Bean and Bud, Harrogate

We stopped off for a late lunch in Harrogate a week last Friday after a trip to Fountains Abbey (lovely, best bit the mill, need to return in less miserable weather). It was way past proper meal time, especially given that we were heading home for a steak dinner, so sandwiches and coffee seemed like the best bet.

Bean and Bud served a pretty good flat white, texture-wise spot on, smooth as you like and balanced between coffee and milk. It was just a little bland for my taste though, not really delivering the complex flavours advertised. There were a choice of two espresso blends with quite differing descriptions, one fruitier and the other darker with more pronounced bitterness. We chose one of each but I couldn't discern the difference. Under-strength coffee or maybe my palate is shot? I'm not really sure.

The sandwiches were all pre-made and cling film wrapped, but didn't seem to have suffered as a result. Cheese and tomato tasted fresh and was made with good quality bread and something sharp and a bit crumbly (either a cheddar or an older, more mature Lancashire or similar) from local suppliers the Cheeseboard. A basic sandwich but a good one, like what you'd make to take to work on a 'can be bothered' sort of a day.

Worth a visit if you need a caffeine fix in Harrogate. I'd certainly like to give the coffee another chance to find out whether I was having a tasting off-day. Prices about average for an indie coffee shop, that being a little bit cheaper than the biggest chains (but a good bit better).

7/10

14 Commercial Street
Harrogate
HG1 1TY

http://www.beanandbud.co.uk/

Bizzie Lizzie's, Skipton, North Yorkshire

There's not a lot happening on the food front round here at the moment, so fish and chips is about as exciting as it's going to get.

Bizzie Lizzie's in Skipton served up a decent effort. A hefty slab of moist fish, deftly battered, was good even if it was cod. Are they not in the haddock triangle round these parts?

The chips were fine, and supplied in modest rather than the usual gargantuan chip shop quantities. Sensible really, as I'm sure the UK wasted chip mountain could feed small nations.

Overly clarty peas needed letting down a bit, I'm still scraping green stuff from the roof of my mouth (at least I think that's the peas). Home made tartare sauce was better and a buttered white slice apiece was included. Chip butty heaven.

A bit pricier than my usual fish and chip forays, but you do pay extra for the privilege of crockery, cutlery and table service. About £9.50 all in for fish, chips, peas, bread and tea.

7/10

36 Swadford Street
Skipton
North Yorkshire
BD23 1QY

http://www.bizzielizzies.co.uk

Good things to eat [Volume 13]

Here's another round-up of a few good things I've been eating recently.

Wensleydale Creamery Cheeses

I've had a long and enduring relationship with Wensleydale cheese. As a teenager trips to stay at a mate's parents caravan near Aysgarth often entailed a trip further up the dale to gorge on freebies at the creamery shop.

These were some of my earliest full-on food orientated weekends really (though I'm not sure that's quite how we saw it at the time), with fish and chips in Leyburn followed by a visit to the butcher's for ham and egg pies and slabs of belly pork to tide us over until a sturdy pub dinner and a skinful of Riggwelter. Oof. And that's before we even got to the cheese.

The last time I was there I was worried that they'd sold out to the mass-production gimmick-cheese gods (maybe they'd got Alex James in as a consultant?), there being little of interest beyond the basic Wensleydale and far too many fruity, sugary, stupid versions with bits in. Wensleydale with pineapple anyone?

This time around they seem to have had a rethink. The gimmick cheese is still there in spades, but attentions have been re-focussed on cheese for people who like the taste of cheese. I was particularly impressed by these three cheeses.

Photo credit: Wikipedia commons

Kit Calvert Wensleydale - an extra mature version that somehow manages to retain the fresh crumbly character of the young cheese while also being softer in texture and less acidic in taste. It's quite buttery and rich, and probably best eaten on its own. Or maybe with an Eccles cake or an apple.

Bishopdale - a good quality cheddar-alike, with a very smooth almost processed texture rescued by the presence of loads of little crystalline bits and a fantastic flavour. Rich and meaty, sort of like the surface of a properly cooked steak. Great in anything you'd put cheddar in I would have thought.

Coverdale - Wensleydale taken in the opposite direction to the Kit Calvert version, wonderfully bright and tart, a fresher alternative to the original. Would work well in salads in place of feta, but worth eating on it's own.

The cheese shop at the Hawes creamery has lots of free samples. You can really fill your boots and no-one seems to mind. Probably polite to actually buy some as well, which I always do these days.

http://wensleydale.co.uk/


Forge Bakehouse

A new bakery that's just opened on Abbeydale Road in Sheffield. I came across it completely by accident on what was actually their opening weekend. I bought a very good baguette, but need to investigate their bread further before writing about it.

