THE LAWNS
by Nicky Rigby-Smith & Si Hall
The Lawns Restaurant is situated within the beautiful 4-star
Thornton Hall Hotel. Seated at our table overlooking the
landscaped grounds, the delightful Charvelle, Restaurant
Manager, presented us with our menus and extensive wine list.
We opted for the Seven Course Tasting menu. Head Chef, Chad
Hughes, has designed an excellent menu with a strong emphasis
on high grade, quality and local ingredients.
Amuse bouche was canapes, Torintone Gin & Tonic (Thornton
Hall’s own gin distilled in Spital), Handmade granary onion loaf
and a potato volute and truffle snack. All terrific and a great start
to our sitting. To drink, we chose a Goldschild Riesling Trocken
which was elegant and light with a racy lime acidity.
Our first course was Pork Belly served with variations of rhubarb,
pickled apple and red wine jus. The pork was wonderfully tender
and the attention to detail was impressive. The rhubarb worked
extremely well with the pork and apple flavours.
Our next dish was crab, mooli, apple and lemon verbena
emulsion. Delicately and beautifully presented, the white crab
meat was the freshest we’ve ever tasted. We were particularly
impressed by this dish. Outstanding.
The Hand Dived scallops, that are specially ordered from the Isle
of Mull, came served with cauliflower puree, pancetta and tagete.
The scallops were flawless.
To follow was Wirral Watercress panna cotta garnished with
vegetables, leaves and flowers all locally grown by Peter Jones.
One word… Wow! This dish was interesting, colourful, different
and had excellent flavour. A huge credit to Chef.
38 wirrallife.com
Up next was Poached Turbot - an exceptional piece of fish with
excellent flavour, served with wasabi foam and pickled cucumber
- simply first class.
The welsh rump of lamb served with baby shallots, pancetta,
beans and peas scallops was a show stopper. A divine piece of
lamb with a perfect balance of flavours. We paired this dish with
a classic Martinfort Malbec.
For pre-dessert, we had a lemon and blueberry cheesecake.
Gorgeous. This was followed by a Salted Chocolate Ganache,
Morello cherry sorbet and chocolate textures. Rich and velvety,
complemented by the acidity of the cherry sorbet.
Our final dish, Stawberries & Cream came served with vanilla
panna cotta, white and red strawberries and mint. Fantastic!
Overall, The Lawns is an exceptional restaurant. Beautiful
surroundings. Outstanding service. Extensive wine list. Delicious
and interesting menus. And finally… out of this world food –
Chad Hughes is a very talented chef and one to watch… Five
Stars!
Given the outstanding culinary calibre, the menu was very
reasonably priced at £85 per person or £130 including the wine
selection.
Booking is advisable.
To book call, 0151 336 3938
www.thorntonhallhotel.com