After being up until 2am worried about my daughter Amy giving birth, and finally having the news that a big ten and a half pounder baby Amber arrived in the world by caesarian at last, and then waking at 6, still thinking about them, I was in a pretty weird state for dinner at Culinaria! But, there was a great deal to celebrate, and we'd arranged this months ago, so I wasn't going to miss out on another great evening of dining! I haven't lost much weight recently though! July and August has just seen me go up and down and getting nowhere, but there has been a lot going on..... and I've been away.... and....
So with Scott and 3 friends from Gasworks, one of whom was celebrating early retirement with a great deal, and the other two just back from several weeks of wonderful holiday-making, we perused the menu and when the first bottle of wine came (Scott and I were sharing a taxi home this time!), we toasted each other.
John's fish soup looked fantastic and I wish I had ordered it. It was so very authentic French! But Scott and I had a wonderful seafood risotto that was bursting with white wine flavour. Joy's pidgeon breast and Paul's bruchetta looked very tasty too. For the main course, 3 of us had the special and very expensive whole roast grouse! None of us had ever had this before, and it was a bit fiddly with not much meat on the bones, cooked fairly rare with lovely vegetables. The other meals of lamb and salmon looked good but not spectacular.
The desert was also very good but not earth-shattering (am I getting a bit picky?). Highly seasonal damson, plum and frangipane tart with damson ice cream (mouth watering as I type)... sort of my favourite kind of thing! Scott had St Emilion au chocolat which was not too sweet and not too cloying... yum! I can't remember what the others had as I think I almost fell asleep!
We had a gentle evening of warm conversation and good wine. I was so tired that I think I was in a bit of a dream, but I enjoyed the evening very much and it was a great way to celebrate our birthdays and the birth of Amber too!
I believe Culinaria are closing after many years of good cuisine, and it will be missed as it was an affordable, seasonal, well-cooked, well-presented culinary evening. Just didn't knock my socks off!
Friday 26 August 2011
Thursday 28 July 2011
Juniper Restaurant, Cotham
Groupon and Living Social coupons... £48 for two, 8-course taster menu with champagne cocktail and a glass of wine. Not bad eh? I've been to Juniper before and liked the food, though found 3 courses a bit too much, so how will 8 courses be?
Our two friends who were sharing one of the coupons with us were already sipping their champagne (mixed with brandy and apple juice and cinnamon) when we arrived and it was quite pokey, if a bit sweet. We were all a bit mid-week-weary, but pepped up when the tasty first course of a crab cake, crab mayonnaise and crayfish and salmon cocktail in a sherry glass arrived. All very fresh and full of flavour.... mmm we were in for a treat! The smoked duck was quite nice with some delicious honeyhoi sin leg meat, ginger and garlic jelly and a port jus. Sweet but strong. The third starter was a thick pea and ham soup which felt really nourishing and full of body.
The fish dish was a tiny tender square of seabass with two lovely accompaniments - red pepper and tomato compote and creamy mushroom and pesto sauce. Our friend's partner has been a vegetarian for years but recently has started eating meat again, so she bravely cut into the lamb rump served on a circlet of smashed root vegetables with a redcurrant lamb jus. I loved it, but Scott found the meat a little tough for his delicate meat tolerance.
The cheese course was surprising because it let us to believe we were getting goats cheese, vintage cheddar and Exmoor blue.. but it came as a cheese-on-toast rarebit with chutney. Delicious though! For dessert each couple had a plate of tasters to share. The coffee cream dessert was scrumptious, as was the passion fruit mousse, the titchy witchy cinamon pastry and chocolate brownie but I could have left the little trifle.
Sad to say, I have put on half a pound this week, which is not surprising seeing as I have had 3 meals out, a party and a buffet lunch! This was a good night of lovely food and good value from the Groupon L/S people. We laughed a lot, put the world to rights, shared experiences and feelings and I loved the company of my old friend and his partner, whom I am enjoying getting to know. Let's do it again I say!
Our two friends who were sharing one of the coupons with us were already sipping their champagne (mixed with brandy and apple juice and cinnamon) when we arrived and it was quite pokey, if a bit sweet. We were all a bit mid-week-weary, but pepped up when the tasty first course of a crab cake, crab mayonnaise and crayfish and salmon cocktail in a sherry glass arrived. All very fresh and full of flavour.... mmm we were in for a treat! The smoked duck was quite nice with some delicious honeyhoi sin leg meat, ginger and garlic jelly and a port jus. Sweet but strong. The third starter was a thick pea and ham soup which felt really nourishing and full of body.
