Tegan and I wanted somewhere nice to go for dinner before we headed home for Christmas. We looked at all the menus of our favourite restaurants online and decided that David Kennedy’s Food Social, next door to the Biscuit Factory, was offering the best Christmas menu.
We arrived at the restaurant early so decided to start our evening off with a cocktail in the bar. Tegan had an Elder Gin (fresh mint and lemon, Bombay sapphire, sugar, smoked with cherry marnier and chambord) and I had a Fog on the Thyme (Jack Cains gin, fresh lemon and thyme, fentimans lemonade and bitters). I really like the bar at Food Social. It has big brown comfy sofas with lots of cushions. They are especially good for slumping into after dinner when you can hardly move because you’re so full.
After finishing our cocktails, we were shown through to our table which was in front of a gorgeous little fire place, this pleased us both immensely. We ordered a bottle of their Organic Sauvignon Blanc called ‘Panul Estate’ which is from Chile. On the wine list it was described as; fresh lemon, gooseberry, crisp and aromatic with balanced acidity and a slight hint of pear drops. It didn’t disappoint, it was a lovely bottle of wine. To start with we shared two starters; Ken’s pumpkin risotto with roasted king prawns, garlic butter and coriander and Venison and smoked bacon Scotch egg with apple chutney and celeriac mayonnaise. The risotto was incredible! The king prawns were so juicy and flavoursome. I’ve never had prawns paired with pumpkin before but it was a fantastic combination. The sweetness of the pumpkin complemented the richness of the king prawns. The pumpkin wasn’t chunky as I’d expected which allowed the prawns to add texture to the dish. The flavours of the coriander, garlic butter and parmesan worked with both the pumpkin and the king prawns to create a truly delicious starter. The risotto had been perfectly cooked, it had bite and was creamy but not overly rich. The presentation was gorgeous and the portion size was spot on. The Scotch egg didn’t disappoint either. It looked fantastic when it arrived, served on a curvy wooden board. The Scotch egg was a little masterpiece. The venison and smoked bacon worked exquisitely together to give off a delicate smoky flavour. The yolk of the egg was bright yellow and was still slightly soft. Venison is quite a rich meat so therefore, the rich and slightly runny yolk tasted wonderful with the venison. The batter encasing the whole thing together wasn’t greasy. It was perfectly crispy and light and therefore, didn’t overpower the flavour of the egg or meats. The apple chutney was quite rich but very tasty. The celeriac mayonnaise hadn’t been made with too much mayonnaise which I liked and it added a little crunch to the dish. The combination of flavours that hit your mouth when you mixed the Scotch egg with the apple chutney and the celeriac mayonnaise was outstanding, they complemented one another beautifully.
For mains we both had; Fillet of pork with fruit and sage stuffing, heritage potato puree, roots and thyme. We also ordered a side of; Cinnamon braised red cabbage. The presentation was thoughtful. The pork had been cooked to perfection. It was so tender and succulent. The fillet had been cut into four slices and the fruit stuffing sat in the middle of each slice. The stuffing consisted of sultanas, apples and figs which complemented the flavour of the pork to a tee. Sage is a herb that works really well with pork and also apple. The heritage potato puree was so creamy and smooth and was the perfect potato accompaniment for the pork. Tegan isn’t usually a fan of mashed potato but she loved this. The pork was served with kale, a vegetable I’m particularly fond of, which sat neatly underneath the sliced pork. The red cabbage was especially good, you could really taste the cinnamon.
For pudding I had the: Iced vanilla and chestnut parfait with nutmeg clotted cream and caramelised figs. Tegan had the; Banana and golden syrup bread with crème fraiche and banana ice-cream. My parfait just oozed flavours of winter. I’d had my eye on it after looking at the menu online and it was really something quite special. It wasn’t too cold which iced parfaits can sometimes be. Brain freeze isn’t something I particularly enjoy. The dominant flavour was the vanilla, the chestnut flavour was more subtle but the combination of the two flavours was delicious. The figs had been caramelised and therefore, had a gorgeously sweet sugary crunch to them which added texture to the pudding. Some people would think clotted cream would be an unnecessary accompaniment to an iced parfait but my goodness did the nutmeg clotted cream work when eaten with the parfait. The sweetness of the nutmeg contrasted with the rich, earthy flavour of the chestnut but complemented one another in terms of their nutty flavour. A cinnamon flavoured syrup had been drizzled over the parfait which finished it off perfectly. The combination of nutmeg, vanilla, chestnut and cinnamon was unbelievable. This was a truly magnificent end to my meal. Tegan’s banana and golden syrup bread was also wonderful. It was crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. It wasn’t stodgy at all and you could really taste the banana. The golden syrup gave it a lovely sweet element. The banana ice-cream didn’t take anything away from the flavour of the banana bread itself and didn’t taste artificial, it tasted of real banana. It was incredibly yummy.
To round off our evening we decided to have a glass of champagne in the bar. I went for the straight option. Why ruin a perfectly good glass of champagne? Tegan had an Amaretto Flirt (disaronno, chambord, fresh orange juice, guy de chassey and champagne).
I was SO impressed with the food at Food Social and the service was friendly and efficient. The one thing lacking for me was atmosphere. The location of Food Social isn’t particularly ideal. It’s out of the town centre and away from the quayside. The restaurant was surprisingly quiet that evening considering it was the run up to Christmas. Food Social is what I’d call a hidden gem that far more people need to discover!
Food from other visits to Food Social:
No comments:
Post a Comment