A TOUCH OF ENGLISH CLASS
January, 2008
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SUMMARY: Very good English bistro type food in cosy surroundings. Open for lunch and dinner Monday to Saturday and for Sunday lunch. Expect to spend around £25 before drinks and service. Private room for up to 12 people available.
ENGLISH COOKING is making a comeback. After long being derided as stodgy, boring and unpalatable, traditional English dishes have been re-invented in interesting and imaginative ways in restaurants like The Anchor and Hope, 32 Great Queen Street and, more recently, Canteen.
Now Market has followed suit, presenting what used to be traditional English pub food in a more sophisticated way, and in very congenial surroundings.
Which is not to say that chef Dan Spence has confined himself religiously to English food only. He has reached out cleverly into other cuisines for flavours and ideas, with the result, for example, that good ol’ English pig cheeks comes with some morcilla (Spanish black pudding), and his wonderful pheasant and chestnut ragu is served with some perfectly al dente pappardelle pasta (large fettuccine ribbon pasta about 3cm wide – the name comes from the verb “pappare,” to gobble up).
But if you like traditional foods like devilled kidneys on toast, whitebait with a tartare sauce, chicken and ham pie, pork belly and beef stew, this is definitely your kind of place.
I was going to award it four stars for the food, but my Chief Culinary Adviser advised me otherwise (that’s her job, after all). Her grilled bream fillet was horrendously salty on the skin side, and strangely glassy (although properly cooked through) on the other. She also didn’t feel that the desserts warranted four stars. So, because this is MY website and MY newsletter, I am going to (partly) defy her and award it three stars with a plus sign. So there.
Our party of four worked our way very happily through much of the frequently changing menu. (I always find it very encouraging when the menu is dated and obviously printed that day – it speaks volumes about a chef responding to seasons and what is fresh and available.)
The Yoga Teacher enjoyed her pumpkin soup which, she said, was “very creamy, very good” and the Mighty Mediator was delighted with his chicken liver parfait which came in a cute little ball jar (pictured).
My adviser’s pig cheeks with morcilla and peas starter was meltingly tender and full of intense flavours, and I was happy with my devilled kidneys (which, however, could have been a touch more devilish, now that I think about it.
Other starters on offer included a pollack brandade (a pounded combination of salted or smoked fish, olive oil, garlic, milk and cream), Maldon rock oysters (six for £8.50) and a watercress, beetroot, stilton and walnut salad.
The Mighty Mediator ordered a main course of beef stew, which was rich and hearty and was enjoyed, every though it came with a mash made out of roots (including turnips etc) that he wasn’t crazy about.
I had the heretoforeabovementioned pheasant ragu, which was excellent with its deep flavours, tender pheasant, and wonderful pieces of chestnut that added a hint of sweetness to the dish.
Then came the fish, which did not impress my Adviser, although the Yoga Teacher had the same grilled bream with rosemary new potatoes and caper butter, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Well, different strokes for different folks, as they say…
Other mains on the menu included a Gloucester old spot pork belly with mash and apple sauce, an onglet (a traditional French cut of beef from the skirt, near the diaphragm) with fries and aioli, the chicken and ham pie served with greens and, for veggies, a wild mushroom risotto.
I wasn’t going to have a dessert, but I was totally seduced by the mere idea of a honey and rosemary flavoured ice cream. I thought it worked extremely well, but the others were less impressed. The Yoga Teacher, in particular, didn’t like it. "It's like eating lamb ice cream!" she said.
Then there was a bread and butter pudding. Now, a bread and butter pudding has to be pretty special to impress my Adviser, who herself made a stunning one just a few weeks ago using pannetone. Market’s version was declared “a bit tough”. Who am I to argue?
Alternative desserts were a delectable sounding apple, rhubarb and ginger crumble, a warm chocolate cake, and cheese with oatcakes and chutney. All showing a little touch of class, I thought.
Our food bill came to under £20 a head, which is damn good value for money. So good, in fact, that I have just changed my mind again and I
WILL give Market four stars. Even after adding two bottles of wine, a coffee and service at 12.5%, it still only came to £31 each. Yes, a very good place indeed.