The fish dish was a tiny tender square of seabass with two lovely accompaniments - red pepper and tomato compote and creamy mushroom and pesto sauce. Our friend's partner has been a vegetarian for years but recently has started eating meat again, so she bravely cut into the lamb rump served on a circlet of smashed root vegetables with a redcurrant lamb jus. I loved it, but Scott found the meat a little tough for his delicate meat tolerance.
The cheese course was surprising because it let us to believe we were getting goats cheese, vintage cheddar and Exmoor blue.. but it came as a cheese-on-toast rarebit with chutney. Delicious though! For dessert each couple had a plate of tasters to share. The coffee cream dessert was scrumptious, as was the passion fruit mousse, the titchy witchy cinamon pastry and chocolate brownie but I could have left the little trifle.
Sad to say, I have put on half a pound this week, which is not surprising seeing as I have had 3 meals out, a party and a buffet lunch! This was a good night of lovely food and good value from the Groupon L/S people. We laughed a lot, put the world to rights, shared experiences and feelings and I loved the company of my old friend and his partner, whom I am enjoying getting to know. Let's do it again I say!
Friday 22 July 2011
The Grange, Whatley, near Frome
I have been looking forward to this one, as it is not often that I have the company of my fellow singing and musician friends from Frome and also we booked in at The Cyder Barn B&B across the road. Scott and I were late as it took us longer for Scott to get back from work and for us to get there in rush hour, but we dumped our bags at the Cyder Barn, donned a dress and walked over through a little wooden gate in the wall to The Grange. This restaurant also serves as a cookery school, and is modern and bright with friendly young staff who were very helpful. Everyone was there before us, and I was spoiled with gifts of flowers and truffles and cards... With any luck I can spread this birthday for the entire year and gradually decorate my kitchen with cards!
The menu is simple and three courses without any extras from the chef. I started with a prawn salad which was fresh but lacked flavour... could it be that the prawns were frozen? Scott and Martin had a warm salad of boned quail (which turned out to mean that it had a bone in it!) delicious with caramelised onions, baby vegetables and a strong, tasty duck liver parfait. Bay's humus and babaganoush had a hot tomato chutney with it but the scallops were rather small but with a delicious mayonnaise.
For mains, Karine and I had spring chicken which was stuffed, moist and tender with slightly soggy roast new potatoes and morel mushrooms which looked and tasted as if they might have been dried and reconstituted as they had very little flavour. I realised there were no green vegetables and after a hasty order, they brought them very quickly. The zuppa di pescatore was the winning dish... full of flavour and much fish with a wonderful aioli dip and enjoyed by Nickomo, Rasullah and Scott. Nick and Bay had pizzas which they said were very good. The wine was fruity and warm and everyone relaxed into harmonious conversation.
Dessert was rose macaroons with raspberries, blueberries and raspberry icecream and looked very pretty, but was weak flavoured. The chocolate layered cake was a bit disappointing and was a bit tiramisu-like but the dessert wine was nectar sweet.
The bill was moderate and reflected the moderation of our response to the food. I thoroughly enjoyed the evening though with my lovely singing tribe. Scott and I had a hysterical run back to our barn in pouring rain, lit by my iphone torch app! The Cyder Barn had everything you could possibly want in a B&B... fruit, flowers, every sort of tea and coffee, thick towels and rugs, even a remote controlled gas fire! Breakfast was also full and English and so were we!
Oh, and by the way, I got my one and a half stone award last week, and this week am on my way to the Club 10 award, which means in 2lb time I will have lost one tenth of my body weight! However, this may not happen this week as tomorrow night I am eating out again in the Watersky Chinese restaurant with my Gasworks Singers! Help!
The menu is simple and three courses without any extras from the chef. I started with a prawn salad which was fresh but lacked flavour... could it be that the prawns were frozen? Scott and Martin had a warm salad of boned quail (which turned out to mean that it had a bone in it!) delicious with caramelised onions, baby vegetables and a strong, tasty duck liver parfait. Bay's humus and babaganoush had a hot tomato chutney with it but the scallops were rather small but with a delicious mayonnaise.
