New Chef, New Menu At The Blacksmiths Loft, Derby
Published On Thursday 9 Jun 2016 by Sticky Beak
The Blacksmiths Loft, Derby, closed in April 2019 I’m not sure what it is about being asked to do a “Secret Squirrel” visit that gets me clapping with delight, although I suspect it’s to do with not really growing up totally. Anyhow, when Victoria from Blacksmiths Loft asked me and The Man Bird to revisit them I jumped at the chance, and then when she asked us not to reveal ourselves to the staff I got really excited. There have been some changes at Blacksmiths Loft, notably the new Head Chef Simon Bates and Sous Chef Tom Burton (both formerly of Whites at Ashbourne), but also the fact that the entire menu is now Gluten free. This is great news for those who suffer from allergies, Irritable Bowel Syndrome and especially those who have Coeliac Disease and their families because it means you can come here and choose from an extensive menu without worry. You might find it hard to make a decision though as there is so much choice! We ordered a bottle of water for the table and a lovely young lady brought that over promptly and then came back with some warm bread and Beetroot infused butter for us to enjoy whilst we looked at the wine and food choices. It isn’t often we drink as a couple, due to one of us driving, but this time we decided to use Trent Barton buses and have a bottle of wine with Dinner; there is a great Wine List at Blacksmiths Loft and we chose the Cloud Factory Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand thanks to the recommendation of the Maitre D. For starter I had, believe it or not, the Ploughman’s Lunch as the idea intrigued me and His Nibs had the Corned Beef Hash. My Ploughman’s consisted of Ham Hock Terrine, charred beer pickled Onions, Piccalilli puree, Cheddar crisp and baby Apple; rather naively I was expecting a tart taste from the apple but it was as if a “normal” apple had been in a shrinking machine (a la Honey I shrunk the Kids) so the taste was the same as an eating apple from the fruit bowl. Him Indoors was in the mood for “a proper piece of meat” so he had the Fillet of Derbyshire Beef for his main course, and this is served with a Mushroom Duxelle, triple cooked duck fat Chips, smoked Bone Marrow and beef jus. For pudding we had the White Chocolate Panna Cotta with Strawberry gel, fresh Strawberries, Chocolate soil and Basil Tuille (me) and Lemon Meringue Cheesecake dish of Mascarpone ice cream, Lemon curd, Lemon gel, Meringue, crumble and Candied Lemon (His Nibs). We finished the meal up with our signature couple of Lattes and reflected on a superb experience. Throughout the evening a steady stream of diners came into the restaurant and there was a mix of couples and groups dining.
The terrine was marvellous in both its chunky texture and flavour and the piccalilli and onions added a nice twang on the palate. The Cheddar crisp was intense in its taste, a bit like well grilled cheese, and again this paired well with the other flavours in the dish. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this as a starter, and I would definitely have it again in future just because it did work so well.
The Corned Beef Hash is a braised Brisket and Jersey Royal hash served with poached egg, Horseradish Mayo and Smokey baked beans and The Boy Wonder was full of praise for this dish. He said the hash itself was tender, with a great Peppery seasoning and the egg was done to perfection so that its rich yolk oozed over the plate and added a smooth note on the tongue.
The Mayo had a lovely heat to it thanks to the Horseradish, but not so much that it overpowered the other flavours, and the beans had a great subtle smokiness to them that worked very well with the Hash. We conveyed our pleasure to the Maitre d’ when he checked everything was satisfactory.
Good job he was hungry because it most certainly was a proper piece of succulent fillet that was so tender the steak knife was rendered surplus to requirements, and its delicate flavour had two magnificent gutsy partners in the Duxelle and Marrow; both of these were mouth wateringly good. I said to The Boy Wonder that he should’ve saved the bread to mop up the marrow, which would’ve been one of life’s simple, but soul warming, pleasures.
As you would expect, the chips were crispier than crisp on the outside with stunningly soft, pillowy middles.
I decided to have the roast Derbyshire lamb rump with sweet breads, confit Rosemary potatoes, Celeriac puree, Gooseberry gel, buttered Broad beans and Spinach for my main course, and I also had a side order of herbed Quinoa salad with Red Pepper, Tomato concasse and Harissa dressing. The vegetables were cooked perfectly, no surprise there and the lamb was beautifully pink and tender and absolutely rammed to the hilt with flavour.
Rosemary is a classic partner to lamb anyway, and the potatoes didn’t disappoint; my decision to pair the earthier sweet bread taste with the Gooseberry gel was the correct one, it created a fantastic taste on my palate. The Quinoa was light and clean on the tongue with a nice crunch from the Pepper and tomato, and the Harissa dressing was lovely. Again, we said how wonderful the meal was when the young lady came to check back on us.
Both desserts were superb in the clean simplicity of their flavours; sometimes desserts can lose their way with a multitude of differing flavours but Simon and Tom let a few notes claim the limelight, creating a harmonious symphony on the palate rather than a muddled cacophony.
The Basil tuille was just beautiful, very delicate, and again Strawberry and Basil is a marvellous combination so it worked rather well here and the subtle white chocolate taste blended nicely with it. A touch of crunch came from the chocolate soil to produce a perfect pudding in my opinion.
The construction (or deconstruction, depending on your view) of the cheesecake was just inspired; all the components were arranged very elegantly on the plate making it almost too good to eat, but eat it The Man Bird did. He loved every single morsel saying the flavour of the Lemon was clean and sharp, and the Lemon curd was really nice due to not being overly sweet. It had a mix of textures ranging from the sublimely creamy Mascarpone ice cream to wonderfully crunchy meringue and crumble parts, so again one very happy diner.
I can confidently say “Hot Wings” to the new Chefs and to their gastro-tastic Gluten free menu, so if you know of any Coeliacs who struggle to find top notch food, point them in the direction of Blacksmiths Loft, and join them!! And Victoria, your staff were all brilliant.:)
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