What the experts recommend
The Blackbird Bagnor, Newbury, Berkshire (01635-40005)
Some great chefs like to do their thing in out-of-the-way places, says Marina O’loughlin in The Sunday Times. There’s Magnus Nilsson at Fäviken, in rural Sweden, many miles away from any city, and Francis Mallmann on his Patagonian island. Now Dom Robinson, a “beardy young gun” who used to be Tom Aikens’s head chef, has chosen to “squirrel himself away” in a tiny Berkshire hamlet. He is a long way from the bright lights, but like the others, he produces food that is worth travelling for. Smoked haddock and cheddar croquettes are “gorgeous”; a wheaten loaf of bread made with treacle and buttermilk is “insanely good”. There’s a “magnificent” wild boar and apple rigatoni with blue cheese curds, golden raisins and marjoram. Roast cauliflower risotto with a port reduction and truffles is “absolute luxury”. There’s a wonderful tartare of beef fillet, and a dish of foie gras – both roast and poached, with sauternes, white beans and Alsace bacon – which I consume with “a kind of dazed pleasure”. Robinson has built it; I hope they’ll come.
About £80 for two, including wine. Wood Jack Rosenthal Street, Manchester (0161-236 5211)
This ambitious, recently opened restaurant is the “new baby” of 2015 Masterchef winner Simon Wood, says Grace Dent in The Guardian. It’s a large but buzzy space with an open kitchen. Service is “bright and adorable”, and the menu is comprised of “high-end but not offputtingly pretentious” British dishes such as belly pork with sage, pigeon with fig, and venison with parsnip and ginger. My companion’s starter of “huge, plump, beautifully coloured scallops” served on a “bold pulp” of herby gremolata and sardines was “devoured in moments and talked about for weeks”. My own, an “enormo-raviolo” stuffed with porcini, shiitake and oyster, was “joyous”. Overall, then, Wood “seems to have taken flight beautifully” – though there were a couple of glitches. My main of cauliflower and romesco with Lancashire cheese looked stunning, but needed to be hotter. And a cod dish was a bit bland, and came with “enough al dente leek to satisfy a donkey”. Still, “there’s a lot to love at Wood, and I’ll definitely go back”.
About £50 a head, excluding drinks.
Darwin 189 St John’s Hill, London SW11 (020-7738 0735)
I was nervous about going to Darwin, says Michael Deacon in The Daily Telegraph. On its website, diners are cautioned that an evening here is a time “to forget your phone and actually spend time with the person you’re with”. I’m all for that – but it’s not easy if you’re a reviewer who types his notes into his phone. Thankfully, the restaurant turns out to be a “friendly, unassuming little place, entirely without frostiness or pretension”. The chefs (who double as waiters) couldn’t have been nicer, and no one tutted when I took out my phone. As for the food, excellent rosemary bread and creamy butter kicked things off superbly. A starter of salmon, braised leeks and squid-ink mayonnaise was “dreamy” and light. Venison was “rich and lustily intense”; monkfish as “fluffy as a cloud”. I wasn’t as keen on my friend’s pigeon with blackberry and cavolo nero, but “I’m not into pigeon”, so not the person to review it. Darwin is an “undiscovered gem” (for now).
Three courses for two, about £75.