For mains, Karine and I had spring chicken which was stuffed, moist and tender with slightly soggy roast new potatoes and morel mushrooms which looked and tasted as if they might have been dried and reconstituted as they had very little flavour. I realised there were no green vegetables and after a hasty order, they brought them very quickly. The zuppa di pescatore was the winning dish... full of flavour and much fish with a wonderful aioli dip and enjoyed by Nickomo, Rasullah and Scott. Nick and Bay had pizzas which they said were very good. The wine was fruity and warm and everyone relaxed into harmonious conversation.
Dessert was rose macaroons with raspberries, blueberries and raspberry icecream and looked very pretty, but was weak flavoured. The chocolate layered cake was a bit disappointing and was a bit tiramisu-like but the dessert wine was nectar sweet.
The bill was moderate and reflected the moderation of our response to the food. I thoroughly enjoyed the evening though with my lovely singing tribe. Scott and I had a hysterical run back to our barn in pouring rain, lit by my iphone torch app! The Cyder Barn had everything you could possibly want in a B&B... fruit, flowers, every sort of tea and coffee, thick towels and rugs, even a remote controlled gas fire! Breakfast was also full and English and so were we!
Oh, and by the way, I got my one and a half stone award last week, and this week am on my way to the Club 10 award, which means in 2lb time I will have lost one tenth of my body weight! However, this may not happen this week as tomorrow night I am eating out again in the Watersky Chinese restaurant with my Gasworks Singers! Help!
Tuesday 12 July 2011
Friday 8 July 2011
The Muset by Ronnie
Apparently The Muset round behind the student's union building in Clifton, was THE place to go once... maybe it will be again! Ronnie Faulkner, the owner/chef, has recently acquired this restaurant to add to his already acclaimed Thornbury "Ronnies". Scott and I needed an evening out by ourselves to catch up, and thought we'd fine dine rather than pop to our favourite Indian, for the sake of the slimming part of my 60th birthday year! By the way I got my ONE AND A HALF STONE AWARD this week! That's since November... so an average of a pound a week... slowly...slowly!
The restaurant is larger than you think as you walk in. 1960s retro hanging orange lamps, cream and brown colours with shiny tables and quite posh Clifton clientelle. But we were warmly welcomed, even though I hadn't bothered to dress up at all! We decided to go for the £30 taster menu to see what they had on offer. The spanish waiter, who was really funny and difficult to understand and probably the son of Manuel, brought a couple of large soup bowls with a cluster of chopped eel, bacon and sweetcorn in the centre and said "'ere's the soooop". We looked surprised because it didn't look like soup, so he grabbed a silver jug and poured the sweetcorn veloute over the top with a flourish... "eet looks gooowd if I pour it at the table!" It was good! The next plate was a flat oblong platter with a quenelle of smoked aubergine pate with little balls of goats cheese, squash puree and pea shoots. The dressing was lovely, the plate was pretty and the textures went well together.
The fish dish was a small oblong of delicious sea bass, with perfectly cooked asparagus and chopped and roasted hazelnuts. Also really tasty and delicious. The next plate was chicken, pot roasted in an italian style, tender with crispy skin and served with bread soaked in the liquor called panzanella! The attentive and helpful waitress told us that it was traditional Italian, to fill you up.. like yorkshire pudding! After a bit of a wait (there was an apology because of the busy kitchen, so we didn't mind), the meal was rounded off with a platter of beetroot cake... like a soft slightly choc/orange tasting brownie, with a quenelle of slightly tasteless but cold sorbet, and little chunks of beetroot, which Scott liked but i didn't. We felt absolutely satisfied and really enjoyed the whole feast.
The place was full, the service attentive and I'd definately go back here. I noticed that the table next door had plates from the a la carte which were very generous - the same dishes were about 3 times the size. Three courses would be a very large meal.
The restaurant is larger than you think as you walk in. 1960s retro hanging orange lamps, cream and brown colours with shiny tables and quite posh Clifton clientelle. But we were warmly welcomed, even though I hadn't bothered to dress up at all! We decided to go for the £30 taster menu to see what they had on offer. The spanish waiter, who was really funny and difficult to understand and probably the son of Manuel, brought a couple of large soup bowls with a cluster of chopped eel, bacon and sweetcorn in the centre and said "'ere's the soooop". We looked surprised because it didn't look like soup, so he grabbed a silver jug and poured the sweetcorn veloute over the top with a flourish... "eet looks gooowd if I pour it at the table!" It was good! The next plate was a flat oblong platter with a quenelle of smoked aubergine pate with little balls of goats cheese, squash puree and pea shoots. The dressing was lovely, the plate was pretty and the textures went well together.
