Cabaret (with Will Young!), Bristol Hippodrome, 17th September 2013

I liked Will Young when he was on Pop Idol and admit to being a bit gutted when it became obvious he was gay (although not quite as upset as I was about John Barrowman). The initial London run of Cabaret in which Will Young took on the role of Emcee of the Kit Kat club had been on my radar but we hadn't made it. So I was happy to find out that Will Young had enjoyed performing in the show so much that he had suggested a national tour. As it wasn't coming to Birmingham we decided on a trip down to Bristol.

Will is very much the star of the show, and you really do get the feel he is having a great time. Siobhan Dillon (didn't recognise her at the time but after a bit of googling found out she had come third in the BBC show "How do you solve a problem like Maria") as cabaret singer Sally Bowles was also very good. But it was a really pleasant surprise to find all of the cast were very strong. Too often on national tours you end up feeling there are 1-2 weak links, but that's certainly not the case here.

I'd never seen Cabaret before and although I wasn't expecting a story based in Berlin in the 1930s to be cheerful, the second half was really quite dark and ultimately very poignant. The standing ovation at the end was well deserved and I'd definitely recommend it. I'm considering trying to get to see it again when it comes to Wolverhampton.

Greens, Bristol, 17th September 2013

Ok, so I really wanted to go to Casamia, but unfortunately the one day we were in Bristol was the day they were changing they seasonal menu and so weren't open for lunchtime service so they could get some practice in. Instead I settled for Greens due to location, some decent tripadvisor reviews, an entry in the Good Food Guide, and an interesting looking menu.

The restaurant is relatively small and there was just one other table taken whilst we were there for lunch. Overall the food was good if not spectacular. I had sweetcorn and vegetable samosas to start which were tasty if a little greasy. The ham hash cakes with poached egg and hollandaise looked very nice. I was then a bit surprised to see a samosa pop up in a duck dish-given the chinese seasoning psychologically I would have been happier with a spring roll (which would have been very similar to the duck dish I had at Adam's-see earlier post), although I admit it wouldn't have affected the overall taste. The duck was tender despite me asking for it to be a bit more well done than they would normally serve it, but the skin could have been a bit crispier, the celeriac puree and madeira sauce complimented it well. The highlight was desert-a chocolate, hazelnut and meringue cake with raspberries and raspberry cream.

It was a nice lunch with good company, but it wasn't particularly cheap at £30 per person (not everyone had deserts and only 2 glasses of wine).

http://www.greensbristol.co.uk

Roast duck breast, greens, celeriac puree, madeira sauce

Hint, Hunt, London, 12th September 2013

So this didn’t involve food but thought it deserved a mention because it was so much fun. I was intrigued to try it because it has managed to get to number one of attractions in London on tripadvisor and because even reading those reviews there is still quite a lot of mystery regarding what it’s all about. And I think that’s half of the fun, you turn up to a building near Euston station that really could contain anything. You’re given a prep talk (during which I could feel myself getting increasingly nervous), and then locked in a room and have up to an hour to try and solve enough puzzles to lead to unlocking the door. We were a group of 3 (a minimum of 3 and maximum of 5 people is recommended) and just about managed to get out with 1 minute 38 seconds to spare. There are 2 different themed rooms and I wouldn’t hesitate to go back and try the other room.

Be sure to book a decent time in advance-we took the last booking of the day a week in advance.

www.hinthunt.co.uk

Texture, London, 12th September 2013

Deciding where to go for a nice (poshish) lunch in BIrmingham is relatively straight forward-choose one of 4-5 restaurants and book a few days in advance. Having decided to have lunch somewhere in London for a friend’s birthday deciding where to go was more of a challenge because there is so much choice. Booking with a few days to go did rule out those places that require booking weeks to months in advance, but there still must have been close to 50 potential Michelin-starred restaurants. Just as well then that  the friend who’s birthday it was happens to have an interest in Iceland and there happens to be a restaurant called Texture with an Icelandic head chef. Some good Tripadvisor reviews helped to convince me we wouldn’t be disappointed.

We went for the lunch tasting menu that wasn’t ridiculously expensive (£55 for 5 courses) and had a couple Scandinavian themed dishes. To start there was very refreshing tomato gazpacho with mozzarella, then had fish dishes including a great Icelandic salted cod with chorizo before Anjou quail with sweet corn. Desert was Icelandic skyr with rye breadcrumbs and raspberries that had a kind of deconstructed cheesecake feel (and was lovely). We had coffee, partly to try the petit fours and partly to try and partly to wake my friends up prior to our “Hint, hunt” adventure (see next post) as they had both enjoyed the matching wines.

Overall it was a very nice lunch with a relaxed atmosphere and attentive but friendly staff. It might even have convinced me that a trip to Iceland would be a good idea…

http://texture-restaurant.co.uk/restaurant.php

Breads and crisps

Heirloom tomatoes, mozzarella, soup, basil

Cold smoked Scottish salmon, pickled vegetables

Icelandic lightly salted cod, avocado, chorizo

Door on the way back from very nice toilets

Anjou quail, chargrilled sweet corn, bacon popcorn, red wine essence

Icelandic skyr, vanilla, ice cream, rye bread crumbs, raspberries

Petit fours-pistachio madeleines, truffles, raspberry macaroons, minty meringue

Adam's, Birmingham, 20th August 2013

I can confirm hospital food is generally pretty awful. So after four days of eating jacket potatoes (I was surprised at how wrong you can go with a jacket potato), it was with some excitement that I made an escape from a hospital ward to eat at Adam’s, a relatively new addition to the selection of “fine dining” restaurants in Birmingham.

Adam’s might be small but that just makes it personable and adds to the atmosphere. They have cutlery that almost makes me want to relive my student days and see what I can fit in my bag (but I want to be able to eat there again so manage to refrain). Dinner options are a five or nine course tasting menu. Given a hospital curfew we opted for the five courses, with one friend having the vegetarian menu.

First came amuse bouches that were inviting tasters of what was to come. Then came sea bream cooked perfectly followed by crab salad with a curry powder that melted in the mouth. An imaginative duck course paved the way for deserts: A very refreshing dish of raspberries, oatmeal and sorbet followed by a piece of dark chocolate heaven. My friend was equally impressed with the vegetarian menu and the wine buff among us was more than happy with the interesting selection of matching wines.

Sadly the night had to end and it was back to reality and the prospect of soggy breakfast cereal and more jacket potatoes. 

http://www.adamsrestaurant.co.uk

Sea bream, orange buckwheat

Crab salad, sweet corn, curry

Duck, baby turnip

Raspberries, oatmeal

Dark chocolate, lemon verbena, olive oil