist is specifically chosen to create a positive vibe around the establishment.

The team will go through a list of songs and tracks they believe will give the customers a good experience, which shows how much they care for their clients.

The brand-new menu is full of pub classics and new recipes so for starters, I opted to have calamari (£6.95).

The calamari came with crème fraiche and sweet chilli dip, and was accompanied with kale, peppers and chillies.

It was beautiful.

The calamari was cooked to perfection and it was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

And with the spicy vegetables on top, it really gave the squid that kick.

It was a great start to a highly anticipated meal.

For the main, I chose to have bangers and mash. It sounds boring I know, but I was told that the dish was one of the most popular at the West Street venue, so it would have been rude not to try it.

And of course, to keep things balanced, I opted to have a Caesar salad with bacon on the side.

The sausage and mash came out in little time with the meat being coated in onion gravy, and it was without doubt one of the nicest meals I had ever had.

The sausages were succulent, tender and the gravy being soaked into the meat, gave the sausages that extra flavour.

The mash potatoes, which came in a separate bowl, were lumpy and came with a sprinkle of herbs.

A lot of people are very particular with the way they like their mash, but I am very easy going.

So lumpy mash was fine with me and it went down a treat.

And for dessert, I opted to go for the chocolate brownie hanging kebab.

Consisting of a bread and butter pudding, a chocolate brownie and roasted marshmallows, which had a bowl of ice cream at the bottom, it was without doubt the messiest dessert I had ever had.

My fingers were sticky, my mouth was covered with chocolate and I couldn’t move for at least 20 minutes.

But it was worth it.

It was the perfect way to finish the perfect meal.

5/5