The fish dish was a small oblong of delicious sea bass, with perfectly cooked asparagus and chopped and roasted hazelnuts. Also really tasty and delicious. The next plate was chicken, pot roasted in an italian style, tender with crispy skin and served with bread soaked in the liquor called panzanella! The attentive and helpful waitress told us that it was traditional Italian, to fill you up.. like yorkshire pudding! After a bit of a wait (there was an apology because of the busy kitchen, so we didn't mind), the meal was rounded off with a platter of beetroot cake... like a soft slightly choc/orange tasting brownie, with a quenelle of slightly tasteless but cold sorbet, and little chunks of beetroot, which Scott liked but i didn't. We felt absolutely satisfied and really enjoyed the whole feast.
The place was full, the service attentive and I'd definately go back here. I noticed that the table next door had plates from the a la carte which were very generous - the same dishes were about 3 times the size. Three courses would be a very large meal.
Sunday 3 July 2011
Casamia, Westbury on Trym, Bristol
They won Gordon Ramsey's "Best Restaurant Award" last year, and Scott and I have been there before - about 2 years ago. Last time, our 10th wedding anniversary, we had the 10 course taster menu, one course for each year of our marriage. We tried to remember each year with each course, but the wine befuddled our memory and we just laughed a lot! We especially laughed because the china was great, but the food was so small in the middle of it, that Scott couldn't find it!
This time was a whole lot better and we were celebrating a 100th birthday... the combined ages of myself and Ali, my singing friend.... Gasworks Choir/Naked Voices/old Sweet Soul Sister partnership. We also had the company of Ben, my No.1 son, and Sarah, another friend of many years who loves food but who's partner is a wheat-free vegan and is not that interested in gastronomy. Casamia is tucked away behind a wrought iron gate and you walk past the kitchen and can see the chefs working as you go in. I was a bit disappointed to be given a rather large oblong table, so we were far apart and talking to each other was a bit difficult for the three opposite who were in rather a line!
The menu had a definite Italian flavour - campari sodas, homemade focacia bread with rosemary and bread sticks flavoured with star anise with a creamy creme fraiche dip, olives, and nuts rolled in stuff. The staff were really friendly and a smiley girl remembered us from 2 years ago, and the twinkly eyed house manager remembered us from the Crown at Whitebrook where he was working before!
We started with a neatly decapitated duck's egg on a cardboard egg tray complete with straw. The chef who made it came to explain that you should dip the tiny spoon to the bottom and eat all the layers at once to get the full effect. Scrambled ducks egg with tiny pieces of smoked duck with thyme air... delicious. A fresh white wine heralded the next plate which was very pretty and bright with textures of carrot... puree and sliced with paper thin slices of tasty wild boar salami and soft little balls of fresh sheeps curd and dots of pesto. Yum!
I remember the beetroot and barley risotto from before and I believe this is now a signature dish. Flavoursome, deep red with a crunch of something like pistachio and served in china that had a rich ringy resonation when tapped. I liked it very much but it didn't go down well with everyone. The next plate of poached salmon cooked slowly in a waterbath which keeps it's raw texture (must be fashionable, we had that last Friday!) with my favourite horseradish garnished with a flourish afterwards. A delicious fruity red wine accomanied the meat dish, Iberico pork sliced in small salty rounds, sitting on a bed of mushroom and celery root puree, with a matchstick of white celery root and the jus poured on with a flourish by the waitor.
A dramatic bowl of Amalfi lemons were brought in, liquid nitrogen poured on and much to our amused gasps... a lemon fog surrounded us! The dessert was a tiny but delicious pine nut pannacotta with lemon sorbet which went very well with the sweet muscatel served in tiny glasses. Ali liked it so much she asked the waitor to perform the lemon mist again... and he did! The very last dish was a retro tiramisu from the old Italian restaurant days... amusingly served in lidded foil takeaway dishes with jars of "aroma of Renato's Numero Uno" coffee beans which we sniffed and with nostalgic "aahhh"s.
