"You don't win friends with salad."
Homer Simpson
Monday 25 February 2019
Sunday 17 February 2019
Quote of the Week - Week commencing Monday 18 February 2019
"When someone asks if you'd like cake or pie, why not say you want cake and pie?"
Lisa Loeb
American singer-songwriter
Thursday 14 February 2019
The Living Room
Deansgate, Manchester
Sophisticated, chic and
stylish, The Living Room is home to top quality food and supreme service.
Located on Deansgate, at the heart of the city centre, it’s a venue for every
occasion and every kind of experience. Whether you’re looking for a celebratory
meal, a relaxing lunch, a party, a couple of cocktails or afternoon tea, The
Living Room can cater to your every need.
Since its inception in 1999,
it’s prided itself on being ‘the restaurant and cocktail bar choice for
Manchester’s people’. It’s quite the rare breed: a popular celeb haunt which
isn’t over-priced or pretentious. It’s all perfectly affordable and perfectly
executed.
Immediately engulfed by the
elegant atmosphere as you enter through the double doors, the 1920s art deco
interior sets the tone for a relaxing and tranquil dining experience, complete
with leather seating and booths. Downstairs it’s all about the drinks, and
there’s an extensive cocktail menu, whilst the first floor is primarily for
dining.
Throughout the dreary month of
January, they had a special set menu in place, allowing you to indulge in two
courses and a beverage for £12 by day and £16 in the evening. £12 for two
courses in the city centre on a Saturday afternoon is such sensational value
that it almost seemed too good to be true.
A selection of starters, main
courses and desserts had been plucked from the varied a la carte menu, which
boasts a range of European dishes in a type of cuisine that is trendily
becoming known as ‘British fusion’. Think classics like fish and chips and
Lancashire hot pot, steaks, salads, burgers and pasta dishes.
To start, I had King Prawn
Lollipops. The first rule of a set menu is normally that prawn dishes are
strictly off-limits, so it was a pleasant surprise for this to be included
given that this particular starter on the main menu is more than half of the
overall cost of the fixed price lunch. Three deliciously juicy king prawns on a
skewer were delicately fried in light and crispy tempura batter, hence the lollipop
look. The prawns were deliciously cooked and the batter was crispy, yet not at
all heavy or greasy, and the sweet chilli sauce was the perfect dipping fodder.
 |
| King Prawn Lollipops with Sweet Chilli Dip |
My main course was Pesto &
Hard Cheese Gnocchi. For years, I was unsure about gnocchi. In an Italian
restaurant, the idea of a potato dumpling dressed up to be like pasta wasn’t
something which particularly appealed to me. I imagined it to be stodgy and
chewy, but when it’s cooked well it’s delicious.
This particular gnocchi was,
without doubt, the best I’ve ever tasted. Generously covered in herby green
pesto and tossed up with slow-roasted plum tomatoes, spears of asparagus and
spinach leaves, covered in truffle oil and topped with toasted cashew nuts, it
was a beautifully colourful dish which left my taste buds singing. Pesto is one
of my very favourite things; one of those ingredients which can single-handedly
sell a dish to me. I’ve had some disappointingly bland pesto dishes, simply
because they’ve been too sparse on the main ingredient. It was a generous
helping of gnocchi too, which is always a bonus.
 |
| Pesto and Hard Cheese Gnocchi |
After two faultless courses
and a lemonade (there are non-alcoholic alternatives available as part of the
set menu, although granted you don’t quite get the same value for money), I was
determined not to have dessert, but I was so thoroughly impressed by the
quality of the food, I felt I owed it to myself to give one a try.
I ordered a Sticky Toffee
Pudding, the all-time great British staple. In a unique twist on the classic,
it was sprinkled with almond granola which provided a satisfying crunch. Topped
with a swirl of salted caramel ice cream and accompanied by a jug of warm
toffee sauce for pouring, it was a stunner. Just imagine
pouring a jug of hot, sticky toffee sauce over the pudding, watching the ice
cream melting away on the top.
 |
| Sticky Toffee Pudding |
The Living Room instantly
became one of my new favourites. The sensational January offer may now be a
distant memory, but the a la carte menu is very reasonably priced, so I’ll
certainly be making a return visit.
They’re open for brunch and
also serve afternoon tea, as well as catering for parties and functions in one
of their three rooms available for private hire.
Whatever the occasion, The
Living Room can make the celebration even more special. It’s not to be missed.
Other options...
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| Seafood Linguine |
 |
| Chocolate Orange Torte |
Monday 11 February 2019
Quote of the Week - Week commencing Monday 11 February 2019
"There are two types of people in this world: one who opens a packet of biscuits, has one and puts the rest back in the cupboard, and one who eats the whole packet in one go."
Jo Brand
Comedian
Comedian
Friday 8 February 2019
Dogs 'n' Dough
Bow Lane, Manchester
January was traditionally a
time for staying in, counting those precious post-Christmas pennies that seem
few and far between, whilst giving your waistline a chance to recover from a
festive season of over-indulgence.
