Nineties-style tuna niçoise

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T he recommendation came from a guy on Twitter. Adam Houlston, aka @houlstonad, ordered us to get along to House Of The Rising Sun, in Shrewsbury. ‘Nothing like it in Shropshire and so fresh’, he purred. ‘It’s faaaaan- taaaas-tic.’ ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah,’ we thought. Reader recommendations can be patchy, at best. They are frequently influenced by association with particular venues, the subtext reading: ‘Come and eat at the restaurant that I’ve just told my barman to tell you about, and write us an eight out of 10 review.’ We decided to take Adam at his word, however, and made our way to Shrewsbury’s newest restaurant. Adam had been quick off the mark. House of the Rising Sun had opened 24 hours before our visit. Restaurants take time to settle. It usually takes a few months for kitchens to work efficiently, chefs to be happy with their suppliers and waiting staff to bring their service up to scratch. If ever there’s a bad time to review a restaurant, it’s when it’s just opened. House of the Rising Sun, therefore, had everything to lose and very little to gain. And yet it excelled. In fact, it didn’t just excel. It went one better. In an instant, it proved itself among the top five restaurants in Shropshire and delivered a near-perfect performance. It was Wow, Wow, Wow. It was Faaaaan- taaaas-tic. It was Ammmm-aaaazzzinnng. Let’s set a little context. I’m not as easy to please as some restaurant critics. A 2.5 out of five is a passable score, in my book, a view that causes much chagrin among chefs and restaurant owners. Taking restaurants in Ludlow out of the equation, I’ve awarded five five-out-of-five scores in the past eight years: two to Michelin restaurants in Birmingham, one to a pub-bistro in Shropshire, one was to the restaurateur who recently beat 1,800 other chefs to win the 2014 British Curry Chef of the Year title, and one was to a Michelin restaurant in Montgomery. I’d still stand by all five. House of the Rising Sun is my sixth. It is seriously, seriously good. It impressed from the off. I’d booked a last-minute table, 25 minutes before eating, based on @houlstonad’s recommendation. And from the moment I stepped across the threshold, I was impressed. Venue owner Sam Taylor is the brains behind the project. He also owns The Libertine, a popular cocktail and champagne bar. Sam was at the door to offer a warm greeting. “Good evening, sir,” he said. He was dressed immaculately, like a model from the pages of GQ, and his manners were straight from the pages of Debrett’s. He showed me up a set of stairs to a deliciously intoxicating first floor dining room. My eyes did a cartoon dollar-sign roll as I took in the surrounds. Sam and his team had clearly invested serious money in creating a chic, sophisticated and contemporary dining room that I’d expect to find in London’s Soho, rather than Shrewsbury’s Butcher Row. Small black-leather bench seats were illuminated by cut glass light fittings along the exterior of the room while the interior featured similarly stylish tables, with crushed velvet chairs. The restaurant’s concept is east Meets west, hence House of the Rising Sun. It takes its inspiration from the Pacific Rim, providing a taste of flavours from Japan and China to Australia and back to California. It wasn’t just Sam’s greeting that got my evening off to a good start, nor, indeed, the beautifully thought-through, immaculately-designed dining room. The quality of service from other staff was also faultless. Sam’s maître ‘d, a twentysomething rockabilly dude with slick back hair and fifties-inspired threads, was exceptional. He explained the menu, took a drinks order, made recommendations and returned to my table on numerous occasions, to ensure things were just right. They were, happily. Sam’s created something new here. His menu doesn’t follow the tried-and-tested route of starter-main-dessert. Instead, he’s created a concept perhaps best described as Pacific Rim-fine-dining-fusion-tapas. Got that? No, I didn’t think you would. Please allow me to explain. Guests can choose from two separate menus – and both are temptation personified. The first provides a selection of small tasting plates. They have a greater connection with the sort of tasting portions that you’d find on the degustation menu of a fine dining restaurant than with the small, humbly-served plates served in a tapas bars. The idea is that diners choose three small tasting plates – hence the tapas analogy. For those who prefer to eat traditionally, there’s a conventional three-course menu. I decided to rip up the template, choosing two small tasting East meets west Land of the Rising Sun – the delicate panna cotta dessert, served inside a wooden b Hook, line and sinker – the soft shell crab was spot on HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN Shrewsbury, SY1 1UW Rating ★★★★★ Serving sublime food from the Pacific Rim in chic surroundings, House of the Rising Sun is a new restaurant that’s here to stay 6 Nineties-style tuna niçoise FEED YOUR FAMILY T he 1990s was the decade people really fell in love with ultra healthy Mediterranean cuisine. Spanish olive food brand Fragata has looked back to the decade of leggings and Spice Girls and taken inspiration for their Nouveau Niçoise salad. It’s a modern twist on the classic Salad Niçoise, but with the same Mediterranean olive flavour. Round off your 90s feast with this berry meringue – no dinner party in the decade was complete without one. Ingredients 12 Fragata pitted halkidiki and kalamata olives with sundried tomato, peppers and garlic 8 oz green beans, trimmed and halved 8 small potatoes 2 eggs 1/4 cup minced shallots 1/4 cup red wine vinegar 2 tbsp dijon mustard 1/4 tsp salt , 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 6 cups mixed salad greens 2 6 oz cans chunk light tuna, drained Method 1. Add the green beans to a saucepan of boiling water and cook for 1-2 minutes until tender and bright green. 2. Remove from pan and rinse under cold water. 3. Place the potatoes and eggs into the boiling water. Cook the eggs for 12 minutes until hard. Transfer the eggs to the colander, rinse under cold water until cool. 4. Continue cooking the potatoes until fork-tender. Drain the potatoes and rinse under cold water until cool. 5. Combine the shallots, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in oil. 6. Cut the potatoes into eighths and put in a bowl with the beans. Add greens, tuna and the dressing. Toss well. 8. Peel the eggs and cut into wedges. 10. Divide the salad among 4 plates. Top with egg wedges and olives. Serve immediately. Ingredients 10 Elizabeth Shaw Chocolate Crisps 80g icing sugar, sieved 80g caster sugar 3 medium egg whites 300ml whipping cream 225g sliced strawberries Method 1. Preheat the oven to 130°C/250°F. Line two baking trays with parchment, marking an 18cm circle on each. 2. Crush 9 chocolates. Mix with the icing sugar in a bowl. 3. Place the egg whites in another large bowl and whisk until standing in peaks. Whisk in caster sugar until stiff. 4. Using a metal spoon, fold in the chocolate and icing sugar mixture. Spoon equal amounts of meringue on each baking tray and spread round the circle. Bake for one hour then reduce oven temperature to its lowest setting and leave the meringues to dry out for four hours. 6. Sandwich the meringues with the whipped cream and strawberries, reserving some cream and strawberries for the decoration. Top with the remaining chocolate crisp. Berry meringue

