OUT IN BRUM

Bar Epernay

Posted on February 16, 2013 by outinbrum

In January we’ve had our pick of restaurants as no one was dining out due to overspending and over-eating at Christmas. It was therefore inevitable that when, on the first post pay day Saturday, we wished to eat in The Mailbox’s refurbished “Oriental” we were unable to get a table. We returned to Bar Epernay where we’d earlier been drinking Peroni and listening to the pianist, and bagged almost the last table available for dinner. Recently some of our acquaintances have suggested that they’ve not enjoyed dining here so it was about time we came back to check on it anyway.

Back in the day, when The Mailbox was new and shiny and Birmingham was being refurbished from the ground up, Bar Epernay was quite swanky, certainly the only Champagne bar in Brum that I knew of. Despite the passage of some 10 years it still feels luxe. The furniture is heavy and the decor neutral but inviting. The round open fire is super cosy in winter and the addition of a pianist rather than generic piped pop is welcome to those of us that want to have a conversation over dinner rather than shouting to make ourselves heard.

Although it’s a Champagne bar they do have a very large range of wine, beer, lager, and cocktails on offer too. If you’re around on a Friday evening then you should partake in “Friday Fizz”, that’s house champers for £20 a bottle. When on the cocktails I particularly enjoy the Espresso Martini or if it’s getting late then the decaf version which tastes just as good, the Monkey Manhattan is punchy and worth a go if you like a stronger cocktail as I do. Or alternatively there are plenty of sweeter offerings and Champagne cocktails such as the passion fruit Mojito.

We were seated in the more private area at the back of the restaurant, I think it used to be reserved for Champagne. I had something of a cheese-fest starting with a Baked Camembert followed by the Goat’s Cheese and Caramelised Red Onion tart. The Camembert was big enough for two to share as a starter, served with rustic bread, and roasted cloves of sweet garlic. My main was also substantial with the cheese to onion ratio about perfect. Three small tarts were served on a salad of leaves and beans which was nicely dressed. The special starter of lamb skewer wasn’t up to much, but we did really enjoy the duck salad. As mains we also had steak, a whole lemon sole, and mussels in a tasty white wine and coriander sauce. The service was at about the right speed, not too rushed, not too slow. On another visit here we ate a beef Sunday lunch, and Fish and Chips. I thought the Fish and Chips was delicious and a perfect hangover cure on a Sunday lunch time.

Two courses will set you back about £20 per head, and wine starts from about £15, with many wines and Champagnes available by the glass. The website lists the offers that are available at the moment including £15 two course Sunday Lunch, or if you have some cash to splash then try a very limited edition James Bond themed Bollinger Champagne (La Grande Année 2002) presented in an exclusive ‘gun-barrel’ case at £125.

So in summary I’m pleased to report I think the food here is still as good as ever. It’s also a great place to go for an adult dinner out, for cocktails, Champers, or just a Saturday afternoon beer and a catch up with friends.

http://www.bar-epernay.co.uk

Posted in Area: The Mailbox, Cuisine: Modern Mixed, Price: Cheap as Chips - Inexpensive, Price: Get your dad to pay - above average, Venue type: Bar, Venue type: Cocktail Bar, Venue type: Restaurant, Venue type: Wine Bar | Tagged birmingham cocktails, Birmingham Restaurant, birmingham restaurant review, birmingham review, birmingham sunday lunch, Epernay Mail Box Review, out in brum, OutInBrum, restaurant review, Where To Go In Birmingham | 1 Comment

Aalto at Hotel La Tour

Posted on January 28, 2013 by outinbrum

The problem with trying to get around all of the fantastic new venues in Birmingham, is that it makes us ignore our favourites. Aalto Restaurant at Hotel La Tour is most definitely at the top of our favourite list but we’ve neglected to go for dinner since September. We thought we better get back to check out the Winter menu before it lurched in to Spring. Bartender Nick has added a list of mocktails to his menu especially for Dryathlon so it was nice to be able to drink something with dinner other than Coca-Cola or Lemonade. I especially enjoyed the Virgin Mojito, it didn’t taste virginal which I think is quite a feat. Never fear though, I’ll be sticking to the boozy ones come February, they make a super Old Fashioned and other classics. After supping a mocktail or two and chatting with friends in the Hotel Babylon-esque lounge we moved through to the intimate and modern dining room.

