Van Zeller appeared on my wishlist shortly after they won ‘Overall Winner’ in the Oliver Awards.  Until then, I have to admit they hadn’t really appeared on my radar.  Anyway, we booked a table for early September at lunchtime (we really needn’t have booked – we were the only ones for a while).

The inside was smaller than I’d thought it would be, but it wasn’t too crammed that you were too close to the next table.

We had a choice of three menus to order from.  I dont understand why restaurants feel the need to bombard you with so many menus?  Why not just have a single one, especially when the menus look like they’re printed in house.

I ordered from the a la carte menu.

PHOTO: Bread and amuse bouche

PHOTO: Smoked Eel & Pea Mousse Terrine £9.50
“Smoked Eel & Pea Mousse Terrine – Serrano Ham, Breakfast Radishes, Pickled Shallots and Potato Crisp“

This was delicious. I’d eaten eel a few months back and quite enjoyed it so I was eager to try it again. It was light, and each mouthful was full of fresh tasting ingredients.

PHOTO: Pork Loin and Slow Cooked Belly £22.75
“Pork Loin and Slow Cooked Belly - Doreens Black Pudding, Crackling, White Bean Puree, Spring Onions, Baby Purple and Yellow Carrots“

The pork was sous-vided (cooked in a water bath) so was pink in the middle.  This, disturbed a nearby female diner who complained to her partner that the pork wasn’t cooked.  The pork was perfect!  However the crackling along the top wasn’t that great.

PHOTO: Summer Berries £8.95
“Summer Berries – Strawberry Jelly, Vanilla Cream, White Chocolate Praline, Raspberry Sorbet“

This, I thought was really well presented.  It was a lovely refreshing, light dessert.  It was a fantastic end to a great meal.

We didn’t stay for coffee.  The bill was pricey as we’d ordered from the A la carte menu, but the food was perfectly presented and cooked.  I wasn’t disappointed having driven an hour for my lunch!

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