Transcript of Nineties-style tuna niçoise

Page 1: Nineties-style tuna niçoise

The recommendation came froma guy on Twitter. AdamHoulston, aka @houlstonad,

ordered us to get along to House OfThe Rising Sun, in Shrewsbury.‘Nothing like it in Shropshire and sofresh’, he purred. ‘It’s faaaaan-taaaas-tic.’‘Yeah, yeah, yeah,’ we thought. Reader

recommendations can be patchy, at best. They arefrequently influenced by association with particularvenues, the subtext reading: ‘Come and eat at therestaurant that I’ve just told my barman to tell youabout, and write us an eight out of 10 review.’

We decided to take Adam at his word, however, andmade our way to Shrewsbury’s newest restaurant. Adamhad been quick off the mark. House of the Rising Sun hadopened 24 hours before our visit. Restaurants take time tosettle. It usually takes a few months for kitchens to workefficiently, chefs to be happy with their suppliers andwaiting staff to bring their service up to scratch. If everthere’s a bad time to review a restaurant, it’s when it’s justopened. House of the Rising Sun, therefore, hadeverything to lose and very little to gain.

And yet it excelled. In fact, it didn’t just excel. It went onebetter. In an instant, it proved itself among the top fiverestaurants in Shropshire and delivered a near-perfectperformance. It was Wow, Wow, Wow. It was Faaaaan-taaaas-tic. It was Ammmm-aaaazzzinnng.

Let’s set a little context. I’m not as easy to please as

some restaurant critics. A 2.5 out of five is a passablescore, in my book, a view that causes much chagrinamong chefs and restaurant owners. Taking restaurants inLudlow out of the equation, I’ve awarded five five-out-of-fivescores in the past eight years: two to Michelin restaurantsin Birmingham, one to a pub-bistro in Shropshire, one wasto the restaurateur who recently beat 1,800 other chefs towin the 2014 British Curry Chef of the Year title, and onewas to a Michelin restaurant in Montgomery. I’d still standby all five. House of the Rising Sun is my sixth. It isseriously, seriously good.

It impressed from the off. I’d booked a last-minute table,25 minutes before eating, based on @houlstonad’srecommendation. And from the moment I stepped acrossthe threshold, I was impressed.

