One of my ‘problems’ choosing from this menu is that a lot of dishes are part of my home cooking repertoire. Across the table, there’s ribollita, one of my autumn / winter staples that I’m not interested in tasting, at least not with the temperature nudging 22°c today… READ MORE
Of the dishes I’ve not tried before, the stand out is a layered, succulent lamb biryani that’s lightly spiced, yet bursting with aromatics. It’s not so much moreish as addictive; as usual I’ve over ordered, but it keeps pulling me back for more… READ MORE
Crab toast and fontina is two pieces of a savoury-umami loaded, brown-meat-fried-bread, topped with white meat, under a sweetness-intensified, velvety, fontina-loaded, stiff bechamel. I can’t imagine a more decadent crab dish… READ MORE
Sliced onions continue to cook on the hot plate, soaking in the juices of the meats that are piled high—succulent tandoori wings, slabs of chicken in a green tikka marinade and juicy shish kebabs with a spicy kick—topped with three generous pieces of fish pakora… READ MORE
Mine’s the best; a hunk of meltingly-braised, off the bone lamb shoulder, over which is draped a front-foot-sharp salsa verde, that converges with the cooking juices into the gravy, to be enjoyed with soft polenta, that was ultimately the deal maker.… READ MORE
Looking like a Brutalist masterpiece is a generous pile of roast pumpkin wedges with sage, in a bed of roasting oil, topped with rustic strips of Parmesan and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. It should be the dictionary definition of pure comfort… READ MORE
It’s a meaty ragu that tastes like it’s been simmering for days to layer flavour complexities beyond any gaminess. The ‘crushed swede’ is a dream pairing, with something in there amplifying its earthy sweetness and its texture is something else… READ MORE
As the first two pizzas are brought to the table, about 35 minutes after we arrived, we’ve still not been brought any beers and our waiter is nowhere to be seen. Eventually, after finding another waiter (by which point we’ve now all got pizzas) we get them READ MORE
Showcasing dishes from Brad Carter’s Chicken Club, One Star Döner Bar and fine dining from CBC’s Signature Tasting Menu, in the polished surroundings of the 150 Club at Villa Park and it comes with ‘best seats’ in the house to watch the match… READ MORE
We’ve got two 7/10 pizzas, Calabrese and Pepperoni; 5/10 sticky teriyaki wings; 4/10 sriracha fries; and the most disappointing of all, a gristle-loaded ‘Reuben’ with bread cut too thick (yes, I know it’s meant to be like that) but it suffocates any flavour… READ MORE
My ‘big carpaccio di manzo’ needs to be relabelled as ‘massive’; it’s a table ‘sharing’ plate of wafer thin, melt-in-the-mouth beef, topped with rocket, semi dried tomatoes, 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano and rich, sweet balsamic vinegar… READ MORE
The croutons are too overdone and almost crunch resistant (with 50+ year old teeth), but there’s abundant pleasure in the generous puddle of a lightly citrussy, basil-loaded and peppery EVOO, that’s like a blast of sunshine on your face… READ MORE
It’s certainly a flavour bomb, spraying all the taste receptors with salty funk from blue cheese, eventually giving way to sour heat from buffalo sauce and umami loaded, salty-sweet candy bacon crumb all… READ MORE
What we’ve got is dry-grilled, pre-cooked stewing steak that whilst not chewy per se, it’s far more of a jaw exercise and massively less joy than its name promises. A benign bacon ketchup provides no real support other than wetness… READ MORE
My favourite of the lot—an almost impossible decision… so, let’s go joint first—was the smoked and pickled Cornish mussels, with its umami-charmed sour in harmony with the sweet, warming heat of fatty Iberico ‘nduja… READ MORE