But it wasn't the end.... Some juniper and lemon chocolates, and an ornate silver box of "Narnia inspired" homemade turkish delight were produced. "Is this torrent of tit-bits ever going to end?" exclaimed Scott as they brought yet another tasty morcel..... dehyrated chocolate digestives that you had to pick out of a lidded jar and put in your mouth really quickly and they made your tongue all cold!
We got a taxi home and I got up with Ben at 7.30 to pick up my car, fresh as a daisy! A delightful evening, well worth the £100 per head!
This time was a whole lot better and we were celebrating a 100th birthday... the combined ages of myself and Ali, my singing friend.... Gasworks Choir/Naked Voices/old Sweet Soul Sister partnership. We also had the company of Ben, my No.1 son, and Sarah, another friend of many years who loves food but who's partner is a wheat-free vegan and is not that interested in gastronomy. Casamia is tucked away behind a wrought iron gate and you walk past the kitchen and can see the chefs working as you go in. I was a bit disappointed to be given a rather large oblong table, so we were far apart and talking to each other was a bit difficult for the three opposite who were in rather a line!
The menu had a definite Italian flavour - campari sodas, homemade focacia bread with rosemary and bread sticks flavoured with star anise with a creamy creme fraiche dip, olives, and nuts rolled in stuff. The staff were really friendly and a smiley girl remembered us from 2 years ago, and the twinkly eyed house manager remembered us from the Crown at Whitebrook where he was working before!
We started with a neatly decapitated duck's egg on a cardboard egg tray complete with straw. The chef who made it came to explain that you should dip the tiny spoon to the bottom and eat all the layers at once to get the full effect. Scrambled ducks egg with tiny pieces of smoked duck with thyme air... delicious. A fresh white wine heralded the next plate which was very pretty and bright with textures of carrot... puree and sliced with paper thin slices of tasty wild boar salami and soft little balls of fresh sheeps curd and dots of pesto. Yum!
I remember the beetroot and barley risotto from before and I believe this is now a signature dish. Flavoursome, deep red with a crunch of something like pistachio and served in china that had a rich ringy resonation when tapped. I liked it very much but it didn't go down well with everyone. The next plate of poached salmon cooked slowly in a waterbath which keeps it's raw texture (must be fashionable, we had that last Friday!) with my favourite horseradish garnished with a flourish afterwards. A delicious fruity red wine accomanied the meat dish, Iberico pork sliced in small salty rounds, sitting on a bed of mushroom and celery root puree, with a matchstick of white celery root and the jus poured on with a flourish by the waitor.
A dramatic bowl of Amalfi lemons were brought in, liquid nitrogen poured on and much to our amused gasps... a lemon fog surrounded us! The dessert was a tiny but delicious pine nut pannacotta with lemon sorbet which went very well with the sweet muscatel served in tiny glasses. Ali liked it so much she asked the waitor to perform the lemon mist again... and he did! The very last dish was a retro tiramisu from the old Italian restaurant days... amusingly served in lidded foil takeaway dishes with jars of "aroma of Renato's Numero Uno" coffee beans which we sniffed and with nostalgic "aahhh"s.
But it wasn't the end.... Some juniper and lemon chocolates, and an ornate silver box of "Narnia inspired" homemade turkish delight were produced. "Is this torrent of tit-bits ever going to end?" exclaimed Scott as they brought yet another tasty morcel..... dehyrated chocolate digestives that you had to pick out of a lidded jar and put in your mouth really quickly and they made your tongue all cold!
We got a taxi home and I got up with Ben at 7.30 to pick up my car, fresh as a daisy! A delightful evening, well worth the £100 per head!
Saturday 25 June 2011
Berwick Lodge, country mansion between 2 motorways.
Well, this meal was elegant.. or was it minimalistic? It certainly won't put any weight on! I lost 2 pounds last week, which nearly brings me back to where I was before I went to Scotland.... only 2 more pounds to get to my one and a half stone!
The situation is weird.... an old redbrick manor house, approached by a lovely country single track lane.... and then you go over 6 lanes of the M5, and then you're in lovely woods... Ros and Andrew saw a deer! It sits in a Y shape between the M5 and the M49, with Cribbs Causeway in the wide top. On arrival, we walked past lion fountains and over the red carpet to the big front door, and joined the others on sofas for a drink, a tiny canape and olives perusing the menu in the sitting room. The day being wet and windy, we would have liked a roaring fire in the large fireplace.
