Afternoon Tea & Dessert Platter At Fairways At Chevin Golf Club

Thursday 10 Nov 2022 by Sticky Beak
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Straight off the bat, I’m going to tell you all now; this review will induce serious drooling and intense of feelings of jealousy! Please don’t hate me, ok?

The Man Bird and I have been to Fairways restaurant at Chevin Golf Course in Duffield before for an evening meal and for Sunday lunch, but since our last visit they’ve had a big refurbishment and brought out a range of Afternoon Teas and Patisserie offerings. Front of House is still the lovely Hollie and Chef Tom is heading up the kitchen with a sous and a couple of apprentices – great to see local businesses supporting young talent that want to come into the F&B and Hospitality trades.

Originally the invite was just for the two of us, but then Tom said “Actually, what I’d like to do is showcase the standard Afternoon Tea, the add-on Savoury option and also the stand-alone Patisserie Platter, if that’s ok, so feel free to get a group of six together”. Mummy Bird was lightning fast in her offer to come (no flies on that one!) and we invited her neighbour and friend (whose husband suggested I call her The ‘OBN – Old Bird Next-door!!) as well. My lovely friend from across the road and one of my much appreciated wing-women from the gym completed our half-dozen of magnificence.

There’s plenty of parking and, despite it being the colder months, the grounds man is keeping the flower beds that line the path to the clubhouse and Fairways looking attractive. We made our way inside and the first thing His Nibs and I noticed was the brighter, informal lounge area. Gone were the dark, dated wood panelling and chesterfields with their ‘old boys club’ feeling and in was brighter, painted panels and new, modern (but still comfy and classic) seats and sofas. A super friendly member of the team bade us to sit whilst the rest of our group arrived, bringing over some glasses and chilled water for us to sip whilst we waited – a nice touch, I thought.

Once everyone had assembled, Hollie escorted us through to our beautifully laid table, complete with tealights, vases of faux Peonies, two china plates and an assortment of cutlery each. In the blink of an eye there was a cork popping from a Prosecco bottle and those glorious bubbles were flowing into twinkling flute glasses! One of our party doesn’t drink so Hollie offered her a variety of soft options, and her choice of fresh Orange Juice came in a cut crystal tumbler. Not much renders me speechless but, by golly, the sheer amount of food over the trio of platters was staggering! Due to their delicate nature – and the fact that we were starting our afternoon with the savoury items - Hollie took the Patisserie Platter back to the kitchen to keep it nice and chilled.

To get a good cross-section of opinions for this review I included friends that had various intolerances and non-meat eaters. My friend that is vegetarian was very pleased by the selection of sandwiches on her plate and tucked in immediately. The finger sandwiches came on a mixture of white and grain bread that was super fresh and springy, and the amount of filling was generous to say the least. The Tuna Mayonnaise was nicely balanced and not sloppy or overly ‘wet’, and the fish had been carefully seasoned to bring out its taste.

Plump, juicy King Prawns were lazing on a layer of sumptuous cream cheese and tangy Goats Cheese had been partnered with intensely sweet Sun-dried Tomatoes and bright, bouncy Pesto; both of these options were on everyone’s sandwich platters and went down a storm. Those of us that ate meat also had Salmon and Cream Cheese and nicely spicy Coronation Chicken to enjoy. Without exception, the sandwiches were deeply filled and flavoursome and a subtle decorative presentation of fresh micro-herbs added even more to their popularity.

Partnered with the delicious sandwich selection mentioned above, the standard Afternoon Tea comes with Lemon Drizzle Cake, Fruit Scones, Macarons, individual Lemon Meringue Tarts, miniature Strawberry Mousse, and Shortbread rounds for the fantastic price of £18.95 per couple. Yes, you have read that right, £18.95 PER COUPLE!!!

If you opt to have the (add-on) Savoury Platter then you get the aforementioned sandwiches and sweet selection, but there is the addition of individual Goats’ Cheese Tartlets, Slices of Pork Pie and giant Sausage Roll, dinky little Blinis and Vol-au-Vents, a deeply coated Scotch Egg, and a Cheese Scone. This amazing addition is priced at £5.95 per person which, frankly, is a complete steal for the quantity and quantity of food that you get. Best take your appetites, folks!!

Those of you who go out in groups will appreciate this statement: a hush descended over our table, so much so that you could’ve heard a pin drop! There was so much choice we didn’t know where to start, or what to choose next, and people were sharing and passing items around so much that our table became an edible version of a merry-go-round...with the amount of merriment that you got as a child on one of those contraptions.

