Trvalý odkaz Pridané používateľom Anonymný (bez overenia) dňa So, 11/30/2024 - 17:27
There is something reassuringly robust about The Punch Bowl Inn.<br>
<br>
Not just in the old-fashioned bar, where the <br>
<br>
Wainwright Gold is well kept and a huge leather sofa sits before a blazing wood <br>
<br>
burner; or in the dining room, solid and comfortable, with <br>
<br>
its old beams, well-trodden wooden floors and tables unadorned with cloths; <br>
<br>
it's in the menu, too, mainly British with a Gallic burr, that makes full use of <br>
<br>
the magnificent local Lake District larder.<br>
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<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
Stornoway black pudding with crispy egg and bubble and squeak: ‘pure Cumbrian comfort by way of Lewis', <br>
<br>
is Tom's verdict<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
We're here with Peter Gott, that great Cumbrian hero, and the <br>
<br>
man behind Sillfield Farm, who has invited me up to cook at the Westmorland County Show; also chef Phil Vickery, who certainty knows his alliums; and <br>
<br>
the force of nature that is Lorraine Stanton, something of a <br>
<br>
legend around these parts. But first dinner, and a sublime twice-baked Mrs <br>
<br>
Kirkham's cheese soufflé, the texture as light as a sigh, <br>
<br>
the flavour profoundly, lasciviously rich. Mrs Kirkham's, <br>
<br>
now made by her son Graham, is one of the world's <br>
<br>
great cheeses, and this is a soufflé of quiet majesty. A <br>
<br>
mushroom soup is equally splendid, managing to be both light and gutsy,<br>
<br>
while Stornoway black pudding with bubble and squeak <br>
<br>
and a deep-fried egg is pure Cumbrian comfort by way of Lewis.<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
There's a fundamental generosity here, matched by assured technical precision. <br>
<br>
Duck à l'orange sees a plump breast cooked rare, the skin crisp, the sauce just the right side of bitter.<br>
<br>
It comes with a fat potato fondant and cabbage spiked with <br>
<br>
shards of smoked bacon. I eat rump of lamb, four vast just-pink slices, drenched <br>
<br>
in the stickiest, most gloriously intense of gravies; by its side, a tiny <br>
<br>
shepherd's pie, one bite of pure ovine brilliance.<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
Puddings are every bit as fine: a lemon tart, beautifully sharp, with damson sorbet (this part of the Lake District is <br>
<br>
famed for its damsons); along with a banana soufflé, this time the classic version but ethereal, served <br>
<br>
with vanilla ice cream and a pot of sticky-toffee sauce to pour deep into its molten centre.<br>
<br>
This is good old-fashioned food, immaculately done, in the sort of pub designed for lingering.<br>
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<br>
<br>
It's getting late now, and we've an early start. But first, another bottle <br>
<br>
of wine. Dinners like this are too rare to be rushed.<br>
<br>
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<b>About £45 per head. The Punch Bowl Inn, Crosthwaite, <br>
<br>
Cumbria; the-punchbowl.co.uk</b><br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
★★★★✩ <br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
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