the curlew, bodiam

update: the curlew was awarded a michelin star in january 2010. many congratulations!

jay rayner’s review of the curlew, back in june, caught my eye and it's been on my list of places to visit ever since seeing this and the “rising star” award that chef neil mccue won at the 2010 tatler laurent-perrier & taste of london restaurant awards.

david and i went for lunch last week, our third meal in a rural setting in as many weeks (the others being the michelin-starred sportsman and the dove, both in kent), and had a very delicious meal.

we got caught in traffic and were running late which meant we were ravenous by the time we sat down. the home-cooked bread was served with pork dripping infused with thyme and bay leaf. this was incredible – the dripping melted into the warm bread and provided a delicate savoury flavour.

i started with a deep fried, lightly-crumbed piece of black pudding which was served with gooseberry jelly, apple and watercress. the black pudding was superb – little nuggets of fat and a melt-in-the-mouth texture of earthy richness which contrasted well with the tartness of the apple and gooseberry.

david chose “a piece of cake” – a pork terrine which was topped with a rich duck liver parfait; a sliver of toast topped with thin slices of smoked duck breast; and a green bean salad. the combination of flavours and textures made the dish both delicious and interesting to eat.

this was followed by crispy old spot pork belly, sweet corn (a custard and an incredibly intensely flavoured puree), baby carrots and new potatoes for me. this dish made me so happy – everything was cooked perfectly and the flavours were bright and punchy which made every mouthful a real pleasure to eat.

david’s lamb dish was similarly superb – slow cooked shoulder of romney marsh lamb, lamb bacon (this was my favourite part of this dish and is apparently inspired by a meal at noma – the bacon comprises breast meat cooked at 63 degrees for 36 hours, resulting in a wonderful depth of flavour), peas and baby morels plus more dripping, this time flavoured with mint. as part of each of our three rural meals we ate lamb and this was the best of the bunch. my pork was also one of the best main courses we had eaten.

pudding followed – i clung to my memories of being hungry and ordered summer pudding with wild blackcurrants and fennel ice cream. this was another hit – served as a slice of “cake”, with layers of fruit between the berry-sodden bread, the cassis flavour was shining through, accentuated by some blackcurrant sherbet which was dusted around the plate and under the ice cream (a very subtle fennel flavour which was complemeted by thin strips of candied fennel). david’s soaked upside-down greengage cake was not as good but still delicious. i was less keen on the crème fraiche ice cream it was served with.

overall, a superb meal which, with a carafe of grecanico and aperitifs came to c£85. out of the three meals mentioned above, it was my favourite although the sportsman’s starters still stand out.

the curlew

junction road, bodiam, east sussex

t - 01580 861 394

the dove inn, dargate

i mentioned the linen shed in my last blog post. i just want to say again how much we enjoyed staying there. vickie and graham were incredibly welcoming and the setting is wonderful – the wealden times article is full of beautiful photos and tells you all you need to know about this unusual b&b.

i wanted to mention it again as i wanted to tell you about the breakfasts – pots of stewed rhubarb spiked with orange and ginger and topped with yoghurt, followed by a choice of cooked breakfast – between us, on the two mornings we were there, david and i had pancakes with bacon; roasted tomatoes with parma ham and basil oil; and potato rosti with a poached egg; plus toast and jams (the raspberry and lavender was particularly special). all eaten on the veranda overlooking their beautiful garden and under the supervision of their two cats, cecil and mr wilfred.

one of the nicest things about staying here was being able to talk food with vickie and it was thanks to her that we ate at the dove inn in dargate, a short drive from the linen shed.

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the sportsman, seasalter

i stopped writing restaurant reviews on here as it’s not something i particularly enjoy doing – i tend to only write about meals i’ve loved and there are only so many ways you can say that something is delicious! however, this may be changing as people keep asking me about new places to eat and the blog is a good way to avoid having to say the same thing too many times!

i doubt i’ll be documenting things in the great level of detail which some bloggers do – getting my camera out in a restaurant is only occasionally something i’m happy to do. however, at the sportsman last weekend i did exactly that, as a friend had asked for photos and, as we were sitting in a window booth i didn’t feel too self-conscious.

we first visited the sportsman in early 2007 and it has been on my list of places to return to ever since. an anniversary weekend was the impetus i needed to book and i’m really pleased we made it, despite the appalling kentish weather (think wet, very wet, and even wetter).

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the sportsman, seasalter, kent

 

we’ve just spent a wonderful day by the sea – a trip to whitstable on the north kent coast followed by lunch at the sportsman in nearby seasalter.

the sportsman was on my list of places to try as a result of being runner-up in the best sunday lunch category in the recent observer food magazine awards. opened in 1999, sourcing food locally from the start (current suppliers are listed on their website), this gastropub is well worth a visit. chef stephen harris is self-taught and makes a point of visiting other restaurants and adopts flourishes that he particularly likes. more of which later.

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