Harters

A nosy round t'internet suggests the Hillbark insisted on keeping control of the kitchens at the weekend due to its very lucrative weddings business. There are no menus on the Hillbark website (nor, indeed, any mention of Aiden Byrne). A bit odd, innit?

Looks like you can still book online via TopTable.

Perhaps they assumed you were an American tourist unused to our ways and percentages.

Dilli looks well worthy of a good "seeing to" right now. There's a new menu - which ditches the curry house "any protein with any sauce" concept completely replacing it with what are claimed to be traditional regional dishes. A quick Google seems to support the "authenticity" claim - at least in naming dishes. Having recently eaten at Moti Mahal in London and liked their "mix & match" menu style, I hope Dilli and others will take this up and get away from the westernised concept of starters and mains. Certainly some of the most exciting cooking seems to be coming from the east right now.

Ambra The Noura we go to is on Jermyn Street, near Piccadilly - definitely not a cafe/deli. John

Not this year David. Havnt been for a couple now but it's always been a good weekend.

Thanks anyway Pam. You shoulda told himself that couscous is North African not Lebanese (or, if you were finding it listed on so-called Lebanese menus, then the place wasnt too authentic). J

To be honest, I have issues about front-of-house with Ishbilia - although not the food, which I thought very good. I dined there, alone, based on a recc on another board (Chowhound) on a 2008 trip to London. It's fairly upmarket so I was somewhat surprised that my table was, literally, touching the adjacent occupied table. When asked for it to be moved, it was. Literally an inch. So, there I was - almost part of the other group for the time I was there. I felt uncomfortable. The other issue was the speed of service. It was unpleasantly brisk and I was out on the street in something like 45 minutes. My reason for resurrecting the thread is that we have another trip to 't Smoke in a few weeks and was thinking of going back to Noura, which has never disappointed, or seeing what else might be around.

Pam Did you manage to settle on somewhere? John

I'd assume at least some of the veg might have. The only thing I know for certain is that the flowers on the tables did. As MaLO, upthread, we also stopped at Huntley's farm shop. Hadnt been there for some years and, frankly, wouldnt bother stopping again. It was all "badged" industrial pickles and the like. Even the meat and cheese looked a bit generic, if you know what I mean.

A bargain three course lunch today at Northcote for £25 – sweetened even further by having a “fiver off” voucher from them. Perhaps that was what had dragged all the other punters in – place was heaving. A ball of rabbit rillette had been wrapped in a very thin potato coating and then crisped. It sat on some lentils and smoked bacon cream. Excellent – just my sort of starter. The other was pretty good as well – a disc of black pudding came with a mousse of trout and a nettle and mustard sauce. Good strong flavour from the pudding which perhaps overpowered the fish a bit. The sauce was simply “savoury”, no single flavour reaching out. There’d also been good bread offered – four different sorts, the Lancashire cheese one being a star. We both went for the same main course – puff pastry wrapped loin of lamb, just about reaching “pink” in its cooking. But it was the vegetables that really shone here – baby turnips, an onion puree, fennel and some cavolo nero (some strips plainly steamed with a couple deep fried in a tempura batter). Fab. For dessert, my wife with a very seasonal poached plums, which came with honey and thyme ice-cream. I fancied cheese – two decent slices – one each of Kirkhams Creamy and Blacksticks Blue. Some walnut bread and the most delicious thinner-than-wafer-thin crispbread. Food was pretty much faultless although I suspect there were some issues at Northcote today (and ones you really don’t expect at a Michelin starred place). Dishes were very slow to come out to all tables and we did see a couple of plates being returned. Some folk also seemed to have been “held” in the lounge for a long time before being shown through to the dining room. Still, the benefit of being retired is that one is not in a rush.

