Sunday Chicken

In my family chicken is a favourite. Last night my roast bird was full of sage, thyme and chives from the garden along with lemons and whole garlic cloves.

Sunday lunch doesn't feature for us very often, so many other things to fill the day. Even my parents now in their 80s have broken with the Sunday lunch tradition, by chance it was chicken for both of them last night as well.

On asking what my niece in Scotland was eating, her reply came back promptly. Chicken thighs roasted with peppers and courgettes in a chilli and tomato sauce with couscous. That sounds pretty tasty as well.

Good Food Shows

I like Good Food Shows, lots of new gadgets, ideas and tastings. Earlier this month it was the first BBC Spring Good Food Show at Bluewater Kent. A good range of exhibitors with cheeses, chutneys and hot sauces in abundance. James Martin in the demonstration theatre was a clever and engaging chef.

Shows seem to offer less samples these days. I remember leaving the NEC in Birmingham a decade ago with free bags of kettle chips, chocolates and other goodies.

This time my purchase was an bright ceramic garlic jar and grater from Rigas Enterprises "home of the garlic grater"

At last summers food (& gardeners world show) I made the great purchase of a one stop soup maker. This looks like a giant kettle and transforms vegetables to delicious healthy soup in just 15 minutes. My mushroom soup receipe will follow soon.

www.rigas-enterprises.co.uk
Morphy Richards soup maker 48821

Saturday Steak and Chips

Brie salad has become a favourite starter to have before steak (preferably rib eye) and thin crispy oven chips.

Some years ago Malcolm bought this salad idea back from a boys golf trip in France (on these jaunts the meals are always a highlight) It is quite simple, mixed salad leaves, good quality cherry tomatoes cut in half and cubes of soft creamy brie. Last night the dressing was the star. Shropshire Special No 1 Dressing from Church Stretton was part of a christmas present from our good friends Heather and John. Just the right combination of cold pressed rapeseed oil and apple balsamic vinegar, delicious.

With the steak and chips we are never without a supply of mustard mayonnaise purchased on shopping trips to Calais just 55 miles away. Last night we also had some Stokes Real Mustard and Honey Mayonnaise from Woodbridge Suffolk also to be recommended.

www.shropshirecountryoils.co.uk
www.stokessauces.co.uk

Eating My Words

Hello this is the first Ann's Food Diary blog (annsfooddiary) my interests are all about food including recipes, cooking, eating out, growing food and food when I am travelling.

Last weekend I went to an excellent food writing course "Eating Your Words with Matthew Fort" great quality inputs from Matthew, Tim Hayward, Tomasina Miers and Bob Granleese. Good company from fellow food enthusiasts as well.  This has inspired me to start my own food blog.

After a morning spent talking about food and food writing we visited The Fellow a gastro pub just a few minutes walk from Kings Cross station.  Part of the course was to write a restaurant review, here is mine

The Fellow

Soft melting pork belly with crunchy crackling and caramelized apple puree was the highlight of Saturday lunch at The Fellow.

The restaurant was almost empty when our party of twelve arrived at 12.30pm.  The Fellow looks like a very ordinary London pub from the outside, once in first impressions are good.  It is light and airy with nicely laid scrubbed wooden tables.

We had chosen in advance from the £27 set menu.  This has three dishes for each course.  My starter of crispy goats cheese, beetroot and swiss chard salad did not disappoint in terms of presentation. There were three triangles of deep fried goats cheese, thinly sliced beetroot with celery and pine nuts and a mountain of salad leaves.  (although no swiss chard).  The goats cheese was crunchy on the outside but sadly solid in the middle. It was disappointing that with the exception of the strong goats cheese the dish lacked any depth of flavor.  It needed a decent sharp dressing to bring it all together.

Other starters included a wild garlic and potato soup and potted kippers with pickled cucumber and toast. On the kippers my dining friends conversation suggested that the dish was too cold.  As a result it was solid and lacked taste and flavor.  The toast ran out with half the pate still to eat.

The first main course to arrive at the table was grilled asparagus on puy lentils with poached egg.  It looked very pretty if a little on the small side.  Then came the pork belly, which was the choice for most of us. Thick slices of pork served on apple puree and accompanied with a ramekin of “black eyed peas and boudin noir casserole”. Well the pork was delicious once salt and pepper had been added, a double portion of the puree would have been perfect. The casserole though, was a brown mass of beans with no flavor.

By the time of the arrival of the third main course choice of beer battered haddock, mushy peas, tartare and triple cooked chips the rest of us had finished eating.

For dessert my choice was an almond and orange cake, crème fraiche and blood orange sorbet. The large portion of cake was soft with a good almond flavor but lacking the orange kick. It needed more crème fraiche or better still some creamy vanilla ice cream. The sorbet was orange in colour but just tasted of ice.

The staff are friendly and welcoming and the atmosphere is good. The checking of orders and timing of food arrival needs a bit of improvement. With this and better seasoning of the dishes it would not take very much for The Fellow to rise from an average meal to pretty good.

21 April 2012

The Fellow

24 York Way

London

N1 9AA

020 7833 4395