The Cellarz, Spring Grove

We don't normally go out on Valentines night as it is our anniversary on 23rd so we normally go out for that instead.  It seems madness when I look at local restaurants they are charging an extra £20 just for one night and the menu is the same, it's the principal!  However when we went to Safari Park for the awards ceremony we saw The Cellarz advertised and thought it looked an amazing venue which only opens for private events and special nights, one of which was Valentines.  So we booked it.

Dinner was from 7pm and by the time we booked the earliest sitting was 7.45pm.  The menu is specially designed for Valentines with sharing platters and was £45 per person including a welcome glass of sparking wine:

Mezze: Share Platter of Continental Meats, Fish and Vegetarian items.
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Soup: Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper with Pesto
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Mains: Sirloin Steak with Hand-cut Chips, Flat Mushroom, Vine Tomatoes & Onion Rings
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Open Celeriac and Tomato Lasagne served with a Kale and Truffle Dressing
or
Smoked Haddock with a Lemon and Pea Risotto
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Dessert: Pudding Platter to share.
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Cheeseboard
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Freshly Brewed Coffee and Tea with Home-made Sweetmeats

Arrival was very civilised as they really do stagger the sittings in order to make sure everyone doesn't turn up at the same time.  We were asked whether we would like to sit in the bar or go straight to the table so we choose to sit in the bar for 10 minutes and soak up the sound of Huw – a London based guitarist & singer who was excellent.

We were shown to our table and handed the menu so we could choose our main, I chose the lasagne (I find sirloin a bit fatty) and Mark chose the steak.  Our starter arrived presented on slate which consisted of some meats, olive tapenade, prawns, melon and strawberry, fish paste and crostini.  It was really tasty, even Mark who doesn't like olive liked the tapenade.

Starter followed and to be honest we weren't overly impressed, the bread didn't seem warm and fresh - it was cold and quite dry.  The soup was lovely with the pesto but once you got under the drizzle of pesto, it wasn't very tasty at all and quite bland, for homemade tomato soup I expected something really tasty.

Mains, well what can I say, the steak was just steak piled high with chips and onion rings, it wasn't anything special - for a venue like this I expected more, it was just a steak you could order in your local pub.  My lasagne wasn't very warm at all and I did mention it to the waitress who said she would feedback to the chef.  It was just a bit disappointing though, literally a piece of lasagne, a bit of lambs lettuce and two pieces of crispy kale on top - it needed more accompaniments.

We were looking forward to dessert but again we were disappointed - the chocolate brownie was lovely however the other two 'things' were awful, the tart was completely tasteless and the other thing just tasted like overly sweet synthetic cream coated in coconut.  You could see other couples weren't impressed by the taste either.

Cheeseboard again wasn't brilliant, onion marmalade, small piece of brie, small piece of blue cheese and a large piece of cheddar accompanied by shop bought crackers and rather over ripe grapes.

Coffee arrived with a couple of shop bought mints and a small éclair and small cheesecake bite which had a lot of gelatine in it!

Service - well this started of really good.  However it fell apart at the mains - we weren't offered any sauces (another table had been taken a platter of sauces, we weren't) not did anyone come to check to see if our meals were okay mid way through.  The other thing that disappointed me was our platters weren't explained to us - when you are presented with a platter of food when you don't know what it consists of, it is common sense that the waiter should explain what each piece of food it.  That way we may have known what the desserts should have been.

Drinks - on the website it mentions cocktails so I was looking forward to a nice cocktail however they only offer three and they are all just three different flavoured vodkas.

This could be a fantastic night out for Valentines, the venue is AMAZING, truly is stunning.  However the food is a massive disappointment, paying £45 and expecting a civilised night out we expected some really nice tasty food.  It isn't somewhere we will be going again nor is it somewhere we would recommend which is such a shame as it really could be something special.

The Hundred House, Norton - Game Night

The Hundred House is a local favourite of ours, it has 2 AA rosettes and prides itself for using local produce as well as herbs from their beautiful gardens.  We had gone in for a bite to eat earlier in the month and seen the game night advertised, being a big venison fan we booked it.  The price was £26.95 for three courses including bread.