Venue owner Sam Taylor is the brains behind theproject. He also owns The Libertine, a popular cocktail andchampagne bar. Sam was at the door to offer a warmgreeting. “Good evening, sir,” he said. He was dressedimmaculately, like a model from the pages of GQ, and hismanners were straight from the pages of Debrett’s.

He showed me up a set of stairs to a deliciouslyintoxicating first floor dining room. My eyes did a cartoondollar-sign roll as I took in the surrounds. Sam and his

team had clearly invested serious money in creating a chic,sophisticated and contemporary dining room that I’dexpect to find in London’s Soho, rather than Shrewsbury’sButcher Row. Small black-leather bench seats wereilluminated by cut glass light fittings along the exterior ofthe room while the interior featured similarly stylish tables,with crushed velvet chairs.

The restaurant’s concept is east Meets west, henceHouse of the Rising Sun. It takes its inspiration from thePacific Rim, providing a taste of flavours from Japan andChina to Australia and back to California.

It wasn’t just Sam’s greeting that got my evening off to agood start, nor, indeed, the beautifully thought-through,immaculately-designed dining room. The quality of servicefrom other staff was also faultless. Sam’s maître ‘d, atwentysomething rockabilly dude with slick back hair andfifties-inspired threads, was exceptional. He explained themenu, took a drinks order, made recommendations andreturned to my table on numerous occasions, to ensurethings were just right. They were, happily.

Sam’s created something new here. His menu doesn’tfollow the tried-and-tested route of starter-main-dessert.Instead, he’s created a concept perhaps best described asPacific Rim-fine-dining-fusion-tapas. Got that? No, I didn’tthink you would. Please allow me to explain.

Guests can choose from two separate menus – and bothare temptation personified. The first provides a selection ofsmall tasting plates. They have a greater connection withthe sort of tasting portions that you’d find on thedegustation menu of a fine dining restaurant than with thesmall, humbly-served plates served in a tapas bars.

The idea is that diners choose three small tasting plates– hence the tapas analogy. For those who prefer to eattraditionally, there’s a conventional three-course menu. Idecided to rip up the template, choosing two small tasting

eastmeetswestLand of the Rising Sun – the delicate panna cotta dessert, served inside a wooden bHook, line and sinker – the soft shell crab was spot on

HouSeof tHe riSing SunShrewsbury, SY1 1UW

Rating★★★★★

Serving sublime food from thePacific rim inchic surroundings,House of the rising Sun is a new restaurant that’s here to stay

6

Nineties-styletuna niçoise

feed yourfamily

The 1990s was the decade people reallyfell in love with ultra healthyMediterranean cuisine.

Spanish olive food brand Fragata has looked back tothe decade of leggings and Spice Girls and takeninspiration for their Nouveau Niçoise salad. It’s a moderntwist on the classic Salad Niçoise, but with the sameMediterranean olive flavour.

Round off your 90s feast with this berry meringue – nodinner party in the decade was complete without one.

Ingredients

12 Fragata pitted halkidiki and kalamata olives withsundried tomato, peppers and garlic8 oz green beans, trimmed and halved8 small potatoes2 eggs1/4 cup minced shallots1/4 cup red wine vinegar2 tbsp dijon mustard1/4 tsp salt , 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil6 cups mixed salad greens2 6 oz cans chunk light tuna, drained

Method1. Add the green beans to a saucepan of boiling waterand cook for 1-2 minutes until tender and bright green. 2.Remove from pan and rinse under cold water.3. Place the potatoes and eggs into the boiling water.Cook the eggs for 12 minutes until hard. Transfer the eggsto the colander, rinse under cold water until cool.4. Continue cooking the potatoes until fork-tender. Drainthe potatoes and rinse under cold water until cool.5. Combine the shallots, vinegar, mustard, salt andpepper in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in oil.6. Cut the potatoes into eighths and put in a bowl with thebeans. Add greens, tuna and the dressing. Toss well.8. Peel the eggs and cut into wedges.10. Divide the salad among 4 plates. Top with egg wedgesand olives. Serve immediately.

Ingredients10 Elizabeth Shaw ChocolateCrisps80g icing sugar, sieved80g caster sugar3 medium egg whites300ml whipping cream225g sliced strawberries

Method1. Preheat the oven to 130°C/250°F. Line two bakingtrays with parchment, marking an 18cm circle on each.2. Crush 9 chocolates. Mix with the icing sugar in a bowl.3. Place the egg whites in another large bowl and whiskuntil standing in peaks. Whisk in caster sugar until stiff.4. Using a metal spoon, fold in the chocolate and icingsugar mixture. Spoon equal amounts of meringue oneach baking tray and spread round the circle. Bake forone hour then reduce oven temperature to its lowestsetting and leave the meringues to dry out for four hours.6. Sandwich the meringues with the whipped cream andstrawberries, reserving some cream and strawberries forthe decoration. Top with the remaining chocolate crisp.

