W
L
SALT
by Carl Housbey
When I phoned up to book my table at Salt, I imagined a nice
relaxing drive down to Stratford-upon-Avon followed by a stroll
around the historic town centre in the spring sunshine to stretch
my legs before lunch. The reality turned out very differently due
to “The Beast from the East” depositing large amounts of snow
acr oss the UK bringing the road network to a halt.
However, a true Gastro Grazer doesn’t let a blizzard get in the way
of a good meal, besides which there was a deadline to meet so that
our loyal readers have another article to read (you don’t get this
kind of service with other magazines) and so despite the journey
taking two hours longer than it should have, I eventually arrived.
Upon stepping through the front door in a flurry of snow I was
greeted by the sight of a roaring fire in the middle of the restaurant,
which made the cosy low-ceilinged room even more welcoming.
Then my nose detected the aroma of freshly baked bread drifting
from the kitchen at the far end where Chef Patron Paul Foster and
his small team were working their magic.
My mouth was already watering so I wasted no time before getting
stuck into some of the warm bread rolls slathered in thick yellow
butter, whilst Paul was making my first course of Salt baked celeriac
with egg yolk & truffle puree, and bacon. This dish was absolutely
delicious, and it set the scene for the rest of the meal, with each
course comprising of about 3 or 4 ingredients that Paul manages to
coax every last drop of flavour out of.
I am going to have to miss out a few courses as there simply isn’t
enough space to write about them all in the detail they deserve,
and I simply must tell you about the carrot cooked in chicken fat
with crispy chicken skin, this is an absolute flavour sensation and is
without a doubt the best carrot dish I have ever eaten in my entire
life. The natural sweetness of the carrot is complemented perfectly
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by the saltiness of the crisp chicken skin, and then that silky chicken
juice hits your taste buds making you want to lick the bowl (sadly
my tongue isn’t long enough)
Another favourite dish of the day was the heavenly Mangalitza
pork with black pudding, Yorkshire rhubarb, pistachio, and green
olive. For those of you that have not tried Mangalitza Pork before,
the simplest way to describe it is that its the porcine equivalent
of Wagyu Beef, but rather than a marbling of fat throughout this
has a great thick layer of the tastiest and most succulent fat on the
outside. The tartness of the Yorkshire rhubarb working to great
effect refreshing the palate between each mouthful.
Main course was Beef onglet, with malted artichoke, and sprouting
broccoli, each ingredient was perfectly cooked and complemented
each other brilliantly, as onglet is very beefy in flavour and needs
some robust vegetables that can stand up for themselves. By this
stage of the meal we were feeling rather full, luckily both desserts
were light and fresh, the first of which was a creamy Brown bread
ice cream, with tangy blood orange mousse sandwiched between
two golden sugar tuilles, and the second was a crispy Sea buckthorn
mille-feuille, with fig & goats milk dolce de leche, and hazelnut.
Normally there is not much to say about coffee and petit fours, but
Paul even manages to make this something not to miss by serving
us a superb, lighter than air choux bun filled with whipped cream. I
may have missed out some of the courses, but you can see from the
photographs that Paul Foster creates good honest, unfussy dishes.
However, you really must experience the flavours first hand, so
make a reservation now by clicking on www.salt-restaurant.co.uk
or by telephone on 01789 263566
To see what else I get up to, why not follow me on Twitter @
carlhousbey