THEDAILYPOSTFOOD&DRINKGUIDE

Slow it downWhyfoodiePrinceCharles is lookingtoLiverpool

MAY 2010

menumenu

VEGETARIANHEROESREDPERILLAMATTSLOANE

2 Tuesday, May 11, 2010

dinnerdate

JENNIFER ANISTON, right, has reportedly beeneating baby food to shape up. The actress wantedto shift weight before she flew out to Hawaii toshoot new movie Just Go With It, so enlisted thehelp of celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson, whorecommended The Baby Food Cleanse eatingplan, which involves 14 portions of pureed food aday, followed by a healthy adult dinner.

The diet, which Tracey swears by, includes fruitsmoothies, pureed oatmeal and pears withcinnamon, soups containing dandelion greensand a dinner of lean meats and vegetables.

Apparently, it helped Jen shed seven pounds!

Richard Swann, 30, membership sales co-ordinator at Greens Health and Fitness

THE recession is making organic foodcheaper. After a decade of steadygrowth, the industry saw a 13%decline in sales last year.

But the movement has respondedby reducing its prices and cuttingback on profits.

The result has been organic foodspriced closer to their conventionalcounterparts than ever before.

In fact, according to the OrganicTrade Board, staple foods like bread,milk and coffee are now cheaperthan the non-organic variety.

Puddingsareback

THE Stables at Garston hassome interesting newchanges coming up, takingon-board suggestions fromcustomers’ commentcards.

These include theintroduction of a “barmenu” served in the frontof the pub, with aselection of light-bites andideal lunch items startingfrom a recession-busting£3.95.

THIS month sees the return of the fabulousPudding Club at Leaf.

On Tuesday, May 25, there’ll be a chanceto tuck into a five-course dessertdevastation dinner, all topped off andwashed down with a selection of speciallyselected teas to complement.

Tickets £8 (booking essential), 8pm,www.thisisleaf.co.uk

PEOPLE have been takinga slice of lemon with fish

since the Middle Ages.Then people believedthat the fruit's juice

would dissolve any bonesaccidentally swallowed. It

won’t!

BabyfoodforJen

foodfacts

freshmenu

Who would you invite to yourdream dinner party?Pink, Janet Jackson and PaulWalker. Pink, because I’ve just seenher in concert and she wasfantastic.

Janet, because she’s so talentedand she could teach me how todance, and Paul because hesupplies the other variety of“talent”!

Who would be your nightmareguest?Someone boring. A political figurewith no personality, dead behindthe eyes, and who starts arguments!

What would you all drink?If I’m not paying, Champagne allthe way!

What would you serve?Really hot and spicy Mexican food,

especially fajitas, and lots ofnachos with cheese to share.

What would be the topic ofconversation?Anything. There are no limits aslong as it’s entertaining.

Who would do the washing up?Janet and Pink, just so I can havethe pleasure of seeing them inMarigolds.

Pink would be coming toRichard’s dinner party

FIREFLY'S new Britannianatural energy tonic is 100%natural, made from Bramley

apples, blackberries andraspberries.

Priced £1.40, from Waitroseor www.fireflytonics.com

try it

3Tuesday, May 11, 2010

FORGET pistols at dawn.When Merseyside’s chefsbattled it out to be namedVegetarian Chef of theYear, their weapons were

the finest local produce.Held as part of Wirral’s Year of

Food and Drink, the competitionaimed to highlight the bestvegetarian options in localrestaurants, and to praise the chefswho go the extra mile to cater for alltheir diners.

Chefs from Peninsula DiningRooms, The Leverhulme Hotel,Woodcote House Hotel, Sheldrakesand RNK Afro-Caribbean Cateringand Cookery School fought it out forthe title, with a cook-off held atClaremont Farm Kitchen.

The head judge, celebrity chefBrian Mellor, led a panel of veggieand non-veggie foodies to find thefinest option.

Run by Sarah Kearns and Mo Hall,the team behind Bebington-basedcookery school Vegi-Table, thecompetition was fierce.