I like the chairs in this restaurant, muted fabric on bucket seats that are comfortable enough for a three hour sitting. I often wish I’d taken my own cushion to many venues by the end of the starter. The finer details at Aalto are impressive in a subdued kind of way – from the Birmingham Heritage Collection cutlery, to the attractive glassware, the weight of the napkins, and the uniforms of the waiting staff. Nothing here has been bought because they needed it, it’s been chosen because it fits the aesthetic. The icing on the cake is that they take our coats so we don’t have to hang them on the back of our chairs – take a hint all the other nice Brummy venues that don’t do this. That detail is testament to the general attitude of all the staff, that customers are there to be served, and to be kept happy. The staff are super friendly and I’d defy you to find better in Birmingham.

We had breads while we were looking at the menu, including chunky hummus with crispbread, and the sourdough which is served olive-oiled and chargrilled with a small barrel of roasted garlic dip which is sweet and silky smooth. Chef served an amuse bouche – a cube of breadcrumbed and fried confit duck with an orange marmalade. The duck was buttery and rich, the crumb golden and crisp, and the presentation perfect – what’s not to like about cubic food? The bitter sweet orange marmalade complemented and cut through the richness of the confit.

The restaurant almost always has several specials available, as well as the normal menu that should suit every taste – sea bass, fish and chips, ham and leak pie, steak etc. I opted for the salt and pepper squid to start. I was quickly told that I could either choose another starter or have a variation on the one I’d chosen as the squid they had wasn’t as plump as chef would like. I went for the variation and the dish that arrived was lovely, with flavoursome salt and pepper squid and some lightly curried scallops – I’m glad I didn’t change my mind. We also had a starter of beetroot with woodpigeon, it was a very attractive plate that arrived with three types of colourful beetroot which works well with the gamey pigeon notes. The dishes of chicken muligatawny and scallops were also lovely.

For mains, I had the pigs cheeks. The piggy flavours were heady (ha, see what I did there, cheeks, head, oh never mind…) somewhere between bacon and ham. It was soft and fell apart in the bowl. The fillet of brill with watercress and herb potatoes was covered with a burned butter hollandaise, I’ve never had that before but I’ll be sure to have it again soon as it was velvety and intensely rich. The fish and chips, which we’ve eaten many times before here, were as good as ever, and I still think they do the best chips in Birmingham. Although there are always too many. It comes with a pea mayonnaise which is a nice change to either tartar sauce or ketchup.

Despite being completely stuffed after breads, starters, and mains, we had a few desserts. Of particular note was the bitter chocolate torte with raspberries, raspberry jelly, and raspberry marshmallow. We also tried the pistachio ice cream which tasted perfectly Italian.

Since that Saturday we’ve been back for Sunday lunch. It was a hearty meal including beetroot cured salmon, scotch egg, and a huge beef roast with shiny gravy. It’s served on a board, which I realise some people don’t like, but I’m sure they’d do it on a plate if you’d prefer.

A three course dinner here will set you back about £33 without wine. Sunday lunch is £19 for two courses, or £25 for three.

It’s just about coming up to its first birthday and seems to be going from strength to strength, we think this is the best meal we’ve had here. When we are downhearted about a depressing meal somewhere, Aalto at Hotel La Tour is the place we shall come to remember what good service, and good food, is like.

http://hotel-latour.co.uk/restaurant/

Posted in Area: East Side, Cuisine: English, Cuisine: Modern Mixed, Price: Average, Price: Get your dad to pay - above average, Venue type: Bar, Venue type: Cocktail Bar, Venue type: Restaurant, Venue type: Wine Bar | Tagged Aalto at Hotel La Tour, aalto review, birmingham restaurant review, birmingham review, hotel la tour, Hotel La Tour Review, out in brum, OutInBrum, restaurant review, sunday lunch birmingham, Where To Go In Birmingham | Leave a comment

Fiesta Del Asado Argentinian Restaurant

Posted on January 24, 2013 by outinbrum

I know it makes us sound like we’ve got some kind of city centre agoraphobia but usually we don’t eat anywhere we can’t get to on foot. This week though we’ve managed to get all the way out to the Hagley Road to eat at Fiesta Del Asado, an Argentinian that’s in part supported from the folks at Lasan’s Indian restaurant. Don’t let that worry you though, it’s not some kind of weird Argentinian Indian fusion, it’s most definitely a South American Asado, or barbecue.