Mark and I had the same starter of Mini Beef & Venison Burger, Moydens 1665 Smoked Cheese, Dill Pickle Relish served in a Brioche Bun.  The burger was really tasty and juicy, with a relish that complimented it perfectly, my only gripe about the burger was the brioche was a little dry.

For main course Mark had Wild Boar Faggots seasoned with Thyme & Parsley, Braised with White Wine Tomato, Beans & Bacon, as Mark said they weren't just faggots, they were really tasty and juicy with perfect accompaniments.  I went for Roast Hauch of Venison, Turnip & Prune Gratin, Cavolo Nero, Juniper & Port Wine Sauce - I know venison for starter and main, it is my favourite and you don't see it that often so I have to make the most of it when it's there!!  This was beautiful, the venison was cooked to perfection and sliced lovely and thinly, there was just enough sauce - quite often in some of these restaurants they just drizzle a little on to make it look pretty and there is never enough.  Here, there was enough to make it look good (ie not flooded in sauce) but also enough to taste good.

For dessert we both chose the same which was Rich Dark Chocolate & Blueberry Roulade with White Chocolate & Mint Ice Cream.  The desserts at The Hundred House have never excited me, we have probably been at least 10 times and never once have I seen a dessert that jumps out at me on the menu and I am a dessert person.  The choice was this, apple pie or pannacotta.  This was nice but it wasn't amazingly tasty like the starters and mains tend to be, the ice cream was very good and I am not normally keen on ice cream but the roulade was just a roulade and nothing special. 

It was a lovely night, nice food, cosy fires - looking forward to game season and another game night as we will be back again!

The Falcondale, Lampeter

We visited The Falcondale for their set lunch menu, 2 courses for £15.95 or 3 courses for £19.50.  The lounge area and the restaurant itself were VERY cold, the heating wasn’t on and we were a little bit frozen on a cold day!  However the waiter brought a radiator over to our table to warm us up a bit.

For starters, mum and I chose Cheese Souffle with salted beets and cabernet sauvignon vinaigrette – wow, yummy yumm, this was sooo nice and light and tasty and the different beetroots were gorgeous – the only thing?  Well we could have both eaten two of them! 

For mains I went for Collops of Welsh Beef with triple cooked chips, shitake mushroom and basil sauce – my only complaint would be there wasn’t much beef or sauce, there were 3 small rounds of beef which was cooked perfectly and very tender but could have done with a bit more, there were more chips than there was beef and I don’t think carbohydrates should make up the bulk of your meal.  The sauce and the mushrooms were very tasty.  In terms of veg, again we didn’t get much for the table, a tiny little dish with perhaps 3 florets of broccoli, a couple of mange tout, a few peas and carrots – so just your run of the mill veg.  Mum had salmon with wilted spinach, dauphine potatoes and a white wine and mushroom sauce – salmon was cooked perfectly and the sauce was very tasty, it was the first time we have both had dauphine potatoes and wow they were scrummy, something to cook this weekend me thinks!! 

We were still hungry when it came to dessert as the portions had only been small so we both went for Sticky Toffee Pudding with custard, this looked like a huge piece but in fact it was lovely and light and soft, melted in your mouth.

So all in all it was a nice lunch, but I think as we were spoilt by Hundred House yesterday it was a little disappointing in terms of portions sizes.  However we ate three courses and were probably just right, compared to yesterday when three course was probably a bit much and I was over full!  So it depends on the size of your appetite, if you have a bit appetite you will be disappointed.

Dizzy came with us to visit a family friend, she will be 14 this year and does struggle with her back legs now, she is very wobbly but as long as she is not in pain and still happy to go visiting and can still manage a short walk.  I expect it won’t be long before we do have to make a decision and it will be a horrible decision to make, but for now we’re just enjoying her and making her comfortable.

The Hundred House Hotel, Norton

We visited Hundred House for Easter Sunday lunch, their Sunday lunch menu is basically a cut down a la carte menu and for three course it is £19.95 (or two for £16.95).  Which is a real bargain when you consider the quality and the amount of food you get.

