Kitchenette, Manchester

Mud Crab are the guys behind Kitchenette on Oxford Road in the former Fellicini site opposite the Palace theatre.  From the outside its not much to look at with its dilapidated appearance but we were surprised how big it was inside. The menu is a bit wacky to read with sections dotted all over the large sheet, a bit different but I suppose it fits the theme of the restaurant.

We ordered a selection of dishes to share. Mr Nom is always a bit greedy ordering way too much which had me worried about my poor waistline! Chilli crab tacos with mango and avocado salsa kicked off the meal with a good start.

A sticky pork & Asian shredded salad was light and tasty with the sticky soy dressing but I wished the pork was less jerky-like. The use of fried lotus was also different.

From the hirata buns section we ordered a filling of chargrilled skirt steak with a ABC kecap manis glaze. The generous portion of skirt steak was tender and we could have happily devoured it by itself. The hirata buns were fluffy served with house kimchi pickle but were a little thick and heavy, they needed to be more fluffy and light as advertised. 

Each portion of food so far seemed like a main in itself and this continued with the duck & sweet potato hash with a deep fried egg. We ordered the smaller size but even this seemed huge and packed full of duck! 

Despite my protestation Mr Nom also decided to a side portion of mac & cheese which he happily polished off by himself as I was stuffed but also secretly saving a small ounce of space for dessert. I chose the yuzu meringue pie to share and this was tangy and sharp as expected, the marshmallows were lovely but slightly too toasted. 

The fusion elements at Kitchenette daring and different to anything in Manchester that we have tried, and with main meal sizes for small plate prices it seemed rather good value for money.

The Dairy, London

I chose The Dairy as the first restaurant of my recent birthday weekend in London, because one birthday meal is just not enough! Situated in SW4 in Clapham which is somewhat out the way of the action of central London but within an easy half an hour tube ride. It amazes me that Londoners in general seem to share a common trait which is that travelling even to the next postcode is a mammoth effort! The Dairy is literally a minute from Clapham Common underground station and features a bar area with a narrow dining room.

Whilst deciding whether to order as many dishes from the menu as possible which was split between snacks, garden, sea, land and sweet or the 7 course tasting menu we were presented with an amuse of potato. Not the most exciting as I had seen blogs with crispy oysters but the hot from the oven sourdough bread that followed with smoked bone marrow more than made up for it.

We settled on the a la carte as we were informed that we could order the eel from the tasting menu as a separate dish as they had plentiful supply that evening. The first snack was chicken liver mousse, rhubarb, fresh apple. A light mousse jazzed up by the rhubarb and apple.

Squid, fresh fennel, red pepper tea, probably the only disappointment of the night. Small strips of squid with a red pepper tea that just didn't agree with me.

Roof top carrots, goats cheese, oat granola, buttermilk. The carrots were fresh and prepared in different ways which made them interesting. The goats cheese and buttermilk were a little rich.

Smoked hanger steak tartare, soft yolk, butternut squash. The lightly smoked steak was joyful but we felt the butternut squash added a sweetness which wasn't needed.

Galician octopus, tomato, fried bread, roof top herbs. Probably the least fancy looking dish of the night but the octopus was superb.

Applewood smoked eel, swiss chard, bonito butter. The eel was smoked to perfection and just right,  the dish of the night!

Chicken oyster, crispy skin, wild mushrooms, English asparagus. This ran the eel dish close for being my favourite if only it wasn't so salty. The chicken skin is a guilty pleasure and the chicken oyster was so moist. Coupled with the oyster mushrooms and asparagus this made for an excellent dish. Its not often that we order chicken dishes but this was an exception.

Lake District lamb rump, broccoli, anchovy, capers. Not as impressive as the chicken dish but the broccoli with the well judged pink lamb worked nicely together.

Salted caramel, cacao, malted barley ice cream. Mrs Nom had called up the restaurant beforehand and this was a nice surprise. We were very full by this point and struggled to fit anymore in so decided to share this, a good sweet end to the meal followed by some light petit fours.

Petit fours, hibiscus doughnut, shortbread, sour apple jelly

If only the neighbourhood restaurants around me back at home were this good, I would never have to venture to town! An enjoyable meal and it felt like we ate our way through the whole menu at a reasonable price with the dishes ranging from £5-£10.

Lyle's, London

Lyle's opened quietly early this month in the hip Shoreditch area in the Tea Building. The dining room is simple and understated with an open kitchen. The kitchen is headed up by James Lowe of the famed Young Turks. The restaurant offers a varied lunch menu or a set dinner option in the evenings for £39 per head which is what we experienced.

The first of the nibbles was blood cake & damson.

This was followed by quality asaragus & walnut mayonnaise, with produce this good and lightly grilled it was a sure winner.

