Anniversary Party Ideas

MoneySaver82

Hi
Well having got some great ideas from this board for our wedding 5 years ago I thought I'd come back for some anniversary help!
So, as we both love our food, I was planning to take hubby to a fancy restaurant with michelin star chef for 7 course meal with wine pairing & B&B stay. But as this would cost about £310 I was thinking today that instead we could have a party somewhere nice for a load of friends for not too much more.
My thought was whether we could find a nice country pub to do nibbles/platters and perhaps we supply a set amount of drinks - eg 2 per person or a few bottles of wine - and then people buy any more they want at bar.
Budget is probably £500 max though for 40-50 guests so my question is, does this seem feasible? I'd want it to be somewhere nice and not just do a 'hire a village hall, do your own catering' kind of thing. Not because I dislike that but that was more what we did for our wedding and now I'd like to have something different that involves a bit less planning on my part! ie once booked we can just turn up and all the food etc is sorted!
I'm looking to find somewhere in New Forest Area that is fairly local to us.
Couple of ideas I have to look into of pubs we have eaten at before and like are:
http://www.oakinnlyndhurst.co.uk
http://www.theredlionboldre.co.uk/node/7

Or possibly this bistro which we've been to before that we might be able to get a cheapish set menu at:-
http://www.theherbpot.com/3_courses_for_%a310.htm

So does anyone else who knows the area have any ideas? Oh and our anniversary is on 1st November (thinking of doing party on Sat 2nd Nov) so not too long to organise it!
Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance!!