For starters I decided on the tapas of meat with pate and focaccia – I couldn’t eat the pate being 6 months pregnant, however I devoured the rest and it was beautiful!  The meats were so tasty and there was a gorgeous tasty sundried tomato paste which was really yummy!  Hubby had one of their signature starters - Black Pudding, Chorizo & Apple Stack with Moydens Smoked Cheese Sauce & Crispy Onion Rings – which he absolutely loves and it is a massive portion, you could almost use it as a main course.  Mum had a kipper mousse which she said was really tasty and again was a decent portion size.

Black Pudding

For mains I decided on Breast of Chicken Stuffed with Ricotta, Spinach & Pinenuts with Tomato & Basil – the chicken was beautifully cooked, plenty of sauce with the meal (something a lot of places scrimp upon!) and the filling was very tasty.  It came with roast potatoes, mash, ratatouille and celeriac – its so nice to have vegetables which are a bit different to the norm.  However we also got a bowl of veg for the table which consisted of courgettes, carrot and swede mash and some of your usual veggies.  Hubby had the Suet Pudding of venison and beef with Juniper Sauce – this again was a huge portion and was so tasty, it was beautifully cooked.  Finally mum had fillet of Hake Stuffed with Salmon & Dill Mousse Served with Chive Cream Sauce and again, now complaints, only some mmmms and ahhhs to be heard, the fish was cooked to perfection and was really tasty.

For dessert I went for Hazelnut Meringues with Chocolate Sauce & honeycomb ice cream – I don’t normally ‘do’ ice cream but this was DIVINE!!  Beautiful home made ice cream which was more honeycomb than it was ice cream, it was so tasty and scrumptious, the meringues were beautiful too and came with plenty of chocolate sauce (I am always disappointed when all you get is a token amount!!).  Hubby had apple pie with a really nice light custard, again another lovely homemade dessert.

You really cannot beat their Sunday Lunch, yes the a la carte of an evening can work out expensive but it is worth it, so when you consider the Sunday Lunch it really CANNOT be beaten.  Next time hubby can get away from work on a Sunday we will be there!!!

The Pigot Arms, Pattingham

Just a quick note on The Pigot, we had had a long day so decided to pop in for a bit of dinner.  It was curry night which was a curry and a drink for £7.45 so that’s what Mark went for, he got loads of food!  Not only did he get curry (chicken tikka karahi), he also had chips (or rice), onion bhaji, pappadom and a naan bread!  The curry was really tasty and the chicken was nice bits of chicken breast too.  I had aubergine bake from their Dishes under 500 calories menu (as I had been scoffing krispy kremes most of the day!) and it was really tasty, it was like cannelloni but the aubergine replaced the pasta and the tomato and cheese sauce was really tasty, it also came with a superfoods salad which had got some really tasty seeded salsa and some green beans within it.  We were really impressed, we have been before and it’s just been a so so type of meal – something you think is okay for a pub, but today we sat in the restaurant and really enjoyed the food. 

We also had another guest join us!!  Waitress did ask if we wanted him moved, but he was fine and quite happy to sit with us!!

The Mill - Alveley

We took mum to The Mill for Mothers Day lunch – I am not overly keen on the venue as the decor is quite dated and more aimed at the older clientele really.  However mum likes the fact you can sit and have coffee in the lounge afterwards and the building itself is a lovely old mill – it could be really nice if it was updated!  Don’t get me wrong, it’s not dirty or worn – it’s just very old fashioned.  I don’t know what is wrong with Mothers Day menus these days – everywhere seems just to have roasts on, which is a bit boring!  But The Mill had some other meals as well as roasts, the venison took my fancy!

For starters, hubby and I had Filo Basket filled with a warm King Prawn, Potato & Bacon Salad with Pesto Dressing – the filling was gorgeous, very tasty and something a bit different, my only complaint would be the filo pastry was a little thick and over floured so I didn’t eat much of it.  Mum had Duo of Salmon & Plaice Mousse on a Herb Salad with Lemon Dressing which she thoroughly enjoyed and had no complaints.

