Refined Dining
Tom Simmons brings some Tower Bridge favourites to the heart of Cardiff’s dining scene
PAIRING fine dining with Cardiff’s Pontcanna area seems like a no-brainer. So to discover that Tom Simmons – MasterChef contestant and the titular talent behind desirable Tower Bridge restaurant – was opening at the site of the former Cameo Club seemed like a given.
The first restaurant in Wales for Pembrokeshire-born Simmons – called Thomas by Thomas Simmons – is in a great catchment area indeed, with fellow MasterChef star Tommy Heaney’s place just a short walk around the corner.
On the night we visited it was packed with the Wales rugby team’s backroom squad no doubt taking a deserved break from the Six Nations hubub.
From outside, and for the most part inside, Thomas has freshened up what had become a slightly tired-looking bistro and the green and white awning outside looked classic but at the same time fresh and stylish.
The interior hasn’t changed drastically but the walls have been painted in a rich and luxurious shade of green. You can certainly see the French/British influence on style – and some favourites from his London venue – and we were envious of the lush, velvet chairs.
Menu-wise it’s interesting – its grill section of chicken and steak can be deceiving, but don’t be fooled, more on that later.
As we perused the choices, which on top of the grill featured a roast monkfish tail, miso carrots with pearl barley and a risotto, we nibbled on some mushroom croquettes (£4) and Gordal olives (£3.50). If the purpose of these nibbles was to set the scene for the meal, they set the bar high.
The delicate mushroom croquettes were oozing with flavour encased in crispiness and the subtle olives were addictive and popped in the mouth.
After finally deciding on our choices, I ordered the king scallop with laverbread, pork belly and cauliflower (£14.50) for my starter.
It was delicately and attentively presented – you can imagine the chef with his tweezers in the kitchen. I had to carefully concentrate to get each element in one forkful, and it was so worth it. The scallop was so beautifully cooked and so fresh that it held up its own against the powerful pork and laverbread flavours.
My friend’s starter was a kaleidoscope of a dish – barbecued leeks with Jerusalem artichoke and hazenut romesco (£8.50).
It reminded her of a similar dish she’d eaten by another Welsh chef called Tomos at London restaurant Brat. The leeks cooked on a charcoal grill shone against a combination of great flavours of a tomato pesto and artichoke, sprinkled in hazelnuts.
For her main, she chose “fish and chips” (£23.50) for the sheer curiosity of the inverted comments.
And at first glance it didn’t look too surprising – but boy, she was wrong. The textures and flavours were amazing. The fish was cooked beautifully, topped with tempura breadcrumbs and the kick of a potent vinegar gel in a nod to your local chippy, and accompanied by an incredibly silky pea puree.
And on closer inspection, the fat “chips” were served dauphinoise-style – a stack of thinly-sliced layers punctuated with salt, Parmesan and garlic and thyme-infused butter, then fried crisp.
They later told us how it’s the most time-consuming element of their prep at the restaurant, but that effort certainly pays off. Bravo.
I went to the opposite side of the menu, the grill selction. Said selection included fillet or ribeye of beef, chicken breast and pork chop.
The promise of roast chicken sauce – not strictly a gravy as I joked – sold the roast chicken dish (£18). I also chose sides of barbecued hispi cabbage (£4) and baked potato mash (£4).
I’m not sure, but these vegetable side dishes were the sexiest veggies I have ever had. Absolutely delicious. The hispi cabbage was crisp, delicately charred to give it the blackened, smoky taste and there’s the light freshness of the still green leaves – drizzled in a light, lemon dressing – I have to try (and most likely fail) to make them at home.
The baked potato mash was perfect. Smooth, creamy and topped with brown butter sizzled panko breadcrumbs – the furthest away from “school dinner staple” you could possibly get.
I haven’t forgotten about the
chicken, don’t worry. To be honest, it was my least favourite thing out of all the dishes we ordered, but that’s not to say it wasn’t good. It was a large wedge of chicken breast topped with a lovely, crunchy stuffing-esque crumb which added flavour to the nicely-cooked (I assume poached as I forgot to ask) meat.
The roast chicken sauce was great and added a caramelly sweet v saltiness to the plate, the chicken dish certainly didn’t lack for flavour or inventiveness, I’m just not sure I would order it again.
After all that, we still had dessert – but we shared, as three courses are a big ask at nearly 9pm. But it was very much worth it, and worth the 15-minute wait to cook. A freshly baked frangipane (£8.50) that was crisp, hot and fruity in the middle, and came with the milkiest of vanilla ice-cream.
On top of great food, the service was second-to-none. They were more than happy to chat with us about the dishes in detail and were attentive without erring into over-zealous.
Thomas by Thomas Simmons served us some of the most refined and beautiful dishes we’ve ever eaten in Cardiff and is a welcome addition to Cardiff’s fine dining scene, that is in better shape than ever.