The Hoste Arms, Burnham Market, Norfolk
Matthew Norman, The Guardian, 24/3
"The portions were almost as off-puttingly large as those oysters, so we shared a pudding, a sensationally good banana tarte Tatin with passion-fruit seeds and liquorice
ice cream, being by many nautical miles the highlight of the meal. Buried somewhere
here, I suspect, lies a good restaurant struggling to escape, but a fair bit of digging
is needed."
The Three Fishes, Mitton, Lancs
Zoe Williams, The Sunday Telegraph, 25/3
"The heather-reared Bowland lamb actually tasted of heather; it melted in your mouth; it made you want to cry; it was rich and sweet, yet savoury. But let me walk you through the travesty of my baked pig's trotter with Goosnargh chicken, Andrew Ireland's black pudding, mashed and braised red cabbage (£11.90). The trotter meat had been filleted out and minced up with chicken and black pud to form a smallish, rather dry kind of sausage; this had then been wrapped in a kind of decorative sock of fat, so that it looked like a trotter but would have played no part in actual trotting."
The Narrow, Limehouse, London,
Gordon Ramay's new pub
Fay Maschler, Evening Standard, 4/4
"Meanwhile, a menu, which looked as if composed from book research - starting with Dorothy Hartley (author of the 1950s Food in England) and concluding with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall - turns out not to be theme-park stuff, but traditional dishes prepared with empathy and skill by chef John Collin,
previously working for Mark Sargeant at Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's."
Giles Coren, The Times, 14/4
"The best of the mains was boiled salt beef and carrots (£9) in a bit of broth, which had been refined, of course, but in such a way that for all its subtle saltiness, lean elegance and gay little chantenay carrots (very 2005, but still cute), it still triggered the right food memories. Other dishes were, for me, a little muted. The faggot, though good, was rather mild, perhaps because it was made of veal innards not pig's, and the braised Gloucester pig's cheeks with neeps (£9) were also a little wan."
Andy Lynes, Metro, 11/4
"You shouldn't miss out on some of the best grub in town. Ex-Claridge's chef John Collin's resolutely British menu will please the
crowds and tickle the fancy of hardcore foodies. The Narrow is a smart and seductive place... and set to be the first of a string of pubs. Ramsay seems to be taking over the world, but if that means food and service this good on every high street in the land, I'm not complaining."