Eventually, two winners emerged –Ross Gray, from Peninsula DiningRooms, and Alistair Reid, from theWoodcote House Hotel.

Ross impressed the judges with hisbutternut squash, white leek andtoasted pumpkin seed quinoa risottowith red amaranth, while Alistair’sgoat’s cheese royale with butternutsquash cannelloni was anequal treat.

“The standard has beenreally high, so I’m absolutelyover the moon,” says Alistair.“We’ll be making somethingspecial for National Veg-etarian Week this month. Wealways try to cater for alltastes.”

It is hoped the competitionwill become an annual event.

“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it,”says Ross. “We always try tomake our vegetarian optionsas interesting and imaginativeas possible.

“Also, not everybody whoorders vegetarian food isvegetarian. A lot of ourcustomers choose thevegetarian options becausethey prefer the taste or theyfancy a change. It’s a mistaketo throw something on a meatmenu as an afterthought whenyou could be creatingsomething extra special.”

The judges commented onhow nutritious the quinoa inhis winning dish was.

“I’d heard loads aboutquinoa, but I’d never used it inthe restaurant, so I bought apacket from Asda and gave it a go,”says Ross. “I was really impressed.

“I like to keep pushing myself,always trying new things, so I go todifferent suppliers to make sure weget the best.

“There’s a really good Thaisuperstore that does some goodunusual lines. I find that a lot of

Meat-freegourmetmealsJadeWrightsamplesdishesbyMerseyside’svegetarianchefsoftheyear

Butternutsquash,leekandtoastedpumpkinseedquinoarisottowithredamaranth,byRossGray

Top, Alistair Reid;left, his goat’scheese royale withbutternut squashcannelloni; right,Ross Gray with hisbutternut squash,leek and toastedpumpkin seedquinoa risottowith red amaranth

vegetarians are excellent chefs intheir own right.

“They’re used to finding newingredients and trying differentflavours and textures, so it keeps meon top of my game. I like achallenge.”

And because everything at

Peninsula is cooked fresh, Ross cancater for different dietaryrequirements. “We can changethings around on the menu, or makeentirely new dishes if we get a bit ofnotice.

“That means we can adapt dishesto make them vegan, or leave out

things we know people don’t like.”Like Alistair, Ross is also planning

some special surprises for NationalVegetarian Week. “I’ve set myself afew challenges. I’m looking forwardto putting on some good specials.”

■ NATIONAL Vegetarian Week

runs from May 24-30. Tocelebrate, Vegi–Table is running aspecial Come Dine With Usworkshop, on how to cook up afabulous veggie dinner party atClaremont Farm Kitchen on May29. Visit www.vegi-table.co.uk or07974 968 830.

menuchef’s table

INGREDIENTS (serves four)

1 packet quinoa, 1 butternutsquash, 1 large white leek, 1handful pumpkin seeds, vegetablestock, red amaranth (for garnish),unsalted butter, veggie Parmesanor goats cheese

METHOD

Wash quinoa until water runsclear.

Cook in lightly seasoned water forapprox 10 - 12 mins till its tenderbut still has slight bite. Place on atray to cool spread out so it coolsquickly. Next peel and dice thebutternut squash. Dice the whitesof the leek and keep to the side.

Make up some vegetable stock.Gently roast the butternut squashuntil it is tender.

Toast off pumpkin seeds throughthe oven until golden and nutty. Ifyou are using any cheese get it

grated or diced down and returnto the fridge.

Place the pan on a medium heatand lightly oil. Cook off your leekwhites until they are translucent,then slowly put the quinoa in andget well mixed through and thengradually add veg stock.

When it is gently coming to theboil, add your cooked butternutsquash and then put in some dicedbutter which gives a lovely creamytaste. If you are using the cheese,omit the butter and use yourcheese instead.

When it looks nearly ready, add inthe toasted seeds and serve.Garnish with the amaranth, whichhave a lovely sweet taste.

