Dinner At The Samuel Fox Country Inn, Bradwell

Saturday 18 Jul 2015 by Sticky Beak
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Here at Sticky Beak HQ we love social media, not only does it allow you to keep in touch with family and friends but it allows you to promote and support amazing local businesses too. The Samuel Fox Country Inn’s Chef and Proprietor, James Duckett, uses social media to good effect too so we have been in contact for a short while and he kindly invited us over to sample the cuisine at his establishment.

It was a beautiful evening for our little jaunt and we took the scenic route taking in Baslow, Calver, and Stoney Middleton along the way. The scenery at Bradwell is breath-taking too, and it was the perfect time of day to enjoy it.

We were shown to our table by a most pleasant young lady and given a comprehensive run through of the specials available before the menus were placed in our hands. Shortly afterwards a young man came over and took our drinks order and placed a small bread basket on the table for us to munch. His Nibs chose the Ham Hock Terrine with pickled Peaches for his starter and I went for the Cured Sea Trout and Sardines with Fennel, Orange and Saffron. They were both equally delicious; the terrine had a marvellous texture to it and my own starter was very pleasing indeed.

For the mains we chose the Rump of Derbyshire Lamb with braised shoulder, farm Carrots and Lavender ( mine), and Braised Beef Cheeks in red wine sauce with Champ potatoes and Cauliflower from the specials board ( the Man). The presentation was exquisite for both dishes and we heartily tucked in. My Lamb was very moist and flavoursome, and I thoroughly enjoyed every morsel, and The Boy Wonders Beef Cheeks were just coming apart in ribbons they were so tender. The vegetables were cooked perfectly too with just the right amount of crunch to them. Again, we couldn’t praise the meal enough, it really was superb.

There were a steady stream of diners arriving as the evening went on and there was a nice ambience in the dining room. The decor is lovely with the most incredible wallpaper (which could easily be a custom made design) and putty coloured walls complimented by warmer deep reds on the soft furnishings and striped carpet.

No meal for team Sticky Beak would be complete without pudding and so we had the Dark Chocolate Cherry tart with Amaretto and the Iced Caramel Parfait with Rum and Raisin. They were both presented marvellously again, but the Dark Chocolate Tart just looked incredibly pretty with its rose pink and pale green decoration. I am pleased to say that they tasted every bit as good as they looked; the Parfait had just the right hint of Rum to it and the tart was decadently rich.

We really didn’t want to leave and could’ve stayed all night, but as we couldn’t do that we stretched things out with a couple of lattes. As our coffees were brought to the table, so too was a lovely little tray of Macaroons, Pistachio cake and Chocolate Brownies from James, just to surprise us. Towards the end of our coffees James managed to extricate himself from the kitchen and come over for a chat which was the perfect end to the evening.

If you haven’t been to this establishment before it really is well worth the run out. The scenery is sublime, the premises have a gorgeous relaxed feel to them and the food itself is Michelin recommended so a great experience is a given really. James, your staff were complete stars and looked after us (and all the other diners) with complete professionalism. “Hot Wings” to the Samuel Fox Country Inn team, very well deserved :)

All Prices Correct At The Time Of Publishing

Some form of incentive was provided to visit this venue