The restaurant is set in what a hundred years ago would have been an imposing double-fronted house, and the sympathetically decorated frontage sets an expectation of fineness within. We were not disappointed with the rustic-luxe feel, from the wooden floors and table, Birmingham English Heritage cutlery, unsymmetrical muted colour crockery, and the Argentinian knick knacks. The service lived up to the expectation set, although it’s yet another venue that didn’t offer to take our coats, despite their wintry bulk. Our table had a good view of the open kitchen and the signature grill fuelled by apple wood, olive wood, and charcoal. Even on a Tuesday night in January there were a fair few diners, so definitely a place to book.

Instead of bread, while we looked at the menus, we were offered small tasty chicken and sweetcorn empanadas. For starters I ordered the pan-fried chicken livers with green grapes and almonds in a sherry sauce. I’d not seen this dish before so I had to have it – it was a delicious combination of flavours and textures with the iron flavour of the liver being sweetened by the grapes and sherry sauce. We also ordered some beef empanadas, for those unfamiliar with South American cuisine these are an equivalent of cornish pasties although the contents are mildly spiced and they’re cooked by shallow frying to make them crisp on the outside. Our third starter dish was Choricitos, small links of delicately flavoured sausages. The starters came with some dipping sauces, and we particularly liked one that we think was made from smoked paprika. All of our starters were quite hearty, but we battled on to mains.

The mains include chicken, fish, vegetables, pasta, but most importantly given that it’s a barbecue steakhouse, beef! We had a ribeye steak which was cooked rare on the grill. It was a good piece of steak and had a lot of flavour, added to by the smokey flavour from the grill. The smoke flavour was incredibly intense. If you’re not a lover of smoked food, I don’t think it’s for you. We also had a dish of beef braised for twelve hours in a malbec and salchichon (sausage) sauce. The marinated beef had a lot of red wine flavour and was falling apart in the dish. I was impressed that when this was brought to the table in a lidded dish the waiter thought to bring a plate so it could actually be eaten. For some reason in all good restaurants it’s not unusual to get given a completely impractical dish or box to eat out of, most notably recently at The Lost & Found, everything was served in silly wooden boxes or cages that made actually eating the food a real chore. I’m also not a fan of being given food to eat off roofing product (slate), give me a normal plate any day. The crockery here at Fiesta Del Asado was both practical and attractive, as was the cutlery and glassware. Getting back to the beef, we loved it, and the sweet grilled corn on the cob was fantastic. We ordered a celeriac and orange salad and some fries on the side. They were very tasty but we didn’t really need them as we were as full as an egg by the time we’d done mains.

We did though, for the purposes of review research only try two deserts. The vanilla poached pear with rhubarb compote was very light, possibly a bit too light actually, but the Almond tart had a perfect crisp pastry and sticky almond sponge filling which we really enjoyed.

All in, with no wine because we’re not drinking in January (sponsor us for Dryathlon here), it came to about £40 a head.

http://www.fiestadelasado.co.uk/

Posted in Area: Hagley Road, Cuisine: Steakhouse, Price: Get your dad to pay - above average, Venue type: Restaurant | Tagged argentinian hagley road, birmingham argentinian, birmingham review, birmingham steakhouse, out in brum, OutInBrum, restaurant review, Where To Go In Birmingham | Leave a comment

Barbecoa at Summer Row: Fleet Street Kitchen Preview

Posted on January 20, 2013 by outinbrum

There’s nothing we love more than a new venue coming to town so it’s with great pleasure, and with a weight of expectation, that we are able to give you a sneaky peak at a new venue at Summer Row, Fleet Street Kitchen. This new eatery is brought to you by the group behind Mechu and Après, stalwarts of the Birmingham night-life scene. The conversion of the building that used to house Bluu at one end of Summer Row is well under way and the doors will be flung open to the public on Friday the 1st of March.

The bar downstairs will host regular live sessions but the main event has to be the food. It’s speciality will be charcoal Barbecoa grilled meats, but not just any meats, they’ll be handpicked rare breeds to ensure the best of British. They’ll also offer whole fish, chicken, and burgers, cooked on the grill for smoky charcoal deliciousness.

While Après offers a recuperating burger for the Sunday morning post-Gatecrasher hangover, Fleet Street Kitchen is aimed at the slightly older more affluent crowd who want to enjoy time with their friends in comfortable surroundings. Whether it’s sharing a deli board, getting together for Sunday lunch, or listening to jazz or a DJ on a Saturday night downstairs, the plan is for it to be a convivial space to be enjoyed with good beer, good wine, and good food.