■ PENINSULA Dining Room,www.peninsula-dining-room.co.uk3, Grosvenor Road, New Brighton,0151 639 8338.

Goat’scheeseroyalewithbutternutsquashcannelloni,byAlistairReid,atWoodcoteHouse

INGREDIENTS

125ml double cream, 90g goat’s cheese,three egg yolks, one large potato, 100gbutter, 1 butternut squash, two plumtomatoes, 2 bunches watercress, 4Jerusalem artichokes, 1 shallot, springof basil, juice of a lemon, olive oil, 2sprigs of thyme, 10ml sugar, 1 tspfennel seeds, 1 star anise, 1 bayleaf

METHOD

Reduce cream by two-thirds, take offheat and whisk in the cheese, then eggyolks, pass through a sieve, season andadd half the chopped thyme leaves.Cook in a bain marie at 100°C until set.

Thinly slice potatoes, brush with butterand sprinkle on rest of thyme, thinlyslice butternut squash and put on top ofpotatoes with more butter between.

Place on greaseproof paper. Also put alayer of paper on top, between twotrays and cook for 35 mins or until soft.

Cook remaining squash in pan of salted

water until soft, puree and spread overthe potato/squash slices, roll in cylindershape, sear in a pan until golden brown.

Pick the watercress leaves and blanchuntil soft, refresh with water and iceand squeeze out all liquid. Puree it.

Mix the sugar, fennel seeds, star anise,and bayleaf with vinegar, vegetablestock. Bring to the boil until all sugarhas dissolved, and leave to cool as apickling liquor. Peel and blanch arti-chokes and drop into pickling liquor.

Blanch, skin and chop the tomatoes,chop the shallots and basil. In a pan,squeeze the lemon juice and heatthrough, whisk in olive oil then add thetomatoes, shallots and basil.

Place goat’s cheese in middle of plateon top of watercress puree, cannellonitube is sat on top and arrange otheringredients around plate.

■ WOODCOTE House Hotel, www.woodcotehouse.co.uk, 3, Hooton Road,Hooton, CH66 1QU, 0151 327 1542.

4 Tuesday, May 11, 2010

JadeWrightonhowawoman’ssimpleaimofteachingherchildaboutgoodfoodledtoameetingwithaPrince

know what we’re doing and how it’sbeing received.”

The Prince has been an advocateof Slow Food since meeting itsItalian founder, Carlo Petrini. Thepair are now friends, and Petrini isa regular at Highgrove.

“Slow Food works to ensure good,clean and fair food is a right foreveryone,” explains Trine. “Foodshould taste good, it should beproduced in a clean way whichcares for the environment, healthand animal welfare, and we shouldkeep a connection with where ourfood comes from.”

Groups, or convivia as they arecalled, around the world work toraise the profile of cooking andfarming versus fast, mass produced,convenience foods.

“Convivium is an odd word,really we’re just a group of peoplefrom all walks of life who love goodfood,” laughs Trine. “We meet andlook at ways of promoting what wedo, and learning more aboutproducers and chefs in the area, andof course eating and drinking, too.

“We try and keep a real balance.There are formal events with sit-down meals, but also we have a lotof free picnics where everyonebrings food to share.

“We had a lovely picnic in thebombed-out church, wherehomeless people came to share ameal with us. It isn’t about being amiddle-class dining club. It’s aboutloving food and hopefully changingthe way food is perceived.

“A big part of this is aboutworking with community groups.People have been so keen to help.We had a stall at the Bold StreetFestival, and a woman who I’d nevermet from the Grow Granby project

Chef SarahKearnspreparesfood forthe eventatClaremontFarm

Code:ph060510e

slowgrow-6

Visitors to the Slow Food event, at Claremont Farm, in Clatterbridge, take a touraround the farm Code: ph060510eslowgrow-1

slow food

Besttakeitniceandslowly...

Ready and waiting to beserved . . . Code: ph060510eslowgrow-7

WHEN Trine Hughesdecided to educateher baby sonabout good food,she had no idea

that would see her end upworking with Prince Charles.

