Purslane Cheltenham // Bank Holiday Lobster Night

The August Bank Holiday seems like forever ago now *sigh*... But I sure haven't forgotten about the lovely foodie event that The Chap and I went to on that weekend.

Cheltenham's Purslane Restaurant, tucked away on Rodney Road just off the High Street, held a Lobster Night on both the 22nd and 23rd August to celebrate the last long weekend before the C-word. It also served as a sensational finale before their summer holiday closure, which only lasts two weeks - don't worry!

I've been to the restaurant a couple of times since it opened in 2012, and each time I've been wowed by the food. It specialises in the freshest, sustainably-caught fish and seafood from British waters, but there are other local offerings - meats, vegetables, cheeses - from nearby farms, which can be found on the menu too.

Head Chef Gareth Fulford delivers the most delicate dishes, packed with the purest flavor, served up in the most eye catching way. You don't know whether to just sit and appreciate your dinner's beauty, or dive right in because it looks and smells so bloody delicious... If you've ever been out for food with me - or if you've read any of my other blog posts - you'll already be aware that I nearly always do the first, slyly (probably not so slyly) taking a photo before doing the second, not leaving any morsel left on my plate.

When we arrived we were given a glass of organic sparkling Cremant de Bourgogne along with the menu to remind us of what we'd signed up for. All the details were available to view online beforehand, but not wanting to ruin the theatre on the night, I tried to avoid looking at it too much. If the lengthy list hadn't already convinced us, the selection of warm homemade breads with Netherend Farmhouse butter difinitely assured us that we were in for a good time. The soda bread, with a deep treacley flavour, was the favourite in both our eyes, and it's not often we agree!

One fizz down, we ordered a bottle of crisp Vinho Verde that would easily compliment each course, and out came our appetiser. Evesham pea mousse, mint jelly, goat's curd cream. Peas, mint and goats cheese are a classic combo; each layer had it's own distinctive flavour and texture to enjoy, but scooping up a spoon of them all together was a dream.

The starter was a Pressed pork shoulder and smoked ham hock, Discovery apples and Summer beans, not something I'd normally choose, which is what I find great about tasting menus. The pork was in no way fatty, it just pulled apart with ease, and the sharp apple puree cut through the dish wonderfully; I'd choose it again for sure.

Main Course was what the whole thing was about though,
and what could be more extravagant than lobster?! (well maybe caviar and foie gras.. but I'm not that keen on those)  Half a native lobster, grilled courgettes, samphire, gnocchi, lobster bisque.

From previous experience of 'half a lobster', I envisaged a lobster cut down the centre, grilled - still in the shell - with a shed load of butter, making it a pretty tricky and messy task trying to eat it. I should've known that wouldn't be the case, shouldn't I? Instead it was the prettiest dish of the night; a vibrant white and pink lobster tail sat on a bed of salty samphire (the rest of the lobster meat was pressed into a disc of deliciousness), charred yellow courgettes, pillowy potato gnocchi and a rich sauce. They meant business with this one.

A little break and we were brought out a dairy fix; A selection of local artisan cheeses with damson jelly, celery, wheat wafers and fig and hazelnut bread. One was a goat's (which I might guess was Ragstone - I can't remember, I'm going on what they have on their à la carte menu), one was a hard cheese (Burford?) and the last was an all time fave, Stinking Bishop.. Cheese.. Fruit jelly.. More good bread.. What's not to like?

At this point even greedy ol' me was getting full, but there is ALWAYS room for something sweet. Roasted Victoria plums, buttermilk pannacotta, almond sponge, plum sorbet. Each component was pretty straight forward, but that's often the key to desserts; when simple things are done well, there is no need to faff around. It had it all; a marzipan-like crumbly sponge, balanced out with the juicy jammy plum, mellowed out with the creamy vanilla pannacotta, and then the tart ice cold sorbet refreshed your palate to go again.. Can this be made into an endless dessert?.. Please?

The Lobster Night was priced at £50 per head, which included the glass of Cremant but not any additional drinks. Amazing value if you ask me, and their regular menu is just as reasonable should you wish to go check it out. (FYI.. See Jay Rayner's glowing review)

Purslane are having an Ayala Champagne Tasting night for their next event on Friday 17th October. It's £85pp, which might sound steep, but considering you have a glass of champers with each course (there's 6 of them) and then a cognac with coffee at the end, I'd say it's a deal worth doing!

Let's count those pennies to see if I can go..