Eckington Manor with Masterchef Professional Winner Mark Stinchcombe

A few weeks back, a group of us ventured over the Gloucestershire borders to Eckington. It was summer last year that we'd first all gone out for dinner together - having the tasting menu at Lumiere Cheltenham - and we'd planned this next date quite a while before Christmas. The reason being?… Masterchef.

As you'd probably have guessed, I am a massive food programme lover; if I'm not watching them at home, I'll be listening to them at work. And although there are probably a few too many on TV these days, Masterchef is one of the ones which draws me in every time. Unfortunately, whilst I'm drooling over the dishes on the screen, my list of restaurants to visit only gets longer and longer, sigh. 

As a stroke of luck, one of the chefs taking part (and wowing all the judges) was from a restaurant just half an hour away, and after a quick text around during one of the shows, we decided that we should all go. 

Fast-forward to Christmas Eve, when the title of Masterchef: The Professionals Winner 2015 was handed to Mark Stinchcombe, we were all feeling incredibly smug with ourselves having preempted his success and bagged a reservation at the restaurant he works at; Eckington Manor.

Mark is in fact just one half of the culinary couple behind Eckington Manor's kitchen. Him and his wife Sue - who has also appeared on BBC's Great British Menu - met whilst working at Le Champignon Sauvage, and having explored the edible offerings in various other countries together, they returned to the area to share their own vision for food.

With Eckington Manor's award winning farm, orchard, vegetable and herb gardens to hand, it's not been difficult for the pair to hone in their style. They honour seasonality, maintain natural flavours, and illustrate the importance of using quality ingredients. It's field to fork in every sense - the restaurant, cookery school, hotel - and in being on Masterchef, Mark has showcased this unique set-up to a much wider audience. It's now pulling in food fans from across the UK, and rightly so.

When we arrived, we were offered a drink at the bar downstairs, but seeing as it was 8:30pm and we were almost eyeing each other up to eat, we went straight up to the restaurant. It was full and had it not been pitch black outside, I imagine there would have been picturesque views out of the large windows. Sipping a glass of Champagne, we browsed the menu and nibbled on some tuile-like breadsticks dipped in a creamy truffle butter - a perfect start don't you agree?

Decision making was tough despite there being just four options for each course, but after committing, we were presented with an unexpected appetiser brought out by Mark himself. A little glass dish filled with a Waldorf Salad of sorts - celeriac panna cotta topped with blue cheese and walnuts - salty, creamy, refreshing, nutty and tangy; teased and tickled our taste buds in all the right places.

Warm bread followed, of which the pillow-like focaccia was the favourite.

My starter was the Eckington Manor beef tartare, radish, hazelnuts and pickled mushrooms. What surprised me was how delicate the dish was; beef tartare can be quite a punchy little number thanks to capers, etc. But here there was just a light pepperiness from the radish, texture and depth from the nuts, and a little acidity from the pickled mushrooms, leaving the flavour of the beef to be the star attraction.

The Guinea Fowl Terrine at the other end of the table looked perfectly formed, and I managed to sneak a taste of The Chap's Smoked haddock, leeks, macaroni and artichoke, which was a great arrangement of flavours. Our crisp glass of Riesling paired particularly well to this one.

Main course, I opted for Breast of poussin, chestnut purée, sprouts, confit parsnips and lentils. There was an air of Christmas about it, what with the chestnuts and sprouts, but the earthy lentils, sweet parsnips and purple flower sprouts made sure it was a far cry from your festive roast.

As lovely as it was - especially with the Pinot - sat next to the larger, architectural beef and pork belly dishes that surrounded me, it looked and felt like something was missing. The Chap's Pork belly, prune, sweet potato and spiced granola was a stunner. Reminding me of the piggy starter Tom Kerridge serves up at The Hand & Flowers, it was a fatty piece of meat complemented with dried fruit sweetness and spice.

For a £3.50 supplement though, I could have (and should have) ordered the Eckington Manor rib eye of beef and braised shin, caramelized onion, wild mushroom and red wine jus. It was by far the best thing on the menu, and the three of us who didn't choose it simply gazed longingly at its glistening beauty.

I suppose it's somewhat controversial serving mains without a hefty portion of carbs, but this seems to be something that Eckington Manor take pride in, and they've actually just won a Gold Award in the Healthier Choices Food Award scheme. It's certainly not to be confused with healthy eating - you won't lose any weight by visiting here - but careful choices and cooking techniques mean that you wont leave overly stuffed with a feeling of guilt.... Which leads me onto dessert...

I personally feel I had the best of the bunch; Banana bread, milk chocolate and banana sorbet, peanuts and caramel. Seeing as I'm obsessed with (as are a lot of other people) the combo of peanut butter and banana on toast, adding chocolate and caramel into the mix and hello! 