We’ve been invited to a preview evening so we’ll be sure to get there and give it a thorough reviewing before it opens, so watch this space.

http://www.fleetstreetkitchen.co.uk

Posted in Area: Summer Row, Cuisine: Steakhouse | Tagged Birmingham Restaurant, birmingham restaurant review, out in brum, OutInBrum, restaurant review, Where To Go In Birmingham | 1 Comment

Home Style Korean at Topokki

Posted on January 17, 2013 by outinbrum

Their website is a veritable treasure trove of hilarious spelling catastrophes; I dare you to read through it without either grinning with delight or, if you’re like me, groaning with pedantic disbelief that English can be written so very badly. It didn’t inspire me with great confidence but nonetheless I booked a Saturday evening table for five during a non-drinking January (sponsor us for Cancer Research Dryathlon here) at the new-ish Korean restaurant, Topokki.

Topokki is situated about half way down Hurst Street, on the outskirts of Birmingham’s gaybourhood, and seats about forty diners in its industrially styled cafe. The tables and seating are simple but were comfortable for the couple of hours we were there for – there’s nothing worse than a numb bum halfway through your starter. A skyscape mural adorns one wall, with other appropriate artwork around the place giving a homely feel. You also get a view in to the kitchen so you can watch your food being prepared and cooked – rightly or wrongly this gives me confidence that my food is actually being prepared by someone who knows Korean food, and isn’t going to commit any heinous food-hygiene faux pas.

None of our party had eaten Korean food before, so we had no idea what to expect. Although the website menu had a couple of pictures of the food, I can’t say I was familiar with any of the names including Dupbap, Bibimbap, Kimchi, Kare, and Bulgogi. I’ve seen reports from several people online who, unlike me, do know Korean food, and they rave that it is authentic.
There’s a good selection of soft-drinks including Aloe Vera juice (“the chewable juice drink” – yuck) and Ramune – the latter being a lighty sparkling lemon and lime drink served in the most over-engineered marble stoppered bottle I’ve seen. Getting in to it was entertainment enough for one of our friends for a good twenty minutes. They also served Asahi lager.

For starters we ordered the kimchi pancake, Korean spiced chicken, and salt and pepper chicken. If you’re not ravenous then you could share a couple of dishes between three. We completely over-ordered. The Kimchi pancake consisted of a large thick pancake, which I believe has a base of
mung beans and not flour, although I did not corroborate this with the chefs. The batter contained vegetables and Kimchi. Kimchi is Korea’s national dish and is essentially a mix of pickled fermented vegetables – don’t worry, it’s not as awful as it sounds. The pancake had an earthy taste that was complimented by a chilli and soy sauce dip. It was very filling and could easily have served two as a starter. The spiced fried chicken was lightly battered and in a spicy sauce, I thought it could have done with more oomph, although it was still a tasty dish. The salt and pepper chicken though was excellent, with layers of pepper flavours in the golden batter. Pepper is a much underused spice in English cuisine in my opinion so I like getting a fix of it when I can.

Don’t expect fine dining if you eat here. The service is a little bit rough and ready. Five or more minutes passed between the first starter and the last starter being brought to the table, and then a main arrived while we were halfway through starters. Don’t let that put you off though – the staff were very friendly and helpful and the early main was taken away and was baking hot when it came back with the rest of the mains later. I guess I’d describe the service as relaxed, no rush, no worry. The waiters want you to be happy, which is unlike several restaurants in Brum where diners seem just to be there to get in the way of them chatting with their friends.

Mains arrived piping hot and well presented. We tried several dishes. The Chicken Bibimbap was served with sticky rice which could be easily eaten with the traditional Korean chopsticks and spoon, the chicken was flavoured with a sweet soy sauce. We tried two types of Dupbap, that’s a rice bowl dish, one with chicken and one with pork. The Dupbap were served in stone bowls which were very hot and filled with steamed rice then topped with the meat and a spicy sauce. I really enjoyed the spice as it wasn’t overly hot but had a kick. I also loved the mix of texture in the rice because the heat from the bowl had made some of it crunchy – delicious! The Chicken Kare reminded us of a Chinese style curry but the chicken was bread-crumbed like chicken katsu, so again there was good texture differences there. I didn’t think much of the beef noodles. We had a 50p side of bright yellow pickled radish, give it a go it’s surprisingly nice. Several of the tables in the restaurant have frying stations at the table where you can order a platter of raw meats and vegetables and fry them yourself. Many Chinese restaurants in Birmingham also offer this and I don’t really get it, but if you want to pay to cook your own food it is an option here. There were a couple of groups of friends dining there who had ordered larger kimchi pancakes, some containing seafood, to share while they had a beer or a cup of tea. The atmosphere was casual and convivial.