Berry meringue

Page 2: Nineties-style tuna niçoise

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plates and one robust main. The menu was a treat. Sushi,sashimi, tempura, So-Cal – all flavours were intermingled on aseriously intelligent and delightfully creative smorgasbord. Imixed it up, creating a Japanese, Australian, Californian mash-up.

The Californian element was soft shell crab, and it hit all ofthe right notes. The tempura was not quite perfect – it hadsoftened a little by the time it reached the table, though that,remarkably, was the single fault of my evening. The crabs werefresh, they oozed delicious saltiness as I broke through thetempura to feast on their delicate white meat.

The wagyu ragout was sensational. It is lodged in mymemory now, like the Elvis vs JXL version of A Little LessConversation, or like the reaction I got when I first wore a pink –lined Vivienne Westwood three-piece suit. I can taste it now. Thepasta, handmade, happily, was silky and had been cooked tosublime al dente perfection. The beef was meltingly tender, thetomato tasted as sweet as a summer afternoon while theseasoning was spot on. It was expertly cooked. Two down, twoto go. Mr Fifties returned to my table throughout, filling my glassand making sure the food was to my taste. His service was ofthe highest standard.

And so to mains. I’ve had an itch that I’ve been unable toscratch for the best part of three months: it’s chicken. Like apregnant woman pining for the smell of petrol, or the crunch of

ice; I’ve hankered for the perfect chicken supreme. And fromLudlow to Oswestry, from Telford to Bridgnorth, I’ve beenunsatisfied. House of The Rising Sun scratched my itch likeBaloo the bear in The Jungle Book. The chicken was servedwith truffle, a watercress risotto – which was perfect – andshallots. The meat was tender and surrounded by a crispgolden skin. It was the best non-Michelin dish I’ve eaten this year.

Pudding was brilliant. A panna cotta was served in a smallwooden box – very Japanese – with summer fruits, minimeringues and swishes of this and that. Beautifully flavoured,pretty as a picture; it was the killer blow.

Ludlow has ruled the roost for more than a decade – andHouse of the Rising Sun is the first restaurant that’s truly beenable to stand toe-to-toe with ones from that town. Its chef is aclass act – simultaneously a technician with great skill and anartist with great creative vision.

The man behind such beautiful food is Adrian Badland, whofor some years has been one of Shropshire’s finest chefs. He’sworked at a number of restaurants in the county, though too oftenhe’s been encumbered by the need to win AA rosettes or cook ina certain style. Here, it seems as though he’s finally been givenfull reign to his undoubted talent. He’s rediscovered his mojo andis cooking from the heart, as well as deploying his considerableskills. There’s nobody else in Shropshire, for instance, who isusing spherification techniques in their puds, as Badland does here.

Since the start of the millennium, Shropshire has enjoyedmany gastronomic high notes including Mr Underhill’s, inLudlow, being named the UK’s best restaurant by the Harden’sGuide and Will Holland earning a Michelin star before the age of30, to name a few.

The impressively entrepreneurial Sam Taylor’s achievementat House of the Rising Sun deserve a mention here. He’screated the best fine dining restaurant outside Ludlow thatShropshire has hosted in more than a decade. Sam willbecome one of the big hits of the present decade.

I’m seldom moved to provide our highest recommendation.On this occasion, however, anything less would be churlishand, more importantly, inaccurate. On this occasion, thereaders have got it right: As @houlstonad says: ‘It’s faaaaan-taaaas-tic.’

Andy Richardson

❛❛ ❛❛the wagyu ragout was sensational. it islodged in my memory now, like the elvisvs JXl version of a little less Conversation

ox nodded to elegant Japanese cuisine

❛❛ ❛❛

the crabs werefresh, theyoozed delicioussaltiness

Wagyu ragout – trying saying that with a mouthful Look sharp – owner Sam Taylor

Height of sophistication – black leather, velvet chairs and cut glass fittings make HoTRS a classy joint

Menu SaMpleSMall plateS

Kingfish, sweet ginger and garlicchives – £10

Seared scallops, honey-glazedporkand spicedcarrot puree – £10

Chicken, bok choyand lime salad – £9

MainSPot-roasted lobster, kaffir lime, chilli

and Thai basil – £40Pistachio crusted rack of lamb,edamame and pancetta – £19

DeSSertSLemongrass brulee,mango sorbet – £4Vanilla cheesecake, coffee puree,poached kumquat and lemon

meringue – £6

at its verybestand spicedcarrot puree – £10