The Malted milk ice cream, praline, 70% chocolate and warm spices was served on a black plate, emphasising its naughty cocoa indulgence, whilst the pert Rhubarb soufflé and gingerbread ice cream came with candy stripes and a pretty-in-pink rhubarb juice - fun! 

We finished our meal with coffee, cocktails and petit fours down in the bar - a nice finishing touch - and settling the bill we were pleasantly surprised at the price. Three courses at Eckington Manor is £42 (plus supplements for specials), and with champagne, a few bottles of wine, dessert wine, cocktails and service charge, we ended up paying just over £80 each! I think we were all expecting to pay much more than that. 

Being the last to leave - as ever - we boozily chatted to Mark, expressing how much we enjoyed ourselves and quizzing him on Masterchef. As for his future plans, it turns out he's insistent on staying in his current position, with the desire to grow and expand the business alongside Sue and the owners of the manor. Great news for us local folk!

I'll consider it a lesson learnt; it's about time we took more notice of what's on our doorstep. Eckington Manor has been firmly put on the map... And I already want to return.

Eckington Manor, Hammock Road, Eckington, Pershore WR10 3BJ

Burns Night Supper & Compass Box Whisky Pairing

Following on from my previous post about The Ox Cheltenham, The Chap and I were lucky enough to win tickets to go to their Burns Night Supper. Celebrating the original Master of Ceremony, Robert Burns, Monday 25th January saw the restaurant lay on a Scottish inspired four course menu perfectly matched with a flight of whisky. What a dream!

Having spent previous Burns Nights at home with haggis, neeps and tatties, followed by copious amounts of whisky and shortbread, it was a lovely change to be attending an event with a whole host of other Burns enthusiasts instead. All that was missing were bagpipes, kilts and the ode to a haggis!

Compass Box - specialist Scotch whiskymakers and craft blenders - supplied the drinks for the night. They're an innovative company, making whiskies that cover the spectrum of flavours Scotch whisky can offer; from light, delicate and elegant to big, smoky and peaty. With such a range of styles and flavour profiles, Compass Box can appeal to a variety of tastes, making whisky more approachable, even to those that don't normally drink it.

To kick things off, we had a classic Mamie Taylor cocktail made with Great King Street: a measure of whisky and the juice of half a lime, topped up with ginger beer. Easy to make and easy to drink! Despite resembling the recipe for a Moscow Mule, the Mamie Taylor actually predates it by about 65 years! Canapés accompanied our cocktails too - smoked salmon and horseradish cream blinis - which totally got our appetites going.

Before the first course was brought out, we received our whisky: Compass Box Oak Cross. Part of the Signature Range, the Oak Cross combines the best characteristics of both American and French oak ageing. It's quite a fruity number, which delivers vanilla, cloves and a sweet maltiness.

A great aperitif whisky, and therefore a great match to the first dish; Tandoori Scottish scallops, spiced yoghurt, crisp chick peas and pickled cucumber. The fragrant spices made sure that the scallops didn't get lost when eaten with the whisky, and the crisp chick peas not only added texture, but added a nuttiness which paired with the spirit too.

Next up was the Compass Box Spice Tree. Made from 100% malt whisky sourced from Highland distilleries, and aged in custom-made casks fitted with new French oak heads, this is a big whisky with spicy aromas of clove, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla.

Photo Credit: The Ox Cheltenham

Its rich, round sweetness paired wonderfully with our main course; Charcoal roasted venison, haggis, charred onion purée and potato onion gratin. Not having the usual Burns Night fayre was a nice touch from The Ox - venison felt like a massive treat - and still including a little bit of haggis was a welcome nod to tradition. It was gorgeous.

If we didn't think it could get much better, we were wrong. The dessert course came with Compass Box Orangerie, a truly unique whisky which has been infused with fresh orange zest and aromatic spices. Although it's made from a soft, sweet blend of Highland single malt and single grain whisky from Fife, it can't actually be called Scotch whisky because it has taken on other flavours from the infusion.

Orangerie is an interesting one, it's probably not something I'd choose to drink - I prefer peaty/salty whiskies - but with the Rhubarb Cranachan that we were served, it really came into its own. Orange and rhubarb are a match made in heaven anyway, but the layers of sharp stewed fruit (I know it's technically a veg), overwhipped cream and crumbled shortbread really brought out the sweet orange-spiced nature of the whisky.

To end our supper, we were given my favourite glass of the night, the limited edition Compass Box Flaming Heart alongside some Dunshire Blue, Barway Original Cheddar, oatcakes and chutney. Smouldering, spicy and complex, Flaming Heart was the first whisky to combine the richness of Scotch aged in new French oak with the peat-fired smoke of Islay malt. This bottle, celebrating Compass Box's fifteenth anniversary, is a brooding, indulgent dram that's destined for late night drinking. Born of oak, smoke and fire, with an underlying sweetness, it's an after dinner drink that's a perfect partner for a cheeseboard… Out with the Port and in with the whisky (we've all had enough Port over Christmas anyway)!

