Toon Town Food Trip!
Hi everyone!
Sorry for the late blog but July has been one busy month. I have also been enjoying my new grand daughter, Olivia. She is a wee cutie, growing so much every day and I can't wait until I can show her how to bake! I'll make her my little baking apprentice!
The bed & breakfast has been busy too but I still managed to get a wee trip to Wimbledon to see the mens semi-finals. What an experience! One of the highlights was sitting on Henman Hill while eating strawberries and cream washed down with ice cold Pimms.
My next trip was back to Newcastle Upon Tyne for our sons graduation. It was a proud day for us and the ceremony was lovely ending with a champagne reception. Newcastle has some of the best restaurants and I have to say I have yet to be disappointed while eating there. My passion for food is evident so I thought I would share some of my Geordie eating experiences while there.
The first place we went to was called Blackfriars Restaurant and Banquet Hall. This restored 13th century friary is a hidden gem in the centre of Newcastle. The large grassed courtyard in front of it is a little hub of peace compared to the busy city life that surrounds it.
Food in Balckfriars is excellent. Everything is locally sourced and fresh. I had a goats cheese salad with rocket, toasted walnuts, pears and parmesan crisps and a sauce verdi on the side.
I then followed it with haddock and chips. Not very adventurous you say, but Newcastle has some of the best fish, caught on the British coastline and delivered daily to the port.
Blackfriars also has a banquet hall where food and staff replicate food and costumes from the 13th century. The menu for this occassion makes fun reading....
MEDIEVAL MEAL lunch & dinner in Banquet Hall
Step back in time for a sumptuous feast, served on communal tables, by monks and town wenches, in our recently restored, candle-lit Banquet Hall, which King Edward III used to receive Royal Scot, Edward Balliol, in 1334, and has been meticulously refurbished using local craftsmen.
Feast on pottage, roasts and pastries with flagons of ale and fine wine, to wash it all down! You are encouraged to arrive in period costume! Ceremonial hand-washing at the Ewery
WELCOME DRINK A glass of real ale or fine French wine POTTAGE Garden vegetable & pearl barley pottage served with rustic loaves or barley bannocks
ROSTED FLYSSHE Rosted pork shoulder* served with medieval sauces, Chewits (raised mete pies), Drawen benes (saffron fava bean stew), Rosted root veg & Buttered wortes (greens) (*A whole suckling pygge can be offered for min 20 diners, carved to order, one week’s notice)
SWEET METES Baked fig-stuffed apples or Fig pastries
MEDE Fortified spiced mead/ Ypocras (sweetened spiced wine) • Hunted game can be brought and roasted by prior arrangement but we generally do not serve whale, swan, beaver tales, gulls, puffins, cranes or bustards • Cutlery is not in common use in medieval times though hunting knives and ‘gob stick’ (spoon) can be supplied on request.
The next place we ate in was The Botanist. Walking into this place is like walking on to a film set. A large glass domed roof takes precedence in the middle of the room and directly below it is a huge sprawling tree surrounded by a treehouse. Then there is the stunning roof garden where you can get one of the best views of Newcastle and all its historical buildings.
The staff wear checked shirts with braces, flat caps and brown laced boots. They look like gardeners from the 40's. This is where the Botanist comes into its own. Their drinks and cocktails and food are made up of herbs and flowers and taste amazing. I had a non alcoholic cocktail and when it arrived I wasn't sure if I should drink, eat or plant it but it tasted amazing!
For starter we had falafel balls covered in sesame seeds and deep fried. They were made fresh and bursting with chick peas and flavour. They specialise in hanging kebabs. We ordered the spiced salmon one. It came hanging on a skewer with a bowl of rice below and a dish of melted butter on top. You pour the butter into the hole at the top of the stand and watch it drizzle over the kebab and on to the rice.
Desserts were equally impressive and some were served on a garden trowel!
My late grandfather was an horticulturist and I was thinking I would have loved to have taken him to somewhere like this. Not sure what he would have made of it but I think he would have loved it all the same. He too loved to eat out and would have been a bit more adventurous with his food than granny!
Another place well worth a visit is Miller & Carters just down from the city centre.
They must ne one of the best steakhouses in Newcastle. The next best thing to their prime steak is their prime steak burgers. Again they use all locally sourced ingredients and locally bred beef. Service and presentation was excellent and if you are able to fit in dessert then their dessert menu is worth a glance. I had Banoffee pie. Again not very adventurous you say but it was truly yummy. It had a biscuit base covered in home made toffee with a layer of cream mixed with crushed bananas and then topped with thinly sliced grilled bananas which were warm. It was the first time I was able to finish Banoffeewhich wasn't sickly sweet!
Well my food trip is almost over. I just had to finish with more fish and chips and where better to go to than Georges Great British Kitchen.
Eating there was like having a beach experience in the middle of town. All the tables have gingham cloths and wooden boxes filled with different flavours of vinegars and sauces. You can add to the British seaside feel by putting on a bowler hat provided by the restaurant and you can also sit in its custom made beach huts for more private dining. Even the childrens dishes come served in buckets and spades.
Again the fish here is local and fresh and all cooked to perfection in a very crisp light batter.
If you have a very sweet tooth try one of their desserts which is made up of candy floss and doughnuts!
I hope you have enjoyed my Newcastle upon Tyne food adventure.I certainly did and so did my waistline! If any of you ever get to try the above restaurants let me know what you think.
Now it's back to making Ulster frys, which to me is the best breakfast in the world!
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