His Nibs was cooing over the impossibly good Scotch Egg and I have to say it was utterly mesmerising; the eggs’ yolk was at that perfect ‘thickly runny’ consistency so you could eat it without it dripping down your chin, and it had an addictively rich flavour! Now, you all know what a fussy bugger I am when it comes to sausage and sausage-meat, so when I tell you that the coating of the Scotch Egg had me grinning happily (and no whiff of ‘repeat factor’ in sight!) you will appreciate just how good it was.

Equally scrummy was the slice of giant Sausage roll; here the meat was partnered by gorgeously buttery, flaky pastry that simply melted on the tongue. Mummy Bird loved the mature cheese-topped Pork Pie; there wasn’t any agar jelly in sight – I can’t stand that stuff – just oodles of seasoned meat and a nice short pastry. Oh, and the individual Goats Cheese and Caramelised Onion Tarts were just amazeballs; these had us all falling under their spell. Even the humble looking cheese straws were elevated into something triumphant looking and tasting, and I loved the Vol-au-Vents – bring these morsels back, I say! Truth be told, the entire spread had us bewitched, especially that Patisserie Platter (£60; easily feeds six people, so only a tenner per head!)...

Before I really get into the platter and this detail gets lost on you, I’m just going to put this statement here: one of the group had recently been to the famous Betty’s Tea Room in York with their family for the iconic Afternoon Tea and they said that the one here at Fairways restaurant at Chevin Golf Course blows it out of the water, and it costs a fraction of the price. Support local, folks, support local!!!

Chef Tom’s first love is Patisserie; he enjoys all aspects of cooking and baking (and is blooming good at it, too), but his passion is this particular specialty. When Hollie placed the two-tiered wooden and slate stand in the centre of the table and we all got a closer look at it, we gasped at its beauty. No word of exaggeration, the fruit mousses looked like bona fide fruits! True-to-life colours had been used to glaze the outers of these treasures and a gossamer fine layer of chocolate created a shell/barrier between the mousse and the glaze.

The green Apple mousse had a dark chocolate ‘stalk’ and the Strawberry creation had tiny seeds on its surface to imitate its natural appearance, such is the attention to detail that Tom gives his edible ‘babies’.

We’ve all been fooled before, haven’t we? You know that situation where you get all excited because something looks so tempting, only to eat it and be underwhelmed; well, no such disappointment here! All 13 (!), yes there were 13 different types of mousse for us to gorge on, varieties were deemed to be successes, but the favourites were the Green Apple (breath-taking in every aspect), Salted Caramel, Coconut and Passionfruit ones.

Words simply do not convey the quality of this incredible Patisserie Platter, and I’m being terribly inept, I know, but whatever I say really will not do justice here. You just need to come and try them for yourselves, then you’ll get what I mean. Oh blimey, I’ve just realised that I haven’t even mentioned the Profiterole, the Shortbread or the Macarons... or the wondrously good Millefeuille, the stunning Lemon Drizzle cake or the plump fruited Scones. And then there are the massive pots of homemade Strawberry Jam, clotted cream and a decadent, pourable Chocolate sauce to consider!!! Eeeeek, there was just so many items in front of us!

You can also add on the Savoury Platter to this magnificent treat too, if you have the appetite for it.

Tom probably won’t thank me for ‘bigging him up’ because he is one of the most unassuming young men you could ever wish to meet. He isn’t one for coming out of his kitchen, by his own admission, but we had to personally convey our admiration and total joy face-to-face with him, so Hollie brought him over to meet his newest fan club members. Although Tom didn’t say much, you could see the pride and happiness on his handsome face as he listened to our thoughts and feedback, and I guess sometimes that’s all a Chef needs: to know that his efforts are appreciated.

One thing I also want to mention is that the tea and coffee is unlimited with Fairways’ Afternoon Teas, so there’s no faffing about with having to factor in the extra costs on the day if you want another cuppa or Cappu. Keep things simple, that’s the best way. Obviously the Prosecco will cost extra (£24.95 per bottle), but then any alcoholic drink would, wouldn’t it?

Hot Wings hardly seem enough to award to this fantastic Duffield team, they deserve a trophy! Best of all, Fairways is open at any time during their opening times for breakfast or lunches (as well as the Afternoon Teas) to non-members.

To book a table ring 01332 840497 and visit www.chevingolf.co.uk to view current menus etc. For those of you who love a tasting menu, Tom is doing a 9 course offering INCLUDING wine pairing for £95 per person in November 2022, and then quarterly in 2023. Contact the team for more details if this sounds like your perfect evening!

And just in case you haven’t got the message.... this was a one-in-a-million, uber-scrumptious meal!! Thank you to Hollie and Tom for the very kind invitation, and also thanks to the rest of the Fairways and Chevin Golf Course team.