Including drinks, starters, mains, and several sides it still only came to £20 a head including tip.

I’d like to go back here for a kimchi pancake lunch with an Asahi beer, or an early evening dinner with friends. Maybe next time you fancy a Chinese, give this a go instead, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.

http://www.topokki.co.uk

Posted in Area: Arcadian, Area: Hurst Street / The Gay Village / South Side, Cuisine: Korean, Price: Cheap as Chips - Inexpensive, Venue type: Cafe, Venue type: Restaurant | Tagged birmingham korean, birmingham review, out in brum, OutInBrum, restaurant review | 1 Comment

Discount Dining and Entertainment in Brum

Posted on January 4, 2013 by outinbrum

As it feels like about 3 months between the December and the January pay packets it’s no surprise that we can all end up a bit skint. We didn’t like to think of you going hungry, or not being able to enjoy Birmingham’s delights, so here’s a bunch of ways you can save money whilst going out to eat, drink, and be entertained in Brum.

We take no responsibility if these offers are incorrect or change, we’re only human…

Mailbox Rewards
What we think: We’ve used this a lot and save a bundle of cash.
Summary of what you get:
Free glass of bubbly with any main meal at Miller and Carter
20% off the bill anytime at Gourmet Burger Kitchen (my favourite burgers in Brum)
20% off food Monday to Thursday at Zizzi
20% off food Sunday to Thursday at Strada
20% off food Sunday to Friday at Pennyblacks
2 for 1 on main meals at Pizza Express
Where to register: http://www.mailboxlife.com/rewards/register
What you get in detail: http://www.mailboxlife.com/restaurants-cafe-bars/restaurants-cafe-bars-rewards/

Brindley Place Card
What we think: Note this also covers the sea life centre, Bannatyne’s and other places.
Summary of what you get:
10% off food and drink at: Pitcher & Piano, Piccolino, Pizza Express
10% off treatments at Bannatyne’s health club
2 for 1 on mains at Cafe Rouge
15 % off food at Handmade Burger Co.
2 for 1 entry at The National Sea Life Centre
Where to register: http://www.brindleyplace.com/leisure/loyalty-card/
What you get in detail: http://www.brindleyplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2012-year-round-discounts-13.11.121.pdf

Club Individual Card
What we think: Basically a point-earning loyalty card for Piccolino and Bank.
Where to register: http://www.club-individual.co.uk/
What you get in detail: http://www.club-individual.co.uk/the-club/
Summary of what you get:
Points mount up quickly, and you get other good promotions like free wine and credit to try on their new menus.

Slice Card at Bar Room Bar
What we think: our favourite pizza in Brum, defo worth doing. Costs £1 but 50p is donated to Teens Unite Charity.
Where to register: http://www.pizzakitchenbars.co.uk/slice-card
What you get in detail: http://www.pizzakitchenbars.co.uk/slice-card
Summary of what you get:
20% off food
20% off a selection of drinks Collect points

Bite Card
What we think: Travel on trains much? Most mainline stations now accept Bite Card.
Where to register: https://www.bitecard.co.uk/
What you get in detail: https://www.bitecard.co.uk/
Summary of what you get:
20% off at many station brands such as: Upper Crust, The Pasty Shop, Pumpkin, Burger King, Millie’s Cookies, Bars on Stations.

Gourmet Society Card
What we think: Like living it up? Then this Gourmet Society Card can give you massive savings at many of Birmingham’s restaurants and venues all over the country – it is £70 but you can make that back in savings in a couple of trips.
Where to register: http://www.gourmetsociety.co.uk/
What you get in detail: http://www.gourmetsociety.co.uk/
Summary of what you get:
Offers at lovely restaurants like 2 for 1, 50% off the total bill, 20% off the bill – it depends on the restaurant.

Bar Estillo and Red Peppers e-Clubs
Bar Estillo e-Club
Red Peppers e-Club
Sign up for their e-clubs and get monthly offers on food and drinks and a bottle fizz on your birthday.

Voucher Cloud
If you’ve got a smart phone then get the Voucher Cloud App – there’s lots of offers for Birmingham restaurants, bars, and shops.

O2 Moments
Another one for the smart phone users – again, lots of offers.

