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Dinner At The Blacksmiths Loft, Derby


Published On Tuesday 19 May 2015 by Sticky Beak

The Blacksmiths Loft, Derby, closed in April 2019


Sometimes I have to pinch myself to believe the life I lead; I mean, being asked to eat food and review it is pretty much my idea of heaven. On this occasion the Boy Wonder and I found ourselves heading over to Derby to try a venue called the Blacksmiths Loft on Sadler Gate.

Thanks to the traffic being kind we arrived a little early for our table so decided to have a cheeky pre dinner drink in The Blacksmiths Lounge bar downstairs. It had amazing decor, all exposed brick and wood floors with trendy cowhide stools and chairs and it had a lovely vibe to it. The staff were very smartly attired in black and white and brought the drinks over to us on a tray so we settled in for a short while and did a spot of people watching.


Before long it was time for us to head upstairs into the Loft where the restaurant is located, and again it has a great ambience to it. There are several little areas within the walls that enclosed between 4 and 6 tables so it kept a real bijou air to it as if you were in your own private dining room. The decor was very neutral with great feature wire basket lighting and lovely old beams across the ceiling.



As we were looking through the menu and debating what our taste buds were leaning towards our server, Sonny, placed a tempting little amuse-bouche / pre starter before us. The Beetroot and Vodka Gazpacho was everything you would expect with sweetness from the beetroot puree, and then a great juxtaposition of the chilled Gazpacho followed by the heat from the Vodka that kicked in after a second or so. Also on the table was a couple of slices of Focaccia and little pats of Paprika butter to nibble at.


For our starters we chose Moroccan Lamb Fritters and Seared Scallops which were both beautifully presented. My Scallops were cooked to perfection; nicely seared on the outside with the merest hint of translucency left on the inside. Their delicate flavour had a burst of taste provided by the pan fried Chorizo and the Soft boiled Quail egg.

The Man soon made short work of his Fritters, declaring them to be very flavoursome. They had a lovely texture to them with the Apricot puree complimenting their spices very well. Having cleared the starters we were very much looking forward to our mains given the quality of the fayre so far.


Unsurprisingly His nibs opted for the roast Fillet of Derbyshire beef as his main course and I plumped for the Honey glazed Duck breast. The beef was perfectly medium as requested by the Boy and the Oxtail Croquettes had a marvellous crunch on the outside to reveal a smooth rich tasting inner, that was extremely more-ish.



My duck was served pink and was very moist and tasty on the palate, and I really enjoyed the chocolate and cherry jus and Kirsch gel, they both complimented the duck exceptionally well. My favourite thing was the braised red cabbage though; I detected a hint of spice to it (Cinnamon I think) that elevated it from a humble vegetable accompaniment into something much more glorious. Stinginess is certainly not in the vocabulary in the kitchens at the Blacksmiths Loft and our tummies were certainly letting us know how satisfied they were!

Times many the Man Bird and I have wondered whether we could eat dessert and have gamely marched on to provide you, dear reader, with a complete review. And so it was to be the case again on this occasion :) had it not been for the inclusion of Walnuts (which I really don’t like) I may have chosen the Toffee Apple Crumble Brulee, but instead I opted for the equally yummy sounding White Chocolate, Vanilla and Cardamom Cheesecake.

The Man Bird chose Bananas and Custard which sounds fairly boring and reminiscent of school lunches, but proved to be anything but. His beak was chirruping with excitement as he cast his eye over the Banana loaf, hot Banana Fritters and Banana and Caramel mousse and he tucked in to the Beurre Noisette ice cream and jug of Creme Anglaise that accompanied them with much gusto.



When he had finished this sweet delight his beady eyes were shining with sheer joy and contentment. I have to say that my cheesecake was equally delightful and the hint of Cardamom married very well with the chilled mango soup.


A couple of coffees brought proceedings to a close and we left the Blacksmiths Loft completely replete and more than happy with our experience there. Somehow it manages to balance being relaxed and friendly with the allure of being a setting that you can imagine marriage proposals or special occasion parties happening in. In fact, I did remark to Him indoors that I wouldn’t have minded being proposed to in surroundings such as these, had we known about them back in our younger single days.

 I can definitely recommend you pay The Blacksmiths Loft a visit dear reader, you won’t be disappointed.



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