This week, the family lawyer fromPrinces Park has returned from atrip to Highgrove where she went tomeet the Prince of Wales to talkabout Slow Food Liverpool.

“I set up the Slow Foodconvivium in Liverpool after I hadmy son,” explains Trine, 37. “Iwanted to teach him about goodfood and healthy eating from thebeginning.

“Prince Charles is a bigsupporter of farming andtraditional food production, so heinvited us to come and talk aboutour work, and to see his farm inaction.”

Slow Food Liverpool has beenrunning for almost two years, andalready it is one of the mostthriving groups in the country.

“Prince Charles was very keen tohear about Liverpool,” says Trine.“He was asking me all about thework we’ve been doing in Anfieldand Toxteth. He’s a real farmer – hewas pioneering organic farmingyears ago, and he really wanted to

Situated in the recently restoredStanley Park, Kemps Bistro at theThe Isla Gladstone Conservatoryis perfectly located for enjoyinglazy Sundays in the park. With freeparking, and acres of beautifulgardens it’s the ideal place to goand unwind. You will be delightedwith everything we have to offer,with our delicious, home~made,locally sourced, organic, freshlyprepared food.

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5Tuesday, May 11, 2010

A FINE teapot to grace thetable is always a joy . . .perk-up your tastebudswith this floral offeringfrom Emma Bridgewater.

The Emma BridgewaterNational Gardens Schemeflowers teapot is £59.95,from John Lewis, call08456 049 049 forstockists or www.johnlewis.com

EXERCISE guru andbodybuilder Jack LaLanneis behind this famous fruitjuicer. With its wide feedchute, it makes slicingapples, oranges, grapes,melons and carrots abreeze for early morningjuices or afternoon soups.

It also comes with arecipe book packed withideas. Jack La Lannecompact power juicer, £63,QVC, www.qvcuk.com

THE Daisy CupcakeBouquet is a tastyalternative to realflowers.

The Bouquet can beposted to all mainlandUK addresses and costs£42.50 (inc delivery).Two days’ notice isneeded. Call 01923 858214 or www.cupcakebouquet.co.uk

Trine Hughes, GroupLeader For Liverpool SlowFood, at the ClaremontFarm event

Pictures: PAUL HEAPS/ph060510eslowgrow-5

Slow Food Events 2010

menu

Besttakeitniceandslowly... cupboardlove

MAY 20: An Introductionto Grow Your Own, at theSefton Park Allotments

June 15: An evening withthe Liverpool CheeseCompany, Woolton

June 27: Gardens’ OpenDay, with Slow FoodLiverpool

July 18: Big Lunch held inassociation with theNational WildflowerCentre

August 29 and 30: Wirral

Food and Drink Festival

September 12: LiverpoolFood Festival

October 5: Asian Fusion

Evening – with AbiPointing

November 2: InternationalFood Evening

VickieAnderson,ofWoolton’sLiverpoolCheeseCompany

Claremont Farm’s Andy Pimbley, picturedhere with chef Brian Mellor, will againhost the Wirral Food and Drink Festival

arrived with 40 of the mostbeautiful lavender cupcakes I’veever seen.

“We’re also working on projectsin Anfield to support communitygroups to grow fruit andvegetables in their streets. We’vehad so much support at everyturn.”

Their most recent event was awelly walk farmer’s tour atAndrew Pimbley's ClaremontFarm, on Old Clatterbridge Road,Bebington.

“It’s been fantastic to see thework that goes into growing thecrops here at the farm,” saysTrine.

“Andrew and his team do anamazing job, and it’s been good for

us to be reminded of where ourfood actually comes from.”

As well as the farm tour andsome hands-on asparagus cutting,the convivium enjoyed canapésand a three-course meal madefrom the farm’s produce byVegi-Table chefs Mo Hall andSarah Kearns.

“After seeing where the producecomes from, it was good to see howto cook it so well. Mo and Sarahgave us a demonstration of how tocook what we’d been harvesting,and then served up a wonderfuldinner at the end of it. It was aperfect end to a very enjoyablenight.”