Posted in Article | Tagged Birmingham Dining, Birmingham Discounts, Birmingham Drinking, Birmingham Loyalty Cards, Birmingham Offers, Bite Card, Brindley Place Loyalty Card, Mailbox Rewards, Out In Birmingham, out in brum, Slice Card | Leave a comment

Overdid it at Christmas? How about a January Dryathlon™ in aid of Cancer Research?

Posted on January 2, 2013 by outinbrum

We don’t know about you, but we at Out In Brum have perhaps overindulged once too often over the festive period. We’ve Irished up the coffees, had bucks fizz with breakfast, beers with lunch, wine with dinner, and nightcaps at bedtime. So we thought perhaps it was time to lay off the booze for a little while.

If we needed any more of a reason to lay off for a few week’s then there’s surely none better than supporting Cancer Research UK’s Dryathlon™. It’s a new fundraising campaign that challenges social drinkers to give up alcohol, for January, to raise money for Cancer Research UK. Through raising sponsorship, or pledging the money saved by not drinking, Dryathletes can fund the work of Cancer Research UK and help bring forward the day when all cancers are cured.

So you won’t be seeing lots of reviews from us of drinking establishments until February while we’re trying to avoid temptation, but no doubt there will be some entertainment and foodie reviews coming up as we console ourselves and try to keep ourselves busy.

If you’d like to sponsor our non-drinking then you can visit our donation page here, or don’t-buy-us-a-pint but instead text our code (APRC69) and an amount to 70070 – so your text would read something like “APRC69 £3”. Make sure you follow the link that you get texted back to you so you can add giftaid on. The text message will only cost you the donation (there’s no charge for the text).

Posted in Article | Tagged Dryathlon, out in brum, Out In Brum Dryathlon, OutInBrum | Leave a comment

The Warehouse Cafe – The perfect veggie antidote to the Christmas meat sweats!

Posted on December 28, 2012 by outinbrum

*** Update 15/06/2013 – This venue is now under new management ***

I’m sure this won’t be the first review to point out The Warehouse Café as “a hidden gem” – but it’s an apt description of this delicious restaurant which the casual passer-by would completely miss. Numbers 54 to 57 Allison Street in Digbeth houses Birmingham’s CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament) office, a Friends of the Earth office, and the vegetarian Warehouse Café. As the name suggests it’s set in a converted warehouse and as such has a higgledy-piggledy layout with stairs from the entrance hallway leading through the pot wash and past an open kitchen into the wood dominated dining room which seats around forty. Veggie food has been a feature of this most industrial of areas since the ’70s, and the Warehouse Café has picked up the baton admirably. It uses organic, fair-trade, bicycle-couriered produce where possible, and the menu is all about seasonality. At the moment they’re also trialing the use of allotment grown produce from friends and supporters.

We turned up on a cold and wet December night, and buzzed at the door to the shared building to be let in. It adds a level of intrigue not being able to see in to the first floor restaurant, nor to be able to gain automatic ingress. We weren’t kept waiting for long as we were quickly greeted by a cheerful host and shown upstairs to our table. The décor is simple but welcoming, it’s not a formal affair – with that and the friendliness of our host it felt like we were eating in a friend’s farmhouse kitchen.

The format for dinner is carte d’hôte – there were three or four choices per course plus some specials. The three courses cost £22.50. For starters we had Brussels sprout bhaji and Falafels. The brussell sprouts bhaji were crispy, and perfectly seasoned and spiced. To cut through the sprout bitterness they were accompanied by parsnip puree, julienne pear, and pickled ginger. It was served on a board, which I would usually have a problem with (what’s wrong with a plate?) but in this case I will forgive them because it was really delicious. The falafel was tasty, not cloy as it sometimes can be, and accompanied by carrot puree and raita for the required moistness. There wasn’t a bite left of any of the starters, despite the fact they were quite large.

For mains we opted for one of the specials, a Mexican bean chilli, and the chestnut and cashew nut roast. The Mexican bean chilli was again excellently spiced, sometimes chefs go completely overboard with the chilli in my opinion and I think there’s even more of a tendency to do that on veggie dishes to overcompensate for the lack of meat. Not so here, it was spicy but not face-burning hot, and the layers of spice flavours all came across. The pot of chilli was topped with a gooey firm cheese lid. The potato wedges it came with had been baked and then fried and seasoned with salt and pepper – I think they’re the nicest potato wedges I’ve ever had, and it’s little things like that that really show that the place cares about the food that it serves, it’s not just trading on its veggie status. The flavoursome nut roast was served with seasonal veg and roast potatoes which were, again, very well cooked.