For mains I had Flash Fried Venison with a Port Jus & Roast Cherry Tomatoes which was lovely and tender and the sauce was very tasty.  Hubby had Roast Leg of Rosemary & Garlic Studded Lamb with Red Wine Sauce which was a little overcooked (ie not pink in the middle) which to be honest is probably expected in a place like this as I can image the older clientele would complain if it was pink!  He got a good size portion and the sauce was again tasty.  Mum had the Whole Sea Bream baked under a Lemon Salt Crust and again had no complaints.  Accompaniments were your standard veg and potatoes, would have been nice to have had some different potatoes and veg but again they are catering for the normal clientele.

For dessert mum and I had Lemon, White Chocolate & Sultana Sponge with Vanilla Custard which was lovely, although I couldn’t taste the white chocolate which was a little disappointing but mum liked it like that as thought it would have been too sweet otherwise.  Hubby had a baileys lumpy bumpy cake which was nice but a bit too creamy for my liking!

Finally we had coffee in the lounge and mum had a present of a house plant which was a nice touch.  It was £24.50 for the four courses.  All in all it is nice to go every now and then but I wouldn't really rave about it.  It is a shame they don’t update it and bring it into the 21^st century as it could be really nice, it does feel like it’s stuck in the 80s.

Henris, Shifnal

We dined on a saturday night with family, we managed to get a table the same day but only had the option of one time to dine at - always a good sign when somewhere is busy!

I thought we were dining at a French Restaurant, however on entering the restaurant we were greeted with Spanish music which I thought was a ltitle strange.  The waitress then explained it is actually a Mediterranean restaurant with a French twist - ah ha that explains it!

The decor is lovely and modern with a gorgeous patio area outside which must be lovely in the Summer months.  The restaurant also has it's own car park which is a bonus in Shifnal!

To start, my mum and I shared the whole garlic baked camembert which was lovely and runny.  It came with some really tasy olive and other sorts of bread, it was also presented nicely.  I am allergic to pears and it came with a pear chutney which was a shame, I think a nice red onion marmalade would have worked nicely with it.

 

For mains I was going to chose the rack of lamb but unfortunately they didn't have it and only had chops which I don't like so I decided on the lemon and thyme poussin with dauphinoise potatoes and a tarragon jus. This was beautiful, the poussin was lovely and tasty, the dauphinoise potatoes were scrummy and the sauce was to die for!!  We had a lovely selection of vegetables consisting of baby corn, carrots, sugar snap peas.

I still had room for dessert and settled on Eton Mess, this again was lovely and sweet, plenty of meringue and good sized pieces of strawberry!

So overall we all had lovely meals, couldn't fault anything.  The service was attentive and the staff ensured we always had exactly what we needed.  We shall be returning!  http://henrisbarandbrasserie.co.uk/

The Cowshed

Mum treated us to a lovely meal at The Cowshed, Pattingham.  However I was a little disappointed with the menu choices. 

Being pregnant I can’t eat pate or soft cheese and three of the starters consisted of these options.  Left me with mussels (eurgh!), soup (I have that for lunch every day at work!) or prawns – so I went for the prawns.  They were lovely, served with a sweet chilli linguini which wasn’t too sweet and had a kick to it.  Prawns were cooked perfectly and it was a decent sized portion.

For mains, the lamb and duck both came with a fruit sauce which I don’t like, turkey I had been eating for the past 2 weeks, the chicken was in cream which I am not keen on, fish which was creamy again so I didn’t feel there was much choice with sauces being very similar.  So I went for the veggie option which was roast pepper and goats cheese filo parcels.  These were lovely, huge portion again with a lovely tasty sauce.  We had accompaniments for the table consisting of peas, dauphinoise potatoes and some lovely roast vegetables.  Again plenty of them!

For dessert I almost couldn’t manage one but I went for the lemon posset thinking it would be small and light, it wasn’t it was huge but it was delicious!!  My hubby had baileys chocolate tart of which I stole some and that too was divine! 

I love the restaurant, never had a bad meal, and for somewhere that is a bit pricey and makes the food look pretty they still serve decent portions.