For the future, Trine hopes toexpand the convivium, with

groups dedicated to slow babyfood, students and older people.She’s also working on a Liverpoolrecipe book to document the localspecialities that crop up acrossMerseyside.

“Everyone we meet has been sohelpful and encouraging, and we’dlove to do more,” she smiles.“We’ve found that Liver-pool has a real appetitefor Slow Food, and nowwe’re going about tryingto satisfy that.”■ TO FIND out moreabout Slow FoodLiverpool, contactTrine Hughes onslowfoodliverpool@yahoo.com

6 Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Food facts

ThisIndianmakestheGradeEmmaJohnsonfollowsinthefootstepsofCromwellwhenshegoesinsearchofagoodcurry

The Tudor exterior of The Cottage Indian restaurant in Warrington; and, inset, the interior. Below,left, the plaque commemorating Cromwell’s visit in 1648

THE Cottage, Tudor Cottage,90, Church Street,Warrington, WA1 2TF

Tel: 01925 241888

www.thecottagerestaurant.co.uk

Interior: Clever mix ofhistoric and contemporary

Service: Swift and polite

Value: Excellent. £49.95 forfive courses with drinks.

menu eatingout

WHEN OliverCromwell stoppedoff to spend thenight in a Tudorcottage in

Warrington, he was fresh fromdefeating the Scottish Royalists.

We had no such victory tocelebrate when we popped in oneBank Holiday afternoon, we weresimply in search of a tasty curry.

You see, more than 350 years aftera victorious Cromwell made hisstop-off at the cottage, the building isnow home to a fine Indianrestaurant.

One of the oldest buildings in theCheshire town, the cottage lay in astate of disrepair for many yearsuntil the current owners decided tobreathe new life into it.

They had quite a job on theirhands as the cottage’s Grade IIlisting meant that all work had to beapproved by National Heritage butthey have done an excellent job.

From the outside, the building isevery inch the perfect Tudor cottagecomplete with plaquecommemorating Cromwell’s visit.Inside, the bar area is similarlytraditionally Tudor in design, withmagnificent roof beams and oakpanelling. But in the main area ofthe restaurant things couldn’t bemore different.

The large white room is strikinglymodern; dark wood chairs sit on astripped wood floor and the walls aredecorated with dashes of red andmodern prints.

When we arrived, the restauranthad barely opened its doors for thatevening’s service. So, while thewaiters got themselves together, wewere ushered into the bar area andoffered menus to peruse.

Over a large glass of dry whitewine for me (£3.85) and a Tiger beerfor my husband (£3.10), we made ourdecisions as towhat to order.

I have aconfession tomake here: I amno expert atIndian cuisine.

I didn’t eat myfirst curry until Iwas about 19 andon that particularoccasion was

foolish enough to believe someonewhen they told me that lime picklewas “really nice, a bit likemarmalade”.

I like Indian food, but concern formy waistline keeps me fromindulging in it too often. That, andthe fact that my stomach throws a fitif I dare to eat anything too spicy,means I tend to stick to a few triedand tested dishes when we doventure out for a curry, which atleast makes ordering simpler.

My husband has no such foodissues, in fact he has no food issues

at all, so spent hiswhole beerporing over thedozens anddozens of disheson The Cottage’smenu.

By the time wewere taken toour table, wewere finallyready to order.

To start, I chose the lamb seekkebab, which should have been £3.95but the restaurant had a fantasticBank Holiday offer on of five coursesfor £14.95 – poppadoms, starter, maincourse, side order and coffee ordessert. My husband ordered thetandoori chicken (normally £4.25).

Within minutes of taking ourorder and assuring us that, yes,everything on the menu could beordered as part of the deal, ourwaiter returned with the poppadomsto take the edge off our hunger.

The starters weren’t far behindand accompanied by another roundof drinks.

Both dishes were delicious. Mykebab had just enough kick for meand was juicy and well cooked. Thetandoori chicken was bursting withflavour and moist.