Unusually, we had deserts. We tried the Chocolate Orange Brownie with a chocolate ice-cream and a crumble which came with a dairy-free raspberry ice-cream. I don’t think the orange came through strongly in the brownie but it was potently chocolatey and unctuous just like a brownie should be. The apple crumble was also lovely and we even enjoyed the soya ice-cream it came with (my preconceptions of iced-soya were, happily, proved wrong).

One thing to note, and this should be prominent on their website but isn’t, they don’t have a booze licence – at the moment you have to take your own wine and beer. This may change in the new year so keep checking the website.

The place gets super busy, it’s somewhere you should book, not just turn up to on spec.

In summary – we loved it! Our vegetarian friend we took with us thought it was excellent too and compared very favourably with the other veggie restaurants she’s eaten in. We’ll definitely be back.

http://www.thewarehousecafe.com/

Posted in Area: Digbeth, Cuisine: Modern Mixed, Price: Average, Venue type: Cafe, Venue type: Restaurant | Tagged Birmingham Restaurant, birmingham review, restaurant review, The Warehouse Cafe Birmingham, The Warehouse Cafe Review, The Warehouse Cafe Vegetarian Restaurant, Vegetarian Restaurant, Vegetarian Restaurant Birmingham, Vegetarian Restaurant Digebth | Leave a comment

Not a Wine Expert? Loki Wine’s Phil Gives Us Some Christmas Tips!

Posted on December 17, 2012 by outinbrum

Christmas is just around the corner and we’re about to put together our wine order for Christmas day. Although I could write a novella about the consumption of wine, I’m afraid my knowledge of what to drink is poor. Luckily we have Phil, from Loki Wine in The Great Western Arcade, on hand to offer advice and provide for all of our boozy needs – aperitif to digestif and everything in between.

Christmas is the only day of the year where you can reasonably start drinking before 8am, we like to start with a Mimosa (2/3 Champagne, 1/3 Orange Juice, which is more efficient booze consumption compared to Buck’s Fizz which is 1/3 Champagne, 2/3 Orange Juice).

We only usually manage a bottle of fizz before lunch, and this year Phil has recommended an English stunner – Nyetimber (£29.99). He’s also got a limited stock of the award winning Welsh sparkling wine, Ancre Hill Estate (£25.99) which has been much lauded – and at the moment it’s only available at Loki and Fortnam and Mason – get it now before it runs out!

Lunch is, for us, when the real hardcore food/wine pairing kicks in though. We sent our menu to Phil and he’s provided some suggestions.

Starter: We’re having Parsnip & Chestnut Soup. Phil says: Christmas wouldn’t be the same without an oaked Chardonnay in my opinion. My first choice would be the fantastic Lapostolle Cuvée Alexandre Chardonnay (£14.99) Not only does this have zesty fresh fruit it has a lovely creamy length that I think will match perfectly with the soup. However for people who really can’t stand oak or Chardonnay I would perhaps try the lovely Minaia Gavi Di Gavi (£13.49) this is wonderful and fresh with a mineral edge and acidity to cut through the soup.

Main: We’re having Turkey, with 46 vegetables, and the rest of the trimmings. Phil says: Christmas Turkey is always an issue for me as there is always so much going on, but if you are like me you’ll be having a nice rich gravy I would stick to the reds, and potentially go traditional Bordeaux. You can get some great youthful 2010 vintage at the moment Chateau Le Pey Cru Bourgeois (£12.99) – this Cabernet Sauvignon dominated Bordeaux would be my great value pick, it is rich but has enough juicy fruit to drink young. Watch out for some Merlot dominated Bordeaux on discount at the moment, I found that although 2010 was a great year for Cabernet Sauvignon, some of the Merlots are just too jammy, and don’t have the complexity. Another great shout is some ‘lesser years’ such as 2007, 2006 and 2004, these offer great value and some famous estate wines are drinking very well, something like Chateau Beau-Site 2004 Saint-Estephe (£19.99) is soft and approachable whilst maintaining good structure.

