The Bird at Birtle

Bury and Rochdale Old Road, Heywood

The Bird at Birtle is what should probably be called a ‘gastropub’. Owned by renowned local chef and restaurateur Andrew Nutter, the former public house is a sister venue to his famous country retreat Nutter’s, a stunning converted manor house in Norden which showcases some of the best fine dining in the North West.

The Bird at Birtle is a smaller, more relaxed venue located on the outskirts of the Lancashire countryside. It may be more casual, but the quality of the food is just as stunning and the surroundings are just as sophisticated as the award-winning original. The tables are opulently laid and the staff are very friendly and attentive; you’d be hard-pressed to find fault.

The menu changes regularly to reflect in-season local produce. There’s a wide selection of starters, main courses and desserts. Starters on the current menu include tomato soup with truffle oil, chicken liver parfait with toasted brioche and red onion jam and tempura Bury black pudding, all sounding as delicious one another. It was a toss-up between creamy garlic mushrooms, an ultimate favourite of mine, and the hoisin duck wraps.

I worried the garlic mushrooms would be too safe. After all, they do grace many menus and I felt I should be ordering something a little different. Luckily, the risk paid off as they were absolutely delicious. They were incredibly garlicky and coated in creamy cheese, sat on top of toasted sourdough and topped with shredded lettuce for an added crunch, it was a lip-smackingly gorgeous way to begin an exceptional meal.

Garlic Mushrooms

The duck wrap looked equally impressive. You had to shred the duck yourself, but this couldn’t have been easier because the meat was so perfectly cooked it fell apart. Served with hoisin sauce, cucumber and leek, you were able to neatly fold it all into mini pancakes. The portions were very generous and the prices were very reasonable.

Duck and Hoisin Wrap

For main course, there’s an array of meat and fish dishes, as well as vegetarian options and pub classics such as steaks and pies. Tempted as I was by the cheese and onion pie, in the end I opted for the sumptuous-sounding roast feather blade of beef. It was served with a caramelised onion and red wine jus, roast fondant potatoes and carrot puree. The succulent beef fell apart and melted in my mouth, with the onion and red wine jus adding depth to the flavour. The roast fondant potatoes were like a perfectly cooked croquet; layers of thinly sliced potatoes roasted to a splendid colour and texture, nice and crispy on the outside. The whole meal was delightfully satisfying. At £18.90, my beef main was very reasonably priced and worth every single penny.

Roast Feather Blade of Beef

As you know by now, for yours truly, dessert is the highlight of any meal and here, the desserts are nothing short of the exceptional quality I had, by the third course, grown to expect. The choice of British classics was endless and included jam roly poly, sticky toffee pudding, chocolate brownie and one of my favourites, the lesser-spotted banoffee pie.

It was a superb banoffee pie, deliciously sickly sweet toffee and cream encased in pastry and finished off with caramelised banana, it was enough to satisