Chateau les Merles et Ses Villas

I have been to this restaurant several times over the last few months and it's been like a roller coaster of food inconsistencies. Now I don't know whether there are different chefs cooking the food, but sometimes the meal will be superior in quality, taste and presentation. Other times it's been bad enough to make me regret going and to never want to go again. First visit we were put by a wall in a top room part of the restaurant and we could not attract the attention of anyone no matter how hard we tried and had to go to the bar to ask for something more than once. We felt abandoned by the waiting staff and that evening the food was excellent. Good quality food well prepared although portion size quite small it had plenty of taste and made by someone who clearly knows how to cook. One other visit we were in the lower room which has a much nicer ambience. However the starter of cauliflower concoction was awful. Stone cold cauliflower puri, with a cold poached egg described as "egg parfait" on top and cold and discoloured cauliflower dotted around the plate. It was extremely unpleasant. Had the whole starter been warm it probably would have tasted a whole lot different as presentation was appetising but it failed hugely on a taste level. The other starter was described as a shrimp croque monsieur. It had no shrimp in in whatsoever and was just three really tiny pieces of dry toast with no filling that could be identified and a lot of chopped endive the whole starter was a mistake and was underwhelming Main course was half a duck breast served with red cabbage and raw chunks of apple which had not be cooked and were cold and hard to cut. The apple was described as "Granny apple confit in saffron" Well there was no saffron and the apples were rock hard raw, not soft and buttery as they should have been. The potato was described as confit! They were not confit potatoes which should be rich and buttery having been cooked in butter. These were two small squares of potato browned on a grill of some kind and the jus served with the dish was embarrassing. It was thin and watery and had not been reduced to a rich jus which ruined the really badly prepared main course. Raw apples, dry squares of potato and thin water jus with duck breast with soggy wet skin wholly unappetising. Massive let down. Is there any quality control before these disastrous meals leave the kitchen? Dessert was great. Poached pear, white chocolate ice cream and a tuille were all good. Pattiserie chef, top marks. Sadly I already had another booking but went at lunchtime and the meal was okay. The starter white onion soup was really delicious, but very small portion. shallow bowl so very little. Main course Bavette perfectly cooked with balsamic onions and coquette potatoes. Dessert also okay. Would I go again? I'd like to because I know the food can be good? It's the inconsistency of the food that is the issue. Also important factors like not knowing how to make con

We enjoyed our stay at this beautiful Chateau. Best service, friendly, relaxed staff, amazing restaurant meals, beautiful setting and quietness. And at the same time many of beautiful villages are easy reachable. Will do it again with pleasure.

We received a very warm welcome at the Chateau & all the staff were lovely. We spent two weeks in Villa 7 which is for 6 people with a pool. The Chateau and its villas are in a great location to explore the Dordogne with the added benefit of having an outstanding restaurant on site - which is always busy. The villa was very well appointed and had everything you might need and the pool was lovely ( once it had warmed up!) We were a bit surprised by the lack of blinds in the bathrooms as they overlooked the Teeing off area on the golf course and people could see in ( so you definitely couldn't put the light on to have a shower!) The shower gels and soaps were gorgeous. The beds were comfy and the bedrooms were air conditioned ( although downstairs isnt & we did buy a fan & left it there for future guests - there were also mosquitos so we bought repellent devices so that we could open the french doors in the evening. The Wifi connection was stable and fast enough. All in all a great place to stay.

Most excellent hospitality, accommodation and food, cannot recommend more highly. We were warmly greeted, comfortably accommodated and the food was fantastic, I would certainly return, which I say very rarely. Thank you for a wonderful experience.

A super find - friendly staff , great food, spotlessly clean. We stayed for 1 night only en route somewhere else . Two pools and both look beautiful but it was too late (and chilly) for us to use. We stayed in the hotel but the villas look very nice. Restaurant was excellent - the ‘menu formule’ was amazing, with little ‘amuse bouches’ between courses. Vegetarian options very good. It is in the middle of nowhere, so unless you fancy driving elsewhere you will need to eat at the chateau. Bedroom was spotlessly clean, shuttered window so nice and dark, kettle, robes and slippers. Great walk-in shower. Looks like a great place for golfers - we collected 21 golf balls from the drive which is adjacent to the practice driving range. We handed them in but looks like I’m suffering now for my nocturnal golf ball stint - got loads of bites on the ankles for my trouble! Take your insect repellant !

We stayed in one of their standard rooms which was cosy and beautifully clean. We had a candlelit dinner on the terrace and breakfast the next day, the food was excellent. We also made use of their pool area which was very serene. I would also like to mention that their staff were very friendly and helpful. All in all we had a lovely stay.

We came here for dinner one evening in August 2023. Lots of our food was delicious, including the duck main and the green tomato cold soup. They made a mistake with our desserts, but were very apologetic and gave us a free glass of champagne each while they prepared our desserts. The only dish we found disappointing was the halibut main, which seemed a bit over cooked. Beautiful courtyard setting as well.

Excellent meal in pleasant surroundings with attentive but not overbearing service. We chose the 3-course menu but added a cheese plate to share between us. All courses were good, but especially the starters. We were also treated to two amuses-bouches, a pre-dessert and petits fours. Wines from the restaurant’s own vineyard were excellent and reasonably priced. A very pleasant experience.

Lovely spacious room. Beautiful peaceful surroundings. Dinner in the courtyard in evening sun was delightful. We hired cycles which enabled us to explore along the river, visit Bergerac, Lalinde, Mauzac and Tremolat with very little vehicle traffic.