Tapas that’s worth making time for
THE Dial in Burton town centre has been one of the town’s go-to restaurants for 20 years now. Providing a mixture of daytime and evening meals and a large range of drinks including cocktails, the Station Street eatery is one place many East Staffordshire diners have sampled.
We sent along our secret service diner to check out the popular eatery and review the food, drink and ambience.
As soon as you walk in, you’re greeted with low lighting and a range of different dining areas near the front of the restaurant and towards the back.
That’s an indication of just how large the dining area is. It has all the look of an upmarket restaurant you’d find in London. Our diner had a table for two booked for 7pm on a Thursday.
The table already had its drinks menu laid out – so large it was a booklet. There are beverages catering for all tastes, from soft drinks including Coke and bottled water to different exotic mocktails and cocktails.
There’s also stronger stuff, including rum and whiskies, and wine. Also on the table was the food menu, including The Dial’s famous tapas menu.
Without hesitation, our secret diner ordered and got ready to feast. This is what they thought of The Dial.
Initial impressions
To the rear is what is often thought of as the main dining area, catering for the most tables. However, the restaurant makes use of all its space and has several different enclosed areas throughout.
Some restaurants leave tables squashed together, leaving you without space to easily move around. However, The Dial has always maintained privacy for its diners and ensured they are a comfortable distance away from others.
How did the food and drink measure up?
Five minutes after ordering, the drinks arrived. The passionate punch mocktail could’ve been served to us on a beach in its pineapple-shaped glass. It’s a deliciously tangy orange juice and passion fruit, complete with lemon and crushed ice.
The breads for dipping arrived around five minutes later. We had three small rustic cobs between us, both very warm and crunchy, complete with a bowl of balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
The tapas arrived around 10 minutes after we had polished off the bread. You can choose from a wide range of tapas delicacies.
We chose patatas bravas – chunky potatoes in a rich tomato sauce; Asian pork belly with pak choi; spicy meatballs covered in sprinkles of parmesan; lamb koftas with a Greek salad and tzatziki; sesame seed chicken; and a plate of sticky ribs. We also opted for a side order of French fries to complete the meal.
The tapas plates were brought out very quickly together, so we were able to wait until we had everything together to try. My favourite was the Asian pork belly, cooked to perfection, succulent, tasty and almost dissolves in your mouth.
My guest preferred the sesame seed chicken, which came with a side of salad and its own sweet chilli dip. The sticky ribs also came with a bowl for washing your fingers to avoid all the mess.
The meat almost slid off the bone and into the barbecue sauce. The spicy pork meatballs did have a spicy edge, but not so extreme we needed an emergency glass of water afterwards.
For dessert, it was a tricky decision. Did I have a go at the three scoops of different-flavoured icecream which came, with popcorn and marshmallows, or try the intriguing tonka bean panna cotta? The panna cotta it was.
The Dial staff are experts in presentation and this was no exception. Arriving in a bowl, the panna cotta looked smooth and tasty, surrounded by walnuts, poached strawberries and strawberries syrup.
It reminded me of a deliciously extravagant breakfast you take al fresco on a summer’s day. For those who have not tried The Dial’s Maltesters cheesecake, you’re missing a trick. It is white chocolate and crushed Maltesers with vanilla ice cream – what’s not to like?
Would we return to the The Dial?
Absolutely. If you want a superrelaxed and elegant dining experience then this is the place. It’s an impressive first date idea, but is equally popular with friends and family wanting a fancy night out with an affordable price tag.
The quality of food has ensured The Dial’s success for 20 years, as well as its long list of five-star hygiene reports. It’s also great value for money for a lovely night out.
■The Burton Mail makes undercover visits to restaurants, takeaways and cafés in the area with a view to providing a fair, balanced and accurate report on customer service and the food on offer. Our hope is that, for the sake of both the business owner and the customer, we can report positively about the places we visit. However if our experience is not 100 per cent positive then we are duty-bound to report on exactly what we find.