Although we won our places at the event, tickets were only £40 per person, and that included everything - both food and drink. You could easily spend that amount of money on a four course dinner without drinks somewhere - it was such good value. And in the majority of restaurants, having a main course of venison usually means a price tag of up to £20 alone. So, £40 for the whole shebang seemed almost penny saving!

I'll certainly be looking out for future events at The Ox; we had a great night!

Sláinte!

Meaty Treats at The Ox Cheltenham

As we hit the end of January - that month where you have to accept that you've spent way too much over Christmas, and that you've eaten your way into your baggiest clothes - The Chap and I thought we should treat ourselves a little. Weeks of crap TV on the sofa had clearly taken its toll, and seeing as we'd not been to The Ox Cheltenham (other than for drinks) since the opening party, we decided Friday Night Steak & Chips was exactly what was necessary.

Oddly enough, that same day we had a reservation, The Chap was announced the winner of their Burns Night competition. So this is the first of a tale of two visits to The Ox - one on Friday, one on Monday - bookending our weekend in the best way possible… with meat and booze!

As with most restaurants these days, The Ox on Cambray Place are all about "creating exceptional food using local, seasonal produce which has been cooked to perfection by our expert chefs." Whilst steak is the main game here, with a choice of cuts at different prices (up to £65 for the 30oz T-bone to share), there's a good selection of small plates and side dishes to tuck into too. And although it'd obviously not be a veggies idea of a dream restaurant, the winter vegetable salad with poached egg, black truffle, pistachio dressing and pecorino (£8) does sound pretty tasty. Oh, and their Sunday Roast is rumoured to be one of the best in Cheltenham!

The Ox take their drinks list very seriously too. Not surprising when you realise that the people behind it also run award winning bars and restaurants in Bristol such as Hyde & Co, Milk Thistle and Pata Negra. Being known in town as 'the place for steak and cocktails', it was only fair that we tried a couple of their cocktails out. Split up into pre-steak, with-steak, post-steak and non-alcoholic (pah!), I went for the 'pre' Silver Bullet (£7). Beefeater London Dry Gin shaken with Kummel liqueur, Teeling’s single grain whiskey, fresh lemon & a touch of paprika. Gin, whiskey, citrus and an intriguing savoury spice… Right up my street.

Battling with a cold, The Chap asked for a Hot Toddy in the hope it might help restore his senses, and with two generous measures of whisky in there, I'm pretty sure it did! William, the bar manager, is a cocktail pro, so even if you don't see anything you fancy on the menu (the Hot Toddy wasn't listed), he's more than capable of rustling something up. Just ask.

Moving to our table, we ordered ourselves some bread, which I believe comes from The Sandwich Box around the corner (don't quote me on that), and had a quick look at the menu. Everything sounded amazing, but we already had our hearts set on trying the Early Bird Deal - 6oz D Rump, fries, a choice of béarnaise or peppercorn sauce and a glass of house wine, all for £12.50. Served Tuesday - Saturday from 5pm - 7pm, how can you say no to that?

It's a rare occasion that The Chap and I have the same dish at a restaurant, it only ever happens with tasting menus or set lunches, so it felt like quite a novelty. Both rare and both with a glass of Barbera, our only difference was our choice of sauce. We added on a couple of sides to share too; charcoal roasted mushrooms, persillade (£4.50) and the leeks & greens (£4).

A 6oz steak doesn't sound like a lot, which is why we bumped it up with tasty extras, but to be honest, I'd have been more than satisfied with it as it was. The Ox's charcoal Josper grill ensures that all steaks are permeated with deep smoky flavours; crisp and caramelised on the outside, whilst beautifully pink and juicy in the middle. Our plump rumps felt as luxurious as a piece of fillet steak.

The béarnaise had just the right amount of acidity to counter its richness (it's basically just butter!), but it was the peppercorn sauce that really stood out. A far cry from the grey speckled gloop that you often find alongside of your steak, this was more like a pimped up gravy; fiery and full of meat juices.

Considering the 6oz D Rump costs £14 at any other time, the Early Bird deal seems like an absolute steal for £12.50 including a glass of wine. That said, steaks come accompanied with triple cooked chips instead of fries outside the offer, so I'd say the extra pennies for going later in the evening can totally be justified.

With two cocktails, two glasses of wine each, bread, two side dishes, and two steak and chips, our bill came to just over £50. Visiting The Ox Cheltenham early means you can have a classy dinner and a few drinks on a budget, without feeling like you've scrimped on quality. We'll definitely be doing this again!

Keep your eyes peeled for my post on The Ox's Burn's Night dinner & whisky pairing event...