Dessert: We’re having: Christmas Pudding or (and!) Chocolate Torte. Phil says: For this I would branch away from the traditional dessert and go for some slightly unconventional choices, Skillogalee Liqueur Muscat (£31.99) would be my first choice it’s rich enough to cope with the richness of any Christmas pudding. another unconventional match is Pedro Ximenez, I would go for a high quality one so that the weight will cope with the richness of the Christmas pudding, try Romante (£27.99) or Colosia (£12.99 Half Bottle). With the Chocolate Torte, I would suggest the Le Cedré, late harvest Malbec from Cahors (£19.99, 50cl) This has the richness to go with the chocolate, but also the tannins that balances well with the cocoa.

Savoury: Obviously, we’ll be on the Cheese! Phil says: Let’s hit the traditional again and go for the lovely Quinta Do Crasto LBV Port 2007 (£16.99), this port house constantly punch above their weight, and it is no surprise as they sell their rejected grapes to the more famous Taylor’s. This has a soft smoothness whilst maintaining a wonderful hint of port sweetness. For the more adventurous of you I would try Mas Amiel 10 year old (£33.99) this fortified wine is from Maury in South France, they use the unique technique of ageing their wines for long periods outside in glass. This gives the wine it’s distinct sherry character whilst maintaining it’s smooth port-like elegance.

Mid-afternoon after the nap, and before your evening guests arrive I suggest a quick pick me up. My personal favourite – a Coffee Martini. Make an espresso (you can buy them in advance and fridge them), pour on plenty of ice in a cocktail shaker, add a shot of plain vodka, a shot of vanilla vodka, a shot of coffee liquer (such as Tia Maria or Kaluha) and either half a shot of gomme (sugar syrup) or a tea spoon of sugar. If you don’t have vanilla vodka then double up the plain. Shake until the the shaker goes frosty. Serve in a Martini glass and decorate the froth with three coffee beans.

All the wines listed are available at Loki. If you give them a call on 0121 212 9440, or email hello@lokiwine.co.uk, they’ll put together an order for you which you can then collect. Alternatively, which I would strongly suggest, you pop in and try the 24 wines on tasting!

Remember, it’s about quality, not about quantity, so make it count!

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Stirlings Bar for Sunday Lunch

Posted on December 14, 2012 by outinbrum

Eighteen months ago we struggled to find a single place in Birmingham where we could get Sunday Lunch. There was basically the Mal Maison and The Hyatt, and that was about it. Now, everyone is in on the game including Stirlings Bar. It’s been around a while and is the classic bar, club, restaurant triumvirate. It’s based in The Jewellery Quarter just off St. Paul’s Square. We popped along to try their Sunday Lunch offering after a very big night out. They serve Sunday Lunch right up until 6 o’clock, which is worth remembering if you’re just dragging yourself out of bed post noon.

Stirlings Bar feels masculine, 1980’s slick with lots of black leather and sharp corners. The menu fits with that and has an American style including nachos, burgers, steaks, chilli, and ribs. Mains are between £10 and £15. When we were in there was Rugby playing, thankfully silently, on the TVs. It was a day for quiet background music while the hangover subsided and that’s what we got, with a medicinal pint of full fat coke on the side.

We ordered the Roast Chicken for 2 which arrived whole on a large chopping board with the other components of Sunday lunch including: broccoli, carrots, sugar snap peas, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, and gravy. It was all lovely. The chicken was succulent with a crisp golden skin, and the potatoes were fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside. I couldn’t criticise it. Although I didn’t like the mismatched and rather cheap cutlery which didn’t seem to fit with the rest of the venue which is pretty high end.

Desert was, I’m afraid, a bit of a let down. There was only one of the two options available, and we ended up not eating ours as it wasn’t very nice. That said, the waitress did an excellent job in terms of service, taking it off the bill completely, and I wouldn’t let that one poor dish stop me from returning.

There is a cocktail list which we didn’t sample, given our delicate state, and we really need to make a trip back on an evening so that we can properly sample what the bar side of the business is about. We’ll definitely be there next summer as there is a nice outdoor area with umbrellas which will be perfect for watching the world pass by on St. Paul’s square.

In summary, rubbish cutlery, but delicious food and good friendly service. We’ll be back.

p.s. after we posted this the nice people at Stirlings tweeted to tell us that they’ve already sorted the cutlery!

Posted in Area: Jewellery Quarter, Cuisine: English, Cuisine: Modern Mixed, Price: Average, Venue type: Bar, Venue type: Cafe, Venue type: Cocktail Bar, Venue type: Entertainment, Venue type: Pub, Venue type: Restaurant, Venue type: Wine Bar | Tagged birmingham review, jewellery quarter, restaurant review, sunday lunch birmingham | Leave a comment