With the starters cleared, we weregiven a few minutes between courseswhich was welcome and when themains did arrive we could smellthem before we saw them.

Throwing calorie counting to thewind I had ordered the chickenmakhani (£8.10), a mild, creamy dishcooked using more butter than I careto contemplate.

My husband went for the chickenmasala (£9.35) and to go with themwe ordered a pilau rice (£2.85), amushroom pilau (£3.75) and a garlicnaan, too, (£2.85) for good measure.

In keeping with the restaurant’smodern theme, all the dishes arrivedon huge white plates – none of thoselittle balti bowls or steel tureenshere.

My makhani was stop-traffic goodand so devilishly rich I could feel myhips getting bigger with everymouthful.

The masala was similarlyexcellent. It was very lightly spicedbut creamy and bursting with tomatoflavours. Neither dish skimped onthe meat portion and the chicken inboth was fabulously tender.

The rice dishes were light andfluffy, although we could have done

with a couple more spoonfuls of eachto match the curry portions.

But at least that left us room fordessert. There was nothing tooadventurous on the sweets menu; ahandful of traditional Britishdesserts are complemented by one ortwo Indian dishes like mangoshi andgulab jam.

I stuck with my favourite;chocolate fudge cake, while my otherhalf ordered the strawberrycheesecake. Both provided amuch-needed sugar kick after allthose Indian spices.

Although our dining offer allowedfor dessert or coffee, we ordered both– a cappucino for me and a latte forhim – and were very impressed,when the bill arrived, to discover wehad been charged for the coffees at£1.75 and £1.95 rather than the £4.95desserts.

It was a very satisfying end to theevening, and, unlike Cromwell, wewill definitely be returning to TheCottage.

Asparagusreachesnewheights

Claremont Farm’s Andy Pimbley, with MarcWilkinson from Fraiche, and Wirral asparagus

WIRRAL’S freshest asparagusnouveau has been rushed fromfarm to forks around the region,to Michelin-starred restaurantsand to the iconic Big Onerollercoaster at Pleasure BeachResort, Blackpool.

To celebrate the first Englishasparagus of the season, expertgrowers from Wirral havedelivered the first tasty tips toNorthcote in Blackburn, Fraîchein Oxton, and even to PleasureBeach Resort, Blackpool, for

their new Grill restaurant.Claremont Farm’s AndyPimbley braved the UK’s tallestrollercoaster to highlight therole farmers play in the region’sgastronomic economy, and tocelebrate “haute cuisine” duringWirral’s Year of Food 2010(www.visitwirral.com/food).

Michelin-starred chefs,Northcote’s Nigel Haworth andFraîche’s Marc Wilkinson, pridethemselves on sourcing freshlocal produce, giving their

diners the very best experiencewhile also sustaining ruralbusinesses in the community.

Wirral asparagus is specialbecause the Wirral has slightlyhigher temperatures thansurrounding areas up north, butis still cooler than down south.

This means the asparagusgrows slightly more slowly andretains more of its flavour.

The Peninsula is almost anisland, embraced by the Dee, theMersey and the Irish Sea, and

asparagus loves a salty coastalclimate. Plus, Wirral has twosandstone ridges running downthe middle, giving the area thewell-drained sandy soil in whichit thrives.

The season in May and Juneis short, so diners and shoppersare encouraged to enjoy Englishasparagus while it is around.■ FIND out more at www.claremontfarm.co.uk

Jade Wright

7Tuesday, May 11, 2010

bestbarnone

TO THE natives of SouthLiverpool, Mustard used to bethe late bar on the AllertonRoad strip.

Slightly farther down onSmithdown Road, it stayedopen until 1am, when the barsaround Penny Lane and RoseLane had shut their doors forthe night.

It was a great place for awhile, until, like all thesethings, word got out too farand a relaxed, friendlyatmosphere was lost.

But, after being shut for ayear, the venue is under newmanagement and has beenreborn as Red Perilla.

