Food safety

Yes, house-cured meats, Maldon rock oysters and local crab. But also plump pheasant dumplings – think big, wobbly, dim sum dumplings, not your nan’s suet chestcloggers – stuffed with Stour valley bird in a vivid, roast onion-flecked broth. Or a parfait of chicken liver with gingerbread and red grape. A pre-lunch amuse-bouche – I don’t hold with the savagery of the modern term “snack” – is a teensy cheese tartlet served in a flip-top box of decorative pebble. I adore that The Fordwich Arms is not afeared to have bold strokes of Michelin-manner whimsy – rare sika venison on kale with plum – and exemplary straightforwardness, too, such as a piece of fresh grilled Kentish mackerel with al dente broccoli and the sharp, sweet prang of pickled shallot. … [Read more...] about The Fordwich Arms: ‘Food that makes you want to move house’ – restaurant review

Caroline Lucas, one of the MPs in the cross-party group, challenged the Foreign Office approach. “By refusing to speak out about the ongoing abuse of these brave individuals, the government is once again putting its pursuit of preferential trade deals ahead of human rights. Its vision of a ‘Global Britain’ is looking like one where moral values are tossed aside in the name of political expediency,” she said. … [Read more...] about UK Foreign Office urged to secure safety of three rights activists in Gulf

“He thought they were going to be together for ever, so seeing pictures of her with Sean’s arms on her bare skin, looking warm and relaxed, was a hard pill to swallow. He’s gutted." … [Read more...] about Little Mix’s Jesy Nelson dines on TINY plate of chicken and carrots while new man Sean Sagar tucks into junk food

Pudding was a warm cherry bakewell-style tart with clotted cream. The cheese selection, if you’re a fan, is possibly the most highfalutin offering being served in Great Britain today, though I am willing to be advised otherwise. That evening, it included Golden Cross goat’s cheese, Lord London, Winterdale Shaw, Mayfield, Burwash Rose and Sussex Blue, and it came with some warm, just-baked buttery digestive biscuits, crackers, a tiny loaf of fresh bread, quince preserve, pickled walnuts, leaves, truffled honey and some homemade chutney. … [Read more...] about The Curlew, Bodiam, East Sussex: ‘Almost as lovely as this job gets’ – restaurant review

The Small Holding is, however, already up there with another brilliant example of self-sustaining, fun fine-dining: Gareth Ward’s Ynyshir in Powys, Wales. This is skilful cooking that retains joy, pace and mischief throughout. The “Full Acre” 11-course menu is £60 (with a wine pairing starting at £40). With fancy dining, the rule of thumb is that the briefer the menu descriptions, the longer the incarceration. Not here. No, sir. “Sweetcorn, egg, mushroom” is followed swiftly by “courgette, chilli, coriander”, and with cheery service, too. A soft, sous-vide yolk appears dotted with crisp kernels and small, earthy bites of fungus. Then, in prompt succession, courgette comes conjured up into a sort-of turbo-bhaji. This is a magical mouthful, my highpoint of lunch. “Those courgettes are from over there,” our server says perkily, pointing out past the car park. … [Read more...] about The Small Holding, Kilndown, Kent: ‘Joy, pace and mischief’ – restaurant review