Chefs Tasting Menu At Rowleys, Derby
Published On Wednesday 18 Nov 2015 by Sticky Beak
It isn’t often I find writing a review hard, but the team at Rowleys have got me stumped as to where to start; there was just too much fabulousness going on with their Chefs Tasting Table experience. Mind you, what did I expect from finalists in the Derby Restaurant of the Year 2015 awards? To say the weather outside was dismal is probably the understatement of the Century, it was completely Vile thanks to Storm Barney, but the welcome as we arrived at Rowleys was so warm it chased any gloomy vibes away. The Boy Wonder and I were seated in the conservatory initially to enjoy a cheeky Gin and then went upstairs into the main dining area to enjoy our Canapés: Serrano ham Croquettes with Sweetcorn ketchup, Seared Tuna with Wasabi mash and pickled Turnip and Sorrel ice cream with Goats curd and Hazelnut crumb. Next up was a duo of homemade mini bread loaves and home churned butter. The Treacle bread had that lovely smoky treacle hint and of course a gorgeous dark colour to it that was in contrast to the light hued, open textured Dill Focaccia loaf. Both were delicious and soon disappeared, with the exception of a couple of rogue crumbs on the plate. Those two courses were mere preludes to the main six courses of the Chefs Table experience, the first of which starred three year matured Parmesan. This dish consisted of Shiitake mushroom, Squash, Pumpkin seeds, Date and (obviously) Parmesan. There was a nice mix of textures and flavours; sweet date paired marvellously with the strong parmesan and the palate had satisfaction with the crunch from toasted pumpkin seeds. Second dish on the menu was Venison Tartare with Smoked Yolk, Onion moss, Tarragon, Jerusalem artichoke and Liquorice. This dish was a sublimely visual marvel that made you just want to admire it for a few moments before sampling its secrets. I’ve said it before, and trust me I will say it umpteen times in this review for it is at the heart of this experience, but there was a superb range of textures in this dish from melt-in-the-mouth meat, to crunchy onion, smooth artichoke and a wonderful heat from the powdered liquorice scattered on the plate. Both of us were grinning with pleasure at each other at this juncture and I defy any fellow foodie not to have the same reaction when they come here. The next dish had the Boy furrowing his little brow slightly as it featured Citrus cured Scottish Mackerel (along with a Pork Belly bon bon ,Mouli, Clam veloute, Leek and Yoghurt), but given his new-found adventurousness he tucked in with gusto. He really liked the fish, not as much as me, but then I absolutely love fish of all kinds, and we both loved the tanginess of the Mouli. The belly pork was, I think, the sweetest meat I have had the pleasure of consuming and the overall dish was gorgeous. Photo: Venison Tartare Our fourth course was loin and neck of Hallows Farm Mutton with Potato pressing, red Cabbage, Ale, Feta, green Onion and jus. Personally, I am a big fan of Mutton as its earthy taste and denser texture appeal to me and I remember having it on many an occasion when I was a young chick myself. As with many older animal meats the trick is to cook them over longer periods of time on gentler heats to reveal their true character and the Chef at Rowleys is a true adept at this craft. We both felt that the ale partnered the neck meat better and the Leek powder was more suited to the loin and the whole dish was, unsurprisingly, a wonder to eat. The fifth course is what the Rowleys team refer to as the “Crossover” course i.e it provides a middle ground on your taste buds from savoury to sweet accents. I called this course “The Mind Bender” and from its description I’m sure you will see why: Parsnip cake with Butternut Squash ice cream and Salted Caramel Walnut crumb. I could appreciate the Parsnip cake for what it was, after all we think nothing of Carrot cake do we?; but the idea of a vegetable being made into an ice cream completely bamboozled me. Photo: Citrus cured Scottish Mackerel Given the imaginativeness of the courses so far the sixth and final course, pudding, was hardly going to be your Joe-average, run-of-the-mill offering and our anticipation-ometer had gone into frenzied meltdown. Tonka bean Panna Cotta, Popcorn foam, Almond crumb, Soy sauce gel and Mandarin jelly was the splendid finale and had the same visual impact as the second course. The glacier smooth Panna cotta was adorned with a dome of sweet popcorn foam and a mound of crumb; its cool creamy hue emblazoned with bright mandarin jelly and deep red soy sauce gel. The gel wasn’t salty like its condiment counterpart but it did have a very clean, pure taste that cut through the honeyed vanilla tones of the Panna Cotta wonderfully. Again, the layers of texture provided by the gossamer foam and crunchy crumb were a master class in multi sensory stimulation for the palate. The entire experience was like a Gastronomic Fourth of July. Actually no, it was more like a Symphony of Fourth of July events; each course was an explosion of flavours and textures taking you on a colourful culinary adventure. The Chefs Table menu is the ultimate experience that Rowleys offer, and it really is worth doing. It costs £60 per head, and the wine pairing is available at an extra supplement as mentioned previously. If you haven’t done this before it really is worth doing, honestly we haven’t stopped talking about it yet some 24 hours afterwards, and each time we find another amazing thing to enthuse about. Oh my days dear reader, I’ve just realised that I haven’t even mentioned the premises themselves! They are lovely and clean with very smartly laid out tables; the dining room itself being unfussy in its decor so that the food is the main focus. The staff are so friendly and knowledgeable, they treat you as dear friends rather than mere guests which makes your experience so much more enjoyable. Hot Wings supremely deserved here and many, many thanks to John and his wonderful team for making us so welcome. Photo: Loin and neck of Hallows Farm Mutton
The croquettes were very tasty and had a superb crispy crumb outer that gave a lovely crunch as you bit into it and the Sweetcorn ketchup was nice and creamy tasting. I love fresh Tuna anyway so I was completely enthused with that canapé, and surprisingly so was His Nibs; as you know he isn’t the world’s biggest fan of things fishy. The Wasabi had a great punch to it which I also loved.
Sorrel isn’t a commonly used herb anymore but its gentle tartness offset the creaminess of ice cream very well and contrasted nicely with the curd. All the smoothness was complimented by the subtle texture given by the Hazelnut crumb. It was a lovely selection of Canapés, I’m sure you’ll agree.
Again, The Man Bird threw a googly into the mix with his appreciation of the Shiitake mushroom - normally he goes into gag overload if he has a “slug” as he calls them but no such reaction here. The only explanation he could come up with was the texture of them is firmer than “normal” mushrooms; those with exceptional hearing may have heard an utterance of “codswallop” coming from my beak!
It was strangely nice to be honest, but it was just one of those things that my tongue and brain couldn’t gel together much to the amusement of His Nibs. I equated it to patting your head and rubbing your tummy at the same time with separate hands! This marvellously Willy Wonka-esque ice cream worked brilliantly with the sweet, moist Parsnip cake and factor in the tang of the Salted caramel and textural crumb and you have a dish of genius creation. There is an option to pair each course with a wine selected by the Sommelier (for an additional £30), and I would be very curious to know what wine would go with this dish.
If you’re not quite sure about taking the plunge into something so fantastical, the Rowleys team also do a superb lunchtime a la carte menu which is £22 for two courses or £25 for three courses and also an evening a la carte menu which is £34 for two courses and £39 for three courses.
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