It was of late my birthday, and for this occasion I was whisked away to a restaurant called the 'Sir Charles Napier', which perches high up on Bledlow Ridge in the Chilterns. Voted Oxford's best restaurant by the Good Food Guide in 2006, SCN (as I shall call it) isn't cheap, and it's very, very flash. In fact, there's a helicopter landing pad for those who prefer not to drive their car down the terrifyingly narrow country lanes that lead to it. I was actually a little ill while I ate, but I've tried to make up to it with memories of earlier visits, and just by paying more attention. So:

The Sir Charles Napier
Sprigg's Alley
Chinnor
Oxforshire
OX39 4BX

What I ate:

Wild mushroom risotto with shaved truffles and pecorino
Roast pork tenderloin, confit belly, chou farci', black pudding and apple sauce
Chocolate fondant with banana ice cream
2 x glasses sparkling mineral water
1 x peppermint tea

Total price: 41.25

And here's the mark scheme...

Food: 30
Ambience: 30
Service: 20
Price: 10
Drinks: 10

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OK, food. Here I was really hampered by being ill - I felt a little nauseous, it was hard to taste things. None the less, the meal was excellent, even if I couldn't fully appreciate it... but with a 'but' or two perhaps.

The risotto to start was pretty delicious. The mushrooms were nice, it had a strong but not overpowering saffron flavouring and it was a joy to look at. If the portion was very small, then I do have to say it's kind of what you expect at a restaurant like this... although then again most places serving food in this small an amount would tempt you with a few amuses-bouche between courses, so a few marks dropped there. The other problem with the starter was the truffle, which was far from the freshest I've had. Admittedly I'm comparing it with fresh stuff I had in Tuscany, but I feel I have a right to be picky at 12.50 a plate.

The main was also lovely, and somewhat adventurous and exciting too. Three pieces of pork were served on the plate, but each had a different and varied format that made up for the fact they dominated the dish. Best of all was a pork stuffing wrapped in cabbage leaf that looked like a brussels sprout until I cut into it and got a very pleasant surprise. The only let down here was the black pudding, which was served so liquid as to be a sauce. Intentional no doubt, but not as nice as something a little firmer, and not at all what I imagined when I ordered.

Pudding was delicious, and I really can't complain - chocolate dishes are all too often excessively rich, but this one was just right, and the banana ice cream brought the flavour down at all the right moments. I'm also going to take a moment to mention the chocolates we got with our coffees and teas. A dark coating, with a lightly filled truffle centre, they were GORGEOUS.

Overall, those let downs niggle just a little. It's a tiny thing, but in a restaurant that's aiming for high class perfection, they have to be counted. I might be overreacting to small things though, not least (and I'll say it again) because I felt sick and had little appetite.

So, overall, 23/30 for food.

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Ambience. Well, as for location, you can get little better than the SCN. Located on the very top of Bledlow Ridge, miles of Oxfordshire countryside it laid out below you, and at night it's criss-crossed by the glimmer of lights from roads and villages. The area is lovely too - rural, spotted with ancient houses and light woodland, the roads tiny tracks winding along the contours of the hill.

The SCN is a converted pub, and shows it with low, warm interiors and a slightly informal feel for what it is. Oak beams jut, walls are covered in heaving wine racks, and before your meal you sit by roaring open fires with a drink in your hand while they get your table ready.

There's a let down, although again it's minor. The SCN showcases the extensive sculptures of one Michael Cooper. I'm not sure why they do this, but they've done so for as long as I can remember. Mr Cooper is a bit hit and miss though. Some of his sculptures of animals and people are fine, but others are a bit weird - for example, the front table in the restaurant is home to an enormous marble snail. His work also treats us to the weird sight of disembodies arms emerge from the walls to hold back the curtains. Cooper is talented, but I'm not a fan, and I find his sculpture jars with the feel of the SCN in other areas. All that said, the ambience is still excellent; the trip out to the restaurant preparing you for the beauty inside.

Ambience: 25/30

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So, service. I'm going to be tough here, because at 40 a head before wine, I expect groveling servitude. The SCN is, in my opinion, a little informal for what it is. Whenever we go, I feel I'm kept waiting (admittedly by a warm fire) for a little longer than I'd like. On one level it's nice not to be rushed into an expensive meal, but on another I'm starting to get the impression they allow themselves to be overbooked. If I've a table booked for 8.00, I'd frankly liked to be seated before 8.45.

Also, the staff was just a little... uninspired. I expected someone hovering by my elbow to refill my glass, and more frequent checking to see if I was OK. I get the impression the SCN hires local girls on the basis of prettiness rather than skill, which is a mistake. The SCN is trying to play with the big boys, and it needs a big boys' (figuratively speaking - big girls is fine) team.

Worst of all though, we had to go to the bar to pay, and I had to ask for my coat back and find it myself. I've (or rather my parents) have just paid nearly 200 pounds to eat here - bring a fucking chip and pin reader to US, and bring our coats while you're at it!!

So, service: 14/20. They'd have got more anywhere else, but as I said at the beginning of ferretfood, I'm going to judge each place according to the standards for that type of restaurant, not for restaurants generally.

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Price-wise, there's not much to say. It's about what you'd expect for what it is.

Price: 6/10

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Drinks. In this respect, it was a damn shame I was ill - I only felt up to a small sip of the wine my father was drinking, and I'll be damned if I can remember what it was beyond that it was lovely. Memory of past visits though suggests a vast and well stocked wine cellar, and some of the finest port I've ever had in a restaurant - they were selling the 40-year-old stuff.

Drinks: 9/10

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So an overall mark of:

77%

Good stuff, and highly recommended. If the service was a little more attentive and they got rid of the crappy sculpture then this place would be stratospherically good. As it is, it's merely amazing. Bring your helicopters.