It's essentially the same barand restaurant, although

pitching itself at a slightlydifferent clientele.

The bar itself is spacious witha mixture of high stools, tables,and black leather sofas. Acollection of framed paintingsand photographs, some offamous Liverpool landmarks,adorn the walls and areavailable to buy.

Drink prices are reasonable.Kronenbourg (£3.40), Amstel(£3), Guinness (£3.40), with itsprize draw – Moretti – availableat an eye-opening £3.80.

Small glasses of wine are£3.40 and upwards, while largeglasses start from £4.60.

■ RED Perilla, 336-338,Smithdown Road, Wavertree,L15 2HD. 0151-522 9333

Inside Red Perilla, on Smithdown Road

menuthe wine list

IAM ever prone to fantastichyperbole. It is an affliction.My limitless pretension canoften lead to incredulousapprehension towards my

outlandish claims. It is with thisin mind that I have to advise nocaution, whatsoever, in thewholehearted acceptance of mylatest boast – I have just eatenthe greatest food I've ever beenserved in this grand old city.

I have been a fervent admirer ofthe Everyman Bistro's glorioustucker for many years, so it waswith no trepidation at all that Iswiftly booked a table at thelegendary Supper Club.Intrepid food hunter, PaddyByrne and cosmic panwizard, Tom Gill, will,from time to time, invite alucky few to be served athemed menu in the tinyThird Room ofLiverpool's flagshipfood haven. Thetheme, this month,was Spain. I didn'tlove Spanish fooduntil last night.

I find tapas to bea bit of a pain,tortilla is adespicable drag and thevarious oil-ladencatastrophes I've

sampled over the years have givenme naught but a passion forSpanish beer and Spanish exits. Myworld has been turned on itspresumptuous head and beentaught how to breakdance.

Our first course of white beansoup with morcilla and bacon wasan incomparable delight, blindingflavours from the soup and a strokeof genius to bang it together withblood sausage and bacon. Trustingthe wine recommendation, mycohorts and I ordered a tidy weeAlbarino to set us up for the hakefillet. Frighteningly well cooked,served with a sharp salsa verde,perfect with the citrus jab from thewine. Eyeing up the next course,the best paella ever made bymortals, we took a suave gambleon a bottle of Gewurztraminer.

Aces. Diamond studded aces. Ihave no idea how Mr Gill

created the flavours inhis paella, I don't wantto know, it'd be likefinding DerrenBrown's notebook,I'm just happy to

have eaten it andextra happy that theGewurz flew downlike a greased eagle.

I don't like pudding,it's for girls, usually. Thisdessert, however, would

fetch a ridiculous price in a morecynical establishment.

A trio comprising mad, sangriajelly; an almost illegally richchocolate dip for the cheekychurros and a sharp, nutty tart thatreminded me of everything I usedto like about the girl that broke myheart. Sling out a dram of silkydessert wine and you'll have threefellas breaking out into song, well,we would've, had we been able tostop eating.

The price for this outstandingmenu was twenty-four pounds.Twenty-four. I'm only letting youknow about this secret society asI'm leaving the country. Book nowfor the next 0151 708 9545.

And now for somethingcompletely different . . .

I like beer. I love wine, but I likebeer. Akin to being a secret Trekkie,I'm a sly admirer of real ale. I keepit under the old Panama as I fearfor being associated with such aneveryday obsession. I believe I'vediscovered a rather boutiquebrewery that can satisfy my lust forhoppy beverages and my need forexclusivity and panache.

Liverpool Organic Brewery haveconjured up a selection of excellentflirting water and sent a few bottlesfor us to try at a recent meeting ofobsessive booze botherers.

The outstanding example turnedout to be an ale named after one ofour city's finest sons, WilliamRoscoe. This nutty, full-flavouredbeer mustn't be served too cold andcarries a bit of sediment. I'm goingto serve it with a spiced, muttonstew whilst head-banging toMozart's Requiem and quotingHamlet.

MathewSloane

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8 Tuesday, May 11, 2010

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