What doesn't warrant further investigation, but does warrant many repeat purchases, is their pastry. A lemon meringue pie and a Valrhona chocolate brownie were an absolute delight, the pie especially so. In really skilled hands it's possible to make calorific fat and sugar laden pastries and puddings with such a deft touch it's as if you were eating delicious air.

Whoever is baking at the Forge has that level of skill. I could eat one of these pies in two mouthfuls. Two mouthfuls of burnished sticky sweet meringue, smooth tangy lemon and the shortest, most delicate pastry.

232 Abbeydale Road
Sheffield
S7 1FL

http://www.forgebakehouse.co.uk/


Raspberry Curd

Until I saw this in the gift shop at Rievaulx Abbey I'd never even considered the possibility of a curd being made from anything other than citrus fruit, but why the hell not. Any suitably acidic fruit ought to work right?

Raspberries, being the best fruit there is, make an excellent curd. The flavour is purest essence of raspberries and butter, sweetened a little. You want this on your toast, trust me.

Available at National Trust shops, but home-made would be even better. Come to think of it, how about a raspberry meringue pie?

The Sandpiper Inn, Leyburn, North Yorkshire

Last weekend I had a thoroughly enjoyable time showing off some of the finest parts of Yorkshire to AS. Having lived in Yorkshire for over twelve years she probably didn't consider that necessary, but I can't help coming over all proprietorial when it comes to exhibiting God's own county, particularly where southerners are concerned.

I'm a rubbish Yorkshireman at times anyway (favourite northern city: Manchester) so any opportunity to remind myself of its amazingness is a good thing. Take a trip, as we did, to Bedale, then up through Wensleydale via Aysgarth Falls, West Burton and Hawes, then head over the Buttertubs Pass and back down Swaledale, then onwards to Sutton Bank, Helmsley, Rievaulx Abbey, Dalby Forest and finally the coast. Amazing.

Waterfalls in full spate, broad snow-capped fells, lush valleys, handsome market towns, autumn-bronzed woodlands, idyllic mist-clad ruins, the works. Truly wonderful. {Welcome to Yorkshire - please send the job offer to the e-mail address opposite}.

We couldn't cover that lot in a single day so a bed for the night was required. The Sandpiper in Leyburn provided the bed, and dinner and breakfast as well. It's a solid 17th century inn, all wooden beams and cosy fires, perfect for a chilly November night.

Home made breads got things off to a fantastic start. All three were very good, especially a wholemeal roll with an open, chewy crumb and wonderful depth of flavour. The butter and a little dish of hummous served alongside were also top notch.

My cauliflower and cumin soup with queenie scallops was presented rather more artfully than the photo would suggest, as it was taken after the soup had been poured over the scallops at the table. It was pleasant enough but the scallops weren't the best, being on the bland side and a bit gritty.

AS had the tempura vegetables, a good bit of deep-frying skill with some decent home-made sweet chilli sauce.

Duck leg with sauteed potatoes, red cabbage and green beans was a reliable plate of food, solid and satisfying if a little uninteresting. I'm not sure quite what I was expecting, the duck skin was properly crisped and the fat rendered, the veggies all as they should have been, it just seemed a bit underwhelming for £16.50.

AS had the rib steak with mushrooms and chips, which turned out to be the opposite of my dish I suppose. Not so competently cooked (it had to be sent back for extra grill time after arriving very rare rather than the requested medium) but bloody lovely. It was a beautiful piece of meat with rich creamy fat and a dark, savoury crust. Well aged beef and a very hot grill making a happy marriage, luckily for me a fair amount of it found its way onto my plate.

Raspberry and vanilla vacherin with orange and blackberries was almost a really lovely pudding, but the orange slices were too assertive and overwhelmed the other fruits. The frozen raspberry and vanilla stuff (like a semifreddo) on top of a meringue was great though. A vacherin is a sort of fruit and meringue dessert by the way, and not just a sweaty cheese.

The skill with the ices was further demonstrated with a bowl of ice-creams and sorbets. The lemon sorbet was like a slap in the chops, an icy wake-up call at the end of a rich meal, full of acidic, bittersweet flavour.

With a bottle of unremarkable Australian red the bill came to around eighty pounds before service, which was excellent throughout. Professional and efficient but not in the least bit stuffy, with a good bit of dry northern humour thrown in for good measure.

Given that we stayed the night I should also give breakfast a quick mention so here's the lowdown on the full English: Excellent bacon and black pudding. Good sausage, tomatoes and mushrooms. Let down slightly by a watery poached egg, and I'd have liked some beans but maybe that's just me.

We enjoyed our night at The Sandpiper, our experience was of a good restaurant (and I do mean restaurant, this isn't a drinkers pub. The front door was locked by half past ten) with cooking that's very accomplished in parts if a bit inconsistent, and uses some wonderful ingredients. The baking, ice cream making and quality of red meat served were the highlights.

7/10

Market Place
Leyburn
North Yorkshire
DL8 5AT

http://www.sandpiperinn.co.uk/
 

Crab and Lobster, Asenby, North Yorkshire

Today I met up with my sister and future brother-in-law for a long, leisurely lunch. We went to The Crab and Lobster, a North Yorkshire restaurant (it possibly just about classes as a pub, it does have a bar) specialising in seafood. I hadn't been there before, but had heard of it. It's been around for years and has become a bit of a Yorkshire institution with a good reputation.

Not normally a strong point of mine as I tend to focus on my food rather than the surroundings, but first a note on the decor. This place is eccentric to say the least. The main dining areas are kitted out in a sort of nautical theme, with fishing nets adorning the ceilings and even an entire vintage diving suit in situ. Some parts seem to veer off from this into a sort of 1920's opium den or speakeasy sort of vibe, with chinese patterned screens, hats and musical instruments adorning shelves and walls. The gents toilets win the prize for most bonkers of all, being entirely kitted out with photo's and paintings of Marilyn Monroe accompanied by actual real-life bra's and knickers hanging from the walls. Not sexy ones either, just plain white cotton smalls. All in all I rather liked it, mad but suggesting a place that doesn't take itself too seriously. Sometimes more upmarket, rural pub restaurants can be a bit po-faced. Not the Crab and Lobster.

Back to the food. The original intention was to order from the set menu (£18 for three courses) but it turns out that Sunday is the only day they don't serve this on, so a la carte it was. The menu is a mixture of classic dishes (fish soup, lobster thermidor, steak and chips etc) and some more ambitious sounding stuff (Grilled Fresh Local Halibut, Cauliflower & Almond Puree, Tomato, Asparagus Seared King Scallops, Lobster Bisque sounded good). I chose the fish soup, followed by fish and chips.

Pints or halves of well kept Best Bitter from local brewery Nick Stafford's Hambleton Ales went down nicely while we were waiting. The bread basket promptly arrived, and was excellent. Three different breads, one granary, one white with a cheese crust, and one dark with walnuts. The dark bread was my favourite, almost like a very nutty malt loaf. The accompanying butter was unsalted and creamy.

The fish soup was served the classic french way, with croutes, rouille, and Gruyere cheese. It was a delight to eat, the rich red soup having a good stock base and being chock full of salmon, mussels, prawns and scallops. The addition of all the cheese and rouille made it very rich, and a struggle to finish, but I just about managed it with strings of cheese dribbling down my chin. My sister's mussels (in a cream sauce with bacon and cabbage) were also noteworthy. Good plump specimens, not at all gritty.

After the fish soup, my main course was a little bit disappointing (probably also a poor choice after such a substantial starter). The fish was a good chunky fillet of haddock cooked just right, but the batter was too thick and rather stodgy. The mushy peas were dry and claggy, and would have been fine if let down a bit. The chips however, were excellent with very crisp exteriors and soft fluffy centres. The tartare sauce was also very nice.

Having ordered such substantial starters and mains, there was little room left for pudding so we ordered one to share between the three of us, a lemon meringue pie with raspberries. They were back on the top form of the starters with this, it was very, very good. Perfect balance of sweetness and tartness between the lemon filling and the meringue, and the pastry case was light and buttery. The raspberries on the side were more than just garnish, having the strongest, deep, tart raspberry flavour of any I can recall eating. No mean feat in February, I think they must have been macerated in some sort of raspberry syrup or liqueur.

In summary I liked this place a lot, on the whole it was very good. The fish soup was a particular highlight. It's expensive, 3 courses with service but no booze will set you back about thirty quid, but the set menu at £18 would represent great value. To add to the fun on a Sunday you get serenaded by a man with a banjo in a technicolour suit, who goes by the name of Richard Muttonchops, ably accompanied by his mate on sax. Apparently they play free jazz. Told you it was bonkers.


8/10

Crab & Lobster
Dishforth Road
Asenby
Thirsk
North Yorkshire
YO7 3QL
http://www.crabandlobster.co.uk/
http://www.hambletonales.co.uk/
http://www.muttonchops.org/