TURQUOISE, HIGH STREET, CHEADLE I’m not really sure why I thought it a good idea to start here on my quest to find South Manchester’s finest. Apart, that is, from it’s very near to home; it’s newish and I’d been for a coffee during the day and liked the look of it. It is, indeed, a nice caff during the day – a welcome addition to the High Street offering light lunches, snacks and pastries. At night it becomes a full-on restaurant claiming to serve Turkish and Mediterranean food. Yep, that mix should have warned me, but it didn’t. So, when we read the menu there were a number of clearly Turkish dishes but, also, pastas and other more vaguely Italian items together with some that had no particular geographical allegiance. Not the best of signs of good focussed cuisine. I started with a recognisable Turkish mezze item of yoghurt, garlic and spinach. I wrote down that it was called “ispankli tarratore”. When I got home, I Googled that without success. “Ispanak” appears to be Turkish for spinach but not “ispankli”. A similar zilch on “tarratore” although “tarator” seems to be a Turkish dip with walnuts. Which this wasn’t. So, perhaps the restaurant owner is as confused as I am. Tasted OK, though. Tavuk iskender sees a piece of bread laid on the plate, topped with chicken kebab (overcooked in this case), and then covered with a yoghurt and tomato sauce. Came with decent rice and salad. The chicken aside, this was OK if not thrilling. Meanwhile, Mrs H had passed on the Turkish side of things and started with a scallop kebab. Three scallops, properly cooked, sat on a small mound of risotto (or, as it was, a small mound of rice pudding like stuff). She stuck with the kebab theme going for a pretty generic lamb one – again cooked well past medium. Came with the same rice and salad that was on my plate. Nothing that you havnt had from your local kebab shop. Not really recommended unless you’re desperate to eat in Cheadle (when the Bay Tree and Pizza Express are likely to serve you better). Hope things improve over the coming weeks.

Looks good, David. I had the misfortune to eat vitello tonnato many years ago, without realising what I was about to put in my mouth. Never again - I regard it as one of the few truly vile things I've ever eaten.

Don't go very hungry. The reviewer's rellie "had heard portions were small". I hadn't. They are.

CHOICE, CASTLEFIELD I’ve a soft spot for Choice. It’s in the Castlefield area just on the edge of the city centre (although us old ‘uns know the area better as Knott Mill). It’s not so long back this was a pretty derelict area surrounding the old canal basin but is now well gentrified. The restaurant used to make great play of local north western produce but, regrettably, this seems now to be passed by. That was a disappointment – but I was greatly cheered up by a starter of oxtail risotto. A very high ratio of tender flavoursome beef to well cooked rice. It seemed at first that this was going to be stodgy but the topping of a spoonful or horseradish cream soon started to melt, softening the whole texture of the dish. A well conceived and executed plate of food. My partner had smoked salmon and sesame fishcakes – another success. Good smokiness of the fish to the fore, a dollop of crème fraiche and crispy fried capers adding texture and taste. Unfortunately, things then dived a bit. A main of cote de boeuf (noted as being Cheshire beef – is there not an English term for this?) was underseasoned but otherwise OK, the abominable fat chips were undercooked; a stilton topped portabello mushroom had a good taste but was oddly chewy and a small handful of salad leaves were undressed. A lack of seasoning was also apparent in the other main. A fillet of sea bream was perfectly cooked with suitable crispy skin. It sat on what was described as tomato and coriander colcannon. However, it was just colcannon with the very occasional bit of colour dotted through which added nothing by way of taste. It was a decent enough mashed potato though. There was also supposed to be parma ham somewhere in the dish – I played hunt the ham without success. Service was good. Place has a very good range of decent wines by the glass. But it had been a bit of a disappointing evening. Nothing vile. Nothing bad enough to send back. Just some food that could so easily have been a lot better. Perhaps it was a bad night or a new chef. Or something. I won’t be writing it off just yet.

Over the years, I’ve passed Cabbage Hall many times without needing to go in. But Jay Rayner’s review in the Guardian, some months ago, convinced me otherwise. It was littered with words like “affectation”, “self-aggrandisement”, “pretension”, “preening”. OK, Jay, enough. I’m sold on the place – this is Cheshire after all and I’m a Cestrian – sounds perfect for lunch. Of course, in amongst the considerable shafting of the restaurant, the review has some elements with which I’d completely agree. There is a “preening” – in the display of certificates, Cheshire Life awards, photographs of who I presume to be the chef, Robert Kisby, posing with assorted farmyard animals. The “preening” continues into the menu which starts with the reference to “my award winning style of Cuisine.” Note the upper case “C”. And it’s the menu that irritated more than anything. And when I say “menu”, I mean “menus”. It’s just so confusing – there are effectively four lunchtime menus – there’s a main menu, priced a la carte (2 starters, 5 mains, 6 desserts); there the “One Piece Menu” – yep, single dishes like burger; there’s the “Designer” platter menu (yes, honestly, that’s what it’s called) of mainly north western produce designed for sharing – “British tapas” as it was described by the waitress “although I’ve known a couple of larger men manage it on their own” . I think she may have sneaked a glance at my not inconsiderable belly. And then there’s the “Tailor’s” menu. No, me neither. The reasoning for this name isn’t explained anywhere – but it’s what you and I would call the table d’hote – two courses for £15.95, a few quid more for a third. And this is what we went for. We both went for the starter of smoked haddock, spinach, hollandaise, poached egg. Pretty classic – but none the worse for that. Decent bit of haddock, spinach wilted but not done to death, perfectly poached egg. And a hollandaise that was a bit cloying – it needed quite more lemon. Bread had been offered (it’s an extra, of course) and whilst it was nothing to write home about, was good for mopping up the plate. By now, we were quite chuffed – things weren’t going to be as bad as we’d feared. There’d been four main courses on offer and there was never any doubt that I was going to have the belly pork. This was a tasty piece of very succulent piggy with very crisp crackling. It sat on some cabbage and there were sauté potatoes. And a couple of slices of a rather nice ham and black pudding roll. Good dish – and one that came in a “proper” portion – not the tiny offerings one often gets at low priced lunches. Across the table, my wife went for the vegetarian offering. In the bottom of the bowl, a lightly spiced bean and tomato “stew”. On top, an artichoke heart topped with sauté courgettes and peppers. This was interesting and bang-on for flavour – one of those veggie dishes where you don’t miss the meat at all. We didn’t fancy dessert so finished with coffee. There were only three other tables occupied so it was no surprise that service was absolutely fine. In conclusion, a decent lunch in pleasant surroundings and we’d go again if in the immediate area, but there’s no need to rush back.

