What's on the menu?

What's on the menu?

Wednesday 24 August 2016

Bacon Bad? Not at the Last Chance Saloon

We love bacon so a night of all you can eat piggy was always going to appeal to us when we saw a Facebook advert for the Last Chance Saloon. Their Thursday night offering is Bacon Bad. All you can eat bacon dishes for £9.99. Winner, winner, bacon dinner.

The Last Chance Saloon Nottingham- I Bacon We Trust

Fast forward a couple of weeks and we're sat in the Last Chance Saloon. A basement bar on Plumptre Street within Nottingham's Lace Market area a stones throw from the Ice Stadium It's what you imagine a modern version of a Wild West Saloon would look like with lots of wood and plenty of Bourbon displayed above the bar.


We chose a table pretty much  facing the bar and began to peruse a special meny of piggy related delight. From Bac n'Cheese (Mac and Cheese with added bacon) to Buffalo the Vampire Slayer Wings (Chicken wings wrapped in Bacon). The rule is simple, order 2 items, finish them and you can order 2 more. For £9.99 it sounded like a bargain to us.

The Bar at Last Chance-Plenrty of Bourbon
We started on the #supercoolbaconsushi which sounds more than a little wrong, the wings, Bac n'Cheese and the Bacon Dippers featuring candied bacon with a BBQ dip

#supercoolbaconsushi
The Super Cool Bacon Sushi was ridiculously good with rice cake wrapped in bacon with a delicious barbecue sauce for dipping. The rice cake was nice an chewy with the bacon working well as a wrap. They were so good I wish I had a bag full at the recent Rat Race The Wall Ultramarathon event as they would be very easy to eat on the move and were exceptionally moreish.

Buffalo the Vampire Slayer Wings at Last Chance Saloon
Jumbo chicken wings wrapped in bacon sounds great with a blue cheese dip. The bacon crisping on the outside to lock in the juices of the chicken, keeping it nice and moist.

Buffalo the Vampire Slayer Wings with a serving of Crazy Sauce

We loved the chicken wings wrapped in bacon. Usually served with a blue cheese sauce we also opted for the Crazy Sauce. The wings were great, 2 good sized pieces wrapped in bacon which kept in some of the moisture for the chicken to be nice and succulent. The Crazy Sauce wasn't quite as mad as it sounds. It had a kick but with a very nice sourness added to some smokey tones like a good hot sauce.

Chips and Red Grey Gravy

With a very American feel to the menu the Chips with Red Eye Gravy sounded good. The gravy was lovely and creamy with a nice hint of coffee whilst being topped with cheese and bacon bits. Nice to try though there were certainly better options on the menu. An all you can eat menu is never going to satisfy everyone in entirely.

Frank n'Swine Hotdog

If you love a good hot dog, Frank 'N' Swine will work for you. A bacon wrapped hot dog with mozzarella cheese in a bun with a covering of Funions. Very easy to pig out on.

We also loved the Bac N Cheese. A macaroni cheese with extra cheese and bacon.

Bac N Cheese- Mac and Cheese with Bacon, pure genius
We really enjoyed Bacon Bad at the Last Chance Saloon. Plenty to choose from although after a while it may get a little overkill, although certainly not on the first visit. It's a great variation on the usual all you can eat restaurants in Nottingham and that little bit unique so well worth a visit.


The Last Chance Saloon
A modern saloon style bar- The Last Chance Saloon

Monday 15 August 2016

Mark Visits Memsaab

We recently sent Mark for an evening event at MemSaab, Nottingham's award winning fine dining Indian Restaurant. Here's his thoughts on the evening

I recently had a chance to visit Memsaab, Arguably Nottingham’s best Indian restaurant. Situated on Maid Marian way the exterior of the building is clean well maintained but not extraordinary in any way. Having never visited before, I was not sure what to expect.
The Chefs Created Some Fantastic Canapes

The interior of the place is very well done even down to the live traditional music being very well played. The decor pays homage to some traditional Indian influences and it all looks very rich and sumptuous. I am greeted by a very pleasant and friendly member of staff who directed me to the  reception to which I have been invited.
Drinks and Canapés and a chance to have a taste of a Michelin 2 rosette restaurant! I am greeted by  staff holding trays of very tasty looking  canapés and rows of glasses of champagne and strawberries. A very smart and professional  looking waiter behind the table greeting customers and pouring drinks, everything looked on point well organised and gave the impression I was more important than I actually am. 
Champagne With Strawberries at MemSaab Nottingham

On to the food, we were served lots of tastes of the cuisine available all looking amazing in how they were presented, fresh tasty and very appealing. So on to a selection of the different dishes we were treated to on the night.
We start with the Dahi Batata Puri - this  was unlike like anything I have tried before and am still not sure what was in it!  The dish was not a spicy one as your would suspect but a crispy samosa style topped with a yogurt.
Dahi Batata Puri

The next dish was the Mozzarella and watermelon with mint. This was a cool and refreshing dish perfect for cleansing your palate after several of the more spicy dishes on offer. This was a great dish that I returned to time and again in between other tastes as is did leave your palate feeling like it had been cleansed and thus allows you to experience the different tastes without them being overly contaminated by the previous dishes sampled.
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Mozarella and Broccoli with Mint

Lamb Kathi - this  was served as a wrap of sorts filled with sweet tender chicken or lamb. These were good dishes perhaps to big to be considered a Canapé  in the traditional sense, but nonetheless they were very tasty with a great delicate blend of spices and the veg/salad in the wrap it  gave a different texture with the tenderness of the meat and crispness of the veg.