After a forgettable amuse bouche, I started with diver-caught scallops... well, scallop actually... with a tiny square of pork belly and 1mm squares of chorizo jelly (I think), some strange cocoa beans and a smear of gaszpacho which was hardly worth mentioning. Scott had a Snail Garden... 3 garlic snails on a mushroom soil with tiny vegetables growing in it! Julie's duck egg looked really tasty. We all had different mains. Elmslie's fish looked well cooked and Lee and Ros's lamb was chunky but had us in hysterics as they searched in vain for the ratatouille! My tiny cylinders of rather tough duck wrapped in a leaf with blobs of apricot puree (and other blobby things) was so small, it looked like a taster dish. None of the main courses has enough to satisfy our hunger, so we had to go for the extra cheese board. Good variety and tasty cheeses helped to fill the hole, and by the time we had the chef's refresher of strawberry with balsamic jelly with cream (yummy) and the excellent but again, small, desserts, we had probably had just enough food. Scott's 8 textures chocolate looked the most interesting desert... very dark and thick with the chocolatiest chocolate, but the Sauternes verrine with creme caramel, caramel cream and William pear was absolutely delicious. The meal was pretty and tasty but a tiny bit mean and worked out around £70 per head.
The company of 7 Singers was fabulous, and funny, and we spent quite a few hours in the sumptuous dining room, admired the over-the-top luxury toilet, wondered at the French accents of the waitor and sipped the three £45-a-bottle wines very slowly indeed! With 6 of us being almost the same age, I felt very close to these people and enjoyed the evening immensely! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWqJOSHO7GI
The situation is weird.... an old redbrick manor house, approached by a lovely country single track lane.... and then you go over 6 lanes of the M5, and then you're in lovely woods... Ros and Andrew saw a deer! It sits in a Y shape between the M5 and the M49, with Cribbs Causeway in the wide top. On arrival, we walked past lion fountains and over the red carpet to the big front door, and joined the others on sofas for a drink, a tiny canape and olives perusing the menu in the sitting room. The day being wet and windy, we would have liked a roaring fire in the large fireplace.
After a forgettable amuse bouche, I started with diver-caught scallops... well, scallop actually... with a tiny square of pork belly and 1mm squares of chorizo jelly (I think), some strange cocoa beans and a smear of gaszpacho which was hardly worth mentioning. Scott had a Snail Garden... 3 garlic snails on a mushroom soil with tiny vegetables growing in it! Julie's duck egg looked really tasty. We all had different mains. Elmslie's fish looked well cooked and Lee and Ros's lamb was chunky but had us in hysterics as they searched in vain for the ratatouille! My tiny cylinders of rather tough duck wrapped in a leaf with blobs of apricot puree (and other blobby things) was so small, it looked like a taster dish. None of the main courses has enough to satisfy our hunger, so we had to go for the extra cheese board. Good variety and tasty cheeses helped to fill the hole, and by the time we had the chef's refresher of strawberry with balsamic jelly with cream (yummy) and the excellent but again, small, desserts, we had probably had just enough food. Scott's 8 textures chocolate looked the most interesting desert... very dark and thick with the chocolatiest chocolate, but the Sauternes verrine with creme caramel, caramel cream and William pear was absolutely delicious. The meal was pretty and tasty but a tiny bit mean and worked out around £70 per head.
The company of 7 Singers was fabulous, and funny, and we spent quite a few hours in the sumptuous dining room, admired the over-the-top luxury toilet, wondered at the French accents of the waitor and sipped the three £45-a-bottle wines very slowly indeed! With 6 of us being almost the same age, I felt very close to these people and enjoyed the evening immensely! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWqJOSHO7GI
Thursday 16 June 2011
North East Scotland! Boath House, near Forres, Moray
After an "Experience Week" at Cluny Hill College, part of the Findhorn Foundation, my friend and I decided we should treat ourselves to a special celebration meal. We had been living on mounds of salads and vegetables all week, which left me feeling healthy but vaguely dissatisfied and rather yin and light headed. When we booked they asked if we had any dietary requirements. My friend listed wheat, dairy, cod, shellfish, meat and they didn't bat an eyelid. A special menu would be created!
We walked from the carpark up the impressive sweeping drive of this small and beautiful Georgian mansion, which along with it's 20 acres of lawn, marshland and woods, had been bought derelict and restored by the owners. We were welcomed with a drink and canapes and our own individual and different menus. Our table was a little bit disappointing, in a small sideroom and not looking out onto the glorious gardens.
We started with expresso cups of soup, mine celeriac and truffle, my friend's was butternut squash. Both were very tasty and warming. I gulped at my foie gras rolled in crushed pistachio with a sliver of pear (don't usually eat this!), whilst my friend ate an artistic gathering of tiny wild asparagus and shavings of celery decorated with flowers. We both ate the salmon which was cooked slowly in a waterbath to give a strange raw texture. It came with wafers of beetroot, beetroot jelly and a tiny stuffed quail's egg. I had duck breast with delicious pak choi and rather horrid warm radish. My friend had a rather hilarious heap of weeds and tiny viola flowers which made us laugh. The Morangie brie with wafers of crispbread and grapes was delicious, as was the trio of deserts... hot chocolate fondant, cool chocolate coil and cold salty buttercotch ice cream. My friend gave me her strawberries and kiwi as she doesn't eat them which went very well too!
At nearly 11pm when we finished eating, there was still enough light up in those northern climes for us to explore the garden, getting wet feet in the marsh walk, and seeing all the vegetables we had eaten grown in the superb walled garden. A great evening!
Oh... and the sad news is, that in spite of the mounds of vegetables and salads I have eaten, and the fine dining, I have put on two and a half pounds this week! A vegetarian diet obviously doesn't suit me!
We walked from the carpark up the impressive sweeping drive of this small and beautiful Georgian mansion, which along with it's 20 acres of lawn, marshland and woods, had been bought derelict and restored by the owners. We were welcomed with a drink and canapes and our own individual and different menus. Our table was a little bit disappointing, in a small sideroom and not looking out onto the glorious gardens.
We started with expresso cups of soup, mine celeriac and truffle, my friend's was butternut squash. Both were very tasty and warming. I gulped at my foie gras rolled in crushed pistachio with a sliver of pear (don't usually eat this!), whilst my friend ate an artistic gathering of tiny wild asparagus and shavings of celery decorated with flowers. We both ate the salmon which was cooked slowly in a waterbath to give a strange raw texture. It came with wafers of beetroot, beetroot jelly and a tiny stuffed quail's egg. I had duck breast with delicious pak choi and rather horrid warm radish. My friend had a rather hilarious heap of weeds and tiny viola flowers which made us laugh. The Morangie brie with wafers of crispbread and grapes was delicious, as was the trio of deserts... hot chocolate fondant, cool chocolate coil and cold salty buttercotch ice cream. My friend gave me her strawberries and kiwi as she doesn't eat them which went very well too!
At nearly 11pm when we finished eating, there was still enough light up in those northern climes for us to explore the garden, getting wet feet in the marsh walk, and seeing all the vegetables we had eaten grown in the superb walled garden. A great evening!
Oh... and the sad news is, that in spite of the mounds of vegetables and salads I have eaten, and the fine dining, I have put on two and a half pounds this week! A vegetarian diet obviously doesn't suit me!
Sunday 22 May 2011
The Pony and Trap, Chew Magna
Oh, this is going so well.... I'm so enjoying going out to dinner with different groups of my friends. This time my builder friend and used-to-be neighbour who has converted my loft bedroom, beautifully extended the studio, made a roof space into the spare bedroom, choreographed the next door refurbishment and many many more little helpful things over the fifteen years that I have lived in my house. I remember one day shortly after I moved in, I was nailing down loose floorboards and punctured a water pipe and he came down and rescued me from fountains of water when I didn't even know where the stopcock was! His partner came too, and our next door neighbour carpenter/builder who has also done loads of work on my house.
After an exciting rally drive down little country lanes much too fast, we arrived at the highly acclaimed, recent Michelin star winner country pub with a great view. It was informal and relaxing and there was no amuse bouche, just a menu. The portions were generous but with a good impression of fine dining. Scott had mussels (he always does) which were tasty and had the finger bowl and bowl for the shells, the rare beef carpaccio was good and my rather gory-sounding duck's liver and heart on toast was actually incredibly delicious.
The main courses were also admirable - pork belly with crackling and lumps of loin with black pudding and smears of this and that, lamb tagine with chops and deep fried sweetbreads, whilst Scott and I had the rabbit. Picturesque galantine with a stuffing and asparagus in the middle, roasted leg and some tasty puree with a great gravy. The roasted new potatoes (waste of time roasting new pots!) and fresh green vegetables were abundant and we were not sure we could manage a dessert. We did though, and the trio of lemon was divine.
Yup.... the conversation was excellent, the red wine flowed for two people and the other three of us sipped a cold rose, and a very good evening was had by all. I drove sedately home and enjoyed the country roads and the sparkling lights of Bristol as we came over the heights of Dundry.
I fear that this was not "petit plats" and taking my 81-year old aunt for a cream tea at Tart yesterday, followed by a party and a Gaswork Singer's singing and feasting day today is not going to help my slimming this week! We'll see on Wednesday!
After an exciting rally drive down little country lanes much too fast, we arrived at the highly acclaimed, recent Michelin star winner country pub with a great view. It was informal and relaxing and there was no amuse bouche, just a menu. The portions were generous but with a good impression of fine dining. Scott had mussels (he always does) which were tasty and had the finger bowl and bowl for the shells, the rare beef carpaccio was good and my rather gory-sounding duck's liver and heart on toast was actually incredibly delicious.
The main courses were also admirable - pork belly with crackling and lumps of loin with black pudding and smears of this and that, lamb tagine with chops and deep fried sweetbreads, whilst Scott and I had the rabbit. Picturesque galantine with a stuffing and asparagus in the middle, roasted leg and some tasty puree with a great gravy. The roasted new potatoes (waste of time roasting new pots!) and fresh green vegetables were abundant and we were not sure we could manage a dessert. We did though, and the trio of lemon was divine.
Yup.... the conversation was excellent, the red wine flowed for two people and the other three of us sipped a cold rose, and a very good evening was had by all. I drove sedately home and enjoyed the country roads and the sparkling lights of Bristol as we came over the heights of Dundry.
I fear that this was not "petit plats" and taking my 81-year old aunt for a cream tea at Tart yesterday, followed by a party and a Gaswork Singer's singing and feasting day today is not going to help my slimming this week! We'll see on Wednesday!
Thursday 19 May 2011
The Primrose Cafe
The Primrose Cafe tucked away in the cud-de-sac Boyces Avenue in Clifton turns up the jazz and puts on the pearls to elevate itself for evening dining. A very special mid-week evening with very special women.... who each brought an aromatic rose from their gardens which tumbled into a central jug. The atmosphere really takes me back to my student days... dark wood, reclaimed tables and chairs, homely with friendly helpful motherly waitresses.
The food was fresh and good value. We had a delightful fruity rose wine and with after work hunger, were raring to go. We were brough a surprising amuse bouche of leek and potato soup in expresso cups which I followed with deep fried cod cheeks with tartare sauce. My friends starters were beautiful deep red beetroot-cured salmon with horseradish cream (reported as being not hot enough) and a veggie filled puff pastry.
Three of us had mains of succulent slices of venison in a mushroom sauce with creamy mash and fresh, well cooked mixed vegetables. The other visually appealing main was a the vegetarian omelette pancake with halloumi and deserts were orange pancakes, walnut cake, brulee, chocolate parfait and I had an affogato which is italian for "drowned" and is simply delicious expresso coffee poured over ice cream.... and yes, Ilse, it did keep me awake!
We talked of childhood, loss, motherhood and music. I felt so close and warm with my liberated, intuitive, fun-loving, singing, dancing and swimming women friends. Thank you all for joining me in my slimming and dining year! Another half a pound down!
The food was fresh and good value. We had a delightful fruity rose wine and with after work hunger, were raring to go. We were brough a surprising amuse bouche of leek and potato soup in expresso cups which I followed with deep fried cod cheeks with tartare sauce. My friends starters were beautiful deep red beetroot-cured salmon with horseradish cream (reported as being not hot enough) and a veggie filled puff pastry.
Three of us had mains of succulent slices of venison in a mushroom sauce with creamy mash and fresh, well cooked mixed vegetables. The other visually appealing main was a the vegetarian omelette pancake with halloumi and deserts were orange pancakes, walnut cake, brulee, chocolate parfait and I had an affogato which is italian for "drowned" and is simply delicious expresso coffee poured over ice cream.... and yes, Ilse, it did keep me awake!
We talked of childhood, loss, motherhood and music. I felt so close and warm with my liberated, intuitive, fun-loving, singing, dancing and swimming women friends. Thank you all for joining me in my slimming and dining year! Another half a pound down!
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