I also have issues with Sugarvine - it has a declared and published policy on not posting negative reviews. Similarly, on the northwestern plot, OnionRing has a similar attitude towards negative postings. Both have cited to me that it's to avoid malicious posts - but it does make the sites less than useful. One local site I like is "Chester at Large" which has both reviews and forum. http://chesteratlarge.com/large/

When I'm "out and about", I obviously rely on the help of fellow members of this forum to come up with eating ideas. And, of course, also use the Good Food Guide as a backup. But, occasionally, there are areas of the country not always well represented and I wonder if folk have any particularly good local review sites that are worth sharing.I appreciate these are not necessarily the most informative places but, at least, they can often give a "heads-up" about an unknown town.

Is this off the "grazing" menu, kutsu?

Hi Kim I see you're from my favourite state of the Union (have visited VA several times for holidays). I live in north west England so don't have a local's perspective on the places you're thinking about but have recently spent a few days in Bournemouth and know the Rye area reasonably well from a food point of view. Happy to try and answer any queries if I can. John

Indian Ocean is pretty much as good as gets for a “destination restaurant” in Ashton. It’s all plush banquettes for seating, private dining room for hire, big bar area, separate from the restaurant. What more could we northerners want for? Well, we’d like a high street curry house that’s won awards please. Certainly, sir, that’ll be the Indian Ocean – awarded “Best in North West” by the fairly prestigious British Curry Awards in 2008 and 2009. And against some class opposition in the form of Mumtaz (although when Bradford became part of the north west is a vexing question). All that said, this is still a high street curry house with all the usual menu stalwarts, along with some other “chef’s specials”. The first starter, Lahori Fish, was a couple of pieces of sea bass, coated in a batter delicately spiced with cumin and coriander. Good crisp batter, fish perfectly cooked. The other brought a lightly fried and light tasting puri, topped with a mix of potato and chickpea. Good spicing here – coriander & chilli to the fore. We both went for lamb main courses. Karahi Gosht was pretty much a standard affair, but none the worse for that. Dahl Gosht was more complex, ginger and coriander in evidence, with the lentils softening the whole dish. We shared some rice but also had a couple of kulchas . We didn’t recall seeing this bread on a menu before but will look out for it again. Flatter and thinner than naan, yet not as crisp as a roti, and sprinkled with sesame seeds, it was a cracking taste and texture. This was a pretty good meal – not up to the mark of the area’s high flyers (Akbars, EastZeast, Dilli, Seven Spices) – but pretty good.

Over the coming weeks, I'm planning to revisit a number of local places that, whilst never about to win a Michelin, offer a good dinner. Thought it'd be worth a thread of its own, separate from the city centre one (not least as it may be useful for folk stopping over near the airport)- although I know I might end up talking to myself. My list so far is as follows - please offer up any glaring omissions): Azzurro (Italian, West Didsbury) Earle (Brit/Veggie, Hale) Fat Loaf (Brit, Didsbury) Great Kathmandu (Nepalese, West Didsbury) Greens (Veggie, West Didsbury) Grenache (Brit, Worsley - yeah,I know it's not "south") Isinglass (Brit, Urmston - and that;s not "south" either) Jem & I (Brit, Didsbury) Kosmos (Cypriot, Fallowfield) Lime Tree (Brit, West Didsbury) Persia Grill (Middle eastern, Chorlton) Rhubarb (Brit, West Didsbury) Seven Spices (Indian, Cheadle Hulme) Shiraz (Middle Eastern, Northenden)

I find myself between both views here. On the one hand, I doubt whether I'd have been overly fussed about the issues raised. But, on the other, I'm with Patrick that simply noting comments is not appropriate. I think, had it been me, I'd have chucked in a "I am sorry you did not enjoy your meal with us but hope you will return on another occasion." Such a response costs nowt.