Those days are long gone. The
once dreary month of January has become a foodie’s dream, with a heap of city
centre restaurants offering discounts to tempt to you in. Dogs ‘n’ Dough did
exactly that, with 50% off their a la carte menu.
It’s a 1980s American diner
which does exactly what it says on the tin, or rather the neon sign. It serves
up the best in stodgy New York fayre: thick, doughy pizzas and generous hot
dogs piled high with toppings.
Considering it’s located on
Bow Lane, a stone’s throw away from Albert Square, it’s unsurprising that I
haven’t stumbled upon it before now. It’s buried away beneath ground level,
down a flight of stairs, earmarked only by a menu on the front of the building.
It makes for a rather drab interior, with carpets and green leather chairs that
really capture the age of New York which the diner is trying to replicate. The
bar stools and pool tables throw me straight back to my trips to Florida more
than a decade ago, when greasy burgers in even greasier establishments were the
fuel you relied upon to get through a busy day trekking around the theme parks
in the blistering heat.
It’s very casual: half bar,
half restaurant. Beverages from across the pond include every flavour of Fanta
you could possibly imagine, including the classic lemon, which evokes memories
of holidays in sunnier climes but somehow never quite tastes the same when you
manage to get your hands on it in the UK.
I had a cheeky sip of my
friend’s cream soda. I’d never had one before and had no idea exactly what it
was. It was nothing like the face-curling glass of disgusting soda that I was
expecting. It was creamy, with a hint of vanilla ice cream, rather confusing
for the palate.
The food side of things
couldn’t be simpler: it’s a hot dog or a pizza. Whilst it may be the kind of
stodge you’ve been craving during this particularly cold snap, if you’re on a
New Year health kick after a festive season of overindulgence, then this is not
the place for you.
The pizzas are all 12 inch
deep-pan, so you could get away with sharing one, but, let’s be honest, who
wants to do that? There’s the standard margherita and pepperoni, along with a
whole host of inventive creations with innovative titles. There’s the Passage
To India, which is an Indian takeaway on a pizza: chicken tikka, onions, raita,
mini poppadoms and mango chutney. The Spring Chicken is cajun chicken, crispy
bacon and BBQ sauce and The Pig Lebowski is pulled pork, crispy bacon, smoked
ham and yellow mustard.
There’s a delicious sounding
veggie option entitled The Tuscan: slow roasted Mediterranean vegetables, goats
cheese and roquito pearls.
For me, the pulling power of
one particular pizza proved too strong to resist. I’m talking about the Mac and
Cheese Pizza. How’s that for carb overload? Heaps of creamy macaroni cheese
piled up on top of a 12-inch deep pan base. I’m aware that it’s probably a
heart attack waiting to happen, but it was an experience I simply couldn’t turn
down.
If you’re anything like me,
the mere thought of it will have you foaming at the mouth, but if I’m being
honest, it was a little disappointing. Sure, it did exactly what it was
supposed to. There were heaps of mac and cheese loaded on the top of a thick,
doughy base, but it was a case of too much stodge and too little flavour.
£10 is a perfectly reasonable
price given the size of the beast – you could easily share one between two
people. There’s a choice of toppings you can add: bacon, pepperoni, crispy
onions, or pulled pork, for an extra £1.50 to £2. I chose to add pulled pork,
thinking it would be a match made in heaven, but the meat was tasteless, a
little dry and unnecessary, adding nothing at all to the pizza.
I also ordered a barbecue dip,
which was another £1 extra, as I figured that mac and cheese, pulled pork and
barbecue sauce would be a match made in heaven. There’s a selection of
condiments available, including garlic mayo, which will inevitably draw
comparisons to the dip synonymous with a Domino’s feast. Just be careful,
because all these extras soon add up, and, without the January discount, my
pizza would have been £13 in total, which is a little steep, especially given
that it’s served in a takeaway box. It might be quirky but I don’t dine out to
be served food on cardboard, thank you very much. Still, it comes in handy if
you find yourself defeated by the dough, which, I’m ashamed to admit, I wasn’t.
 |
| Mac and Cheese Pizza topped with Pulled Pork |
My over-indulgence in this
carb-heavy monster meant the dessert menu didn’t get a look in, which is most
unusual for me. If I decide to return for round two, I think I’d skip the main
course and head straight for dessert, as I believe they serve a sweet pizza,
topped with Nutella and marshmallows.
Over a week later and I’m
still struggling to deal with the guilt that came with every mouthful.
Having already paid a £5
deposit and with the 50% January discount, my meal cost me a jaw-dropping £4.
Yes, you read that correctly, four round shiny British pound coins.
The food wasn’t anything to
shout home about and the venue was rather dingy, so I’m not sure I’d return at
full price.
Whilst I couldn’t possibly
handle the guilt of demolishing another pizza loaded with mac and cheese
anytime soon, it was certainly an experience I’m glad I’ve ticked off my to-dine
list.
Deliciously dirty food at dirt
cheap prices; the perfect antidote to a wet, wintry Friday night.
Website: http://www.dogsndough.com/
Sunday 3 February 2019
Quote of the Week - Week commencing Monday 4 February 2019
"A first rate soup is more creative than a second rate painting."
Abraham Maslow
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