Next was a surprise with seagulls eggs with seaweed and celery salt, something I've never tried before. The egg was a bit fishy but not overwhelmingly so but this was balanced out by the salt. The dish was served by Chef personally and he was all too happy to tell us more about the gull eggs. Apparently only 20,000 are picked from nests and sold every year.

The first course was nettle soup, pheasant egg and cured pig's cheek. A refreshing soup with the welcome saltiness of the pig's cheek.

New season onion, ramson & yoghurt, again this was a simple and effective. I never thought I'd enjoy an onion dish so much!

Turbot, jersey royals & sea beet. We were told that the turbot was aged for 5 days to allow the fish to firm up a little which was new to us, apparently inspired by Chefs time spent in Japan. The fish was certainly cooked very well, usually meaty and heavy the turbot flaked under the fork and ate very well with a superb texture.

Baked riseley & chegworth leaves. This was a dish to share between two, just as well given the richness and heaviness of the riseley!

Dessert was a version of rhubarb & custard and a very fitting end to the meal.

A solid meal from beginning to end and well worth the money. It is probably wise to book now before the word spreads.

Angler, London

Angler was a surprise recipient of a Michelin Star last September, a seafood restaurant quietly going about its business. It is based on the top floor of the South Place Hotel in Moorgate and attracts the local City workers judging from the clientele during our visit. The dining area is long and narrow and it is a shame that the window side currently overlooks a building site across the road so there is not much of a view. Anyway back to the purpose of this post and the blog, being the food. We were presented with a cheese nibble as we browsed the menus which reminded me of mini cheddars. 

For starters the sauteed langoustines jumped out at me, served with slow cooked lamb breast, asparagus tip and puree. The dish was beautifully presented and I couldn't help but notice the plate which was familiar and also used by Aiden Byrne at Manchester House. The langoustines were plump and the star of the dish, the lamb breast had a slow braised Asian style in turns of flavour.

We ordered from both the a la carte and set dinner menus which at £25/£30 for 2/3 courses with no restrictions seems a steal. My dining partner chose sauteed lamb sweetbreads, mint jelly, peas and cured ham.

Not knowing if I would ever get the chance to return given the huge number of restaurants on my to do list I pushed the boat out with the main and picked the roasted turbot with a ragout of squid, fennel puree and sea purslane. The generous fillet from the 'King of the Sea' was firm and meaty as it should be, however I couldn't help but think the dish needed another veg element. The serving of squid ragout under the turbot was too much and fatigue set in with the chewy texture towards the end of the dish.

Loch Var salmon, soft olive crust, braised gem lettuce, spring vegetable nage.

Yoghurt and honey parfait, gariguette and wild strawberries, lemon curd, not as sweet as anticipated with the honey struggling to come through but a fresh refreshing dessert overall.

The pick of the desserts came from the set menu, sticky prune pudding, bergamot marmalade and brown butter ice cream. A sticky yet not stodgy pudding with an ideal foil in the smooth ice cream, could eat a bucket load of this!

Some petit fours to finish included hot pistachio and marzipan cakes and a chocolate toffee.

Simon Radley at The Chester Grosvenor, Chester

Simon Radley is a Michelin starred restaurant set within the classical Grosvenor hotel in the centre of Chester. Not short of accolades it is also ranked 47th in the latest edition of The Good Food Guide. We chose the restaurant as a venue for a anniversary meal. Everything about the hotel and dining room screamed classical and traditional in keeping with Chester in general.

We took advantage of the Spring offer of the tasting for £59 per head which seemed good value. The bread offering is one of the most extensive we have come across and personal favourites include walnut and fig, potato and brioche.

The amuse was torched mackerel, blood orange and fennel.

The first proper course was a frappe of sweet pea vichyssoise, duck liver carpaccio and smoked magret. A vibrant dish with a contrasting sweetness from the pea against the rich duck liver. A good start to the meal.

New season - jersey royal whip, morels, asparagus, sweetbread and langoustine. Clean flavours which allowed the freshness of the quality ingredients to shine.

Yellowfin - seared tuna tail, basquaise peppers, wild garlic, chipirones. An Asian feel to the dish although it felt slightly odd with the pepper puree which overpowered the tuna.

Edge's rare breed - poached fillet, salt cheeks, pickle puree and snail paste. Well cooked beef just wish I had more of the fillet!

Roquefort troupeau - mille feuille, barbecue pears. A unusual cheese dish but works with the barbecue flavours.

Prune and armagnac, sugared beignet.

Yorkshire triangle - textures of rhubard, gingerbread and custard. A nice finish to the meal as there were so many surprises to the dish. The rhubarb and custard base of the dish being my favourite.

The service is as you would expect in a classical white linen restaurant with synchronised service ensuring plates were laid down at the same time. This was quite amusing for larger tables where a long troupe of servers would be needed to achieve this.  All in all a very pleasant meal with high end cooking of undeniable quality from start to finish. An ideal location for special occasions in the North West.