We’d been in Huddersfield for its food festival. In truth that wasn’t really worth the schlep but I had a decent sausage barm there – Argentinian beef, fried onions and a decent chimichurri sauce. And we bought the odd thing. There’s also a cookware shop in town that we visited and found it had a small restaurant. The menu was mainly breakfasty and snacky salady things that would suit the “ladies who lunch”, who were forming almost all the customers. But there was also short menu of “proper” food, no doubt designed for the occasional bloke who might be brought along. So that was OK then. Herself started with a small plate of olives and brioche which was OK. She then decided to be a “lunching lady” so went for one of the salads. But seeing as she’s northern went for the one that focussed on bacon and black pudding. This looked pretty good and I’d have been almost tempted myself. No chance of a taste though but I was assured that everything was up to scratch, even if the black pudding was one of those that you occasionally come across that has an element of sweetness in it. Yorkshire folk, eh! Although not over my sausage barm, I still went for a starter. Mushrooms on toasted brioche. A bit so-so. Brioche was only lightly toasted, so the cream sauce had soaked in too much making it a bit soggy. Sauce was also a bit one dimensional – not quite a jug of cream simply poured over, but not far off, so overly sweet for my taste. Main was slow roasted pork belly. Of course it was. Came with some spuds, carrots and green beans. And some caramelised apples (there’s that sweetness again). This was a big piece of tasty piggy and I enjoyed eating it. Would have enjoyed even more if the kitchen had done a proper job over crisping the crackling.

It was pure coincidence that we went to Aumbry on the day that the Good Food Guide declared Mary-Ellen McTague its “up and coming” chef of the year. However, she was not in the kitchen this evening – taking it easier until her baby is born. I quite liked the vaguely quirky nature of the place. You’re invited upstairs to the lounge area where a drink was served along with a decent cheese beignet and some even better homemade crisps. Downstairs, there’s a smallish dining room – just 26 covers and, in truth, a tad cramped for this number. It means you do get to feel almost part of the next table’s conversation – which means that you can no longer hear the orders being called in the kitchen which is opens onto the room. There was a nice amuse of two discs of pork, wrapped in air-dried ham, which came with piccalilli. A similarish presentation also appears on the menu proper under starters. Bread was also offered – decent if nothing to write home about. What was certainly worth writing about was the Bury black pudding Scotch egg. Perfectly runny quail’s egg, wrapped in the black pudding and with a good crisp coating. There are two of them. They sit on a mushroom. The plate is decorated with a slick of home made brown sauce and one of ketchup. Loved them – two is not enough. No, two is really not enough. The other starter was a lovely light summery starter. Three small quenelles of dressed crab, cucumber jelly, tomato confit and little heap of samphire. This was clever – rich seafood, delicate slithery jelly, the slight crunch of samphire. We both went for the same main – cannon of Herdwick lamb. To my mind, the tastiest of the local sheep if not always the tenderest – it’s all that running up Cumbrian hills.. We were informed that it was served pink. That would have been fine if it had been. This was past medium but still a lovely bit of meat. It sat on some broad beans, a scattering of crisply fried sweetbreads and a jus. There were a few of the thinnest possible discs of crisp potato artfully arranged into an overlapping circle – again my stomach cried out for “more”. And, in a well judged touch, a small pile of dressed salad leaves. The whole plate came together very well indeed. One dessert brought a seasonal plate of sliced strawberries accompanied by an olive oil biscuit, strawberry parfait and rose scented panna cotta. Delicious. Equally good was an unseasonal treacle tart. Again the accompaniments lifted something that otherwise might have been quite ordinary. An Earl Grey ice cream. The Earl Grey also appearing in a teacup of warmed cream. And a little lemon jelly which was an absolute citrusy delight. Service was generally fine throughout, perhaps the only minor glitch being what seemed a long delay in being offered dessert menus and then orders being taken. Food, aperitifs, three glasses of wine, water, tip brought the bill to just short of £110, which seemed the right value. Nice to have somewhere so good almost on the doorstep – folk with smaller appetites than we have must love it.