Next we have the Aloo Broccoli Bonda - This is much like a Bharji in appearance, small and golden in  colour but the taste was one of real spice - probably the spiciest dish of the evening but still not a rocket fuel temperature so I imagine that no one struggled with the spicy nature. This was a good taste and a delicate balance between the broccoli and the potato these were then batter fried giving a nice light but crisp exterior. These were great bite size potions and easily consumed in one bite.

My favourite dish of the evening was the Keema Lamb on a crispy Roti, these tiny morsels had a great balance of spice, flavour and texture that had me going back again and again for more as they were so tasty! Though on appearance they were not by any means the most attractive dish of the evening they were my favourite

Over the years I have grown to love prawns and especially King Prawns! The ones served this night were cooked in coriander, mint these were very juicy and tasty like a king prawn should be. The balance of the flavours nicely held so the delicate prawn flavour was not overwhelmed.
lastly,  well the last dish I tried was the Chicken Murghgola, a more tomato oriented dish with slight spice that was really quite tasty with juicy moist chicken and a decent balance between flavour and spice. 


There were other dishes served but I was not able to  try them all there were number of vegetarian  dishes including a what looked like a tandoori paneer kebab served in a glass with dip!!


Tandoori Paneer Kebab

All through the evening I was impressed by the staff and the presentation of the dishes supplied, there was such a great hub of conversation and it was nice to meet up with some old and new faces all enjoying the one thing  we share in common…GREAT FOOD!!

I had a chance to talk brief with our host and discovered that MemSaab primarily draws its influence for the dishes from the north of India with some dishes originating from southern India and Goa, But where ever the influence does from Memsaab serves great quality food and will have to be visited again  to get a full flavour of the menu.

Sunday 14 August 2016

Taste Testing Faradays- A Food Review

Faradays has been open for a couple of weeks now after a refurbishment from it's former guise as Cape. It's refurbishment cost owners Stonegate £300,000 and it's been transformed into something that little bit special. It's a welcoming place where you could easily sit and watch the world pass by outside or meet friends for chic cocktails on a Saturday night.

Outside Faradays at the top of Hockley

Whilst the cheap drinks of Lloyd's will draw in the drinkers of a weekend, Faradays should draw a slightly different crowd. Whilst drinks may be that little more expensive there's a lot more on offer with a great selection of local real ales. When we popped in they even had the excellent Thornbridge Jaipur on tap so it was a great shame to be driving.

A selection of beers and ales a level above from Faradays

The decor is very much that of a modern pub or bar. Clean lines with a degree of eccentricity to keep things fun and encourage the conversation to flow. There are plenty of cosy points to sit together whether you fancy a booth or a comfy sofa or grab lunch with a group of friends

Clean and uncluttered interior

Upstairs is the Static Attic, The old space previously used for private parties is now a very slick extension of the bar and a great space to mingle late at night. There's a section set up for cocktail masterclasses as well as an area to set up for live acts on a Friday night and a DJ on a Saturday.

The Static Attic upstairs at Faradays
The main reason we were at Faradays was the food. After an invite to check out their menu we couldn't turn down but as always the feelings we express are what we genuinely feel. We rate a bar or restaurant as though we were paying ourselves and Faradays ranked highly for us.

Starters at Faradays


Starters and Tapas at Faradays

Whilst there's no real starters section on the menu, Faradays prefer to concentrate on Tapas and light bites on the menu with a small section. With 3 plates for £9 and 5 for £14 it does appear to offer very good value with a selection of continental style dishes which would work great for sharing at lunch or dinner. There's quite a few options that you wouldn't usually see as pub food so be prepared for a treat.


Chorizo Bites
One of the five plates for £14 was chorizo bites, Plated up were 3-4 decent sized chorizo sausages served with a subtle garlic dip. The chorizo had a soft edge of smoked paprika without the roughness you often taste. It worked great with the garlic mayonnaise dip although the cress served was wilting somewhat and while may have been fresh at the start of the day had lost some of it's joi de vivre.

Deep Fried Calamari

Our second choice was the Deep Fried Calamari and we weren't disappointed. Too often have we experienced rubbery, overcooked calamari but not today. Our Calamari was soft in texture and wrapped in a great flavoursome batter that added to the dish. So good I think I could have requested 5 plates worth for £14 with a portion of chips on the side.

Smoked Haddock and Coley Fishcake
We also opted for the Smoked Haddock and Coley Fishcake. We were persuaded by the promise of it's Applewood Smoked Cheddar as well as an oat and parsley crumb. It's presentation was excellent with the fishcake sitting upon an arrangement of fresh salad items and topped with a piece of lemon for obligatory squeeze.

The fishcake featured a very nice crumb adding a great texture to a very smooth interior. The inside had a lovely creaminess from the cheddar and a hint of smoke from the Applewood and the haddock. Very well presented and well worth trying.

Beef Tomato and Mozzarella

We opted for the Beef Tomato with Mozzarella cheese which was very clean on the palate. It came with a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar although we'd have liked to have seen maybe some fresh basil leaves and black pepper to season instead of the previously mentioned wilting cress.

Iberico Ham Croquetas

I was really looking forward to our fifth choice of Iberico Ham Croquetas. Beautifully gooey and very tasty with chunks of ham inside they worked great with the garlic mayo they were served with.

Our Main Meals at Faradays


Meat Feast Pizza

With a big selection it was pretty tough choosing what to have for mains. We opted for a Pizza and the interesting sounding Topped Mac and Cheese although there was a little confusion from our order due to not only having two versions of Mac and Cheese on the menu, but a third option of a Mac and Cheese Pizza which sounds wrong yet right at the same time. Fortunately this was resolved very quickly and without issue.

The Meat Feast Pizza featured a pig lovers dream. Plenty of bacon, Cumberland Sausage and Pepperoni adding varieties of texture, colour and flavour making this dish very easy on the eye. Pizza is nothing pretentious or complicated but the simplicity is complicated when you factor in that you're looking for a nice, light and crispy base, plenty of zest from your tomato sauce and a serious amount of quality toppings. Faradays hit these tick boxes to create a very nice meaty pizza.

Topped Mac and Cheese

Mac and Cheese I find to be a great Winter comfort food and whilst it's not quite that time of year just yet it doesn't have to be cold for me when you're adding pulled pork on top. The pulled pork had a nice, warming element in the form of a hint of chili. Too often I've had overly dry pulled pork but today it was lovely and moist with plenty of barbecue sauce. Add that to the stodge of the mac and cheese for a classic meal in my book.

Bargain Food Monday to Friday

If you're eating on a budget it's worth considering that Faradays offer a Monday to Friday - 2 for £8.99 menu including Cod and Chips which must be cheaper than heading to the Chippy.

£2.99 Desserts- Seriously Cheap! 


Dessert pricing seems to be an afterthought these days. We've been to plenty of pubs where you can easily part with the best part of a fiver for a pretty standard dessert. We were impressed when we looked at the menu for the desserts at Faradays before we had even seen what they look like. £2.99 is very reasonable indeed.

The Faradays Nottingham Dessert Menu- £2.99 bargains
We opted for the Lemon Meringue Pie with ice Cream as well as the Salted Caramel and Chocolate Bar and were very impressed with what we got. 

The Salted Caramel Bar was a chocoholics wet dream. A chocolate biscuit base, smeared with salted caramel and topped with a rich chocolate fondant to create a little piece of heaven for me. It worked very well with the smooth vanilla ice cream to balance out the flavours.

The Amazing  Salted Caramel and Chocolate Bar
Almost as good was the Lemon Meringue which was certainly a more modern take on the classic. Featuring nice crumbly pastry with a zesty lemon filling topped beautifully with crushed meringue. It came with a lovely tart raspberry coulis and vanilla ice cream.  

Lemon Meringue 


We really enjoyed our visit to Faradays. The service was excellent with some great enthusiastic staff. There's a great choice of food which would suit everyone in the family, desserts are exceptional value for money. As a venue the changes made seem to really open it up as somewhere to consider to draw you higher up Hockley or out from the Lace Market too. You'll certainly be seeing us in there again soon.

Faradays is at 44-48 Pelham Street, Nottingham NG1 2EW

Friday 12 August 2016

Free Pizza This Monday at Inferno Nottingham

If you love your pizza you must have tried Inferno and if you haven't there's an opportunity this coming Monday 15th August for Free
The Infernover at Inferno Nottingham

Inferno offers you the opportunity to create your own pizza, the way you want and how you want it. On Monday they're giving away 100 of their Infernovers from Midday so you'd better be quick.

Whether Monday is your #CheatDay after a heavy weekend training or you just fancy a free lunch whilst out at work.

Visit their Milton Street Restaurant to grab your free lunch.

Inferno think random acts of kindness make the world a better place. They also think the people of Nottingham make the world a better place. So they've done the logical thing and decided to combine the two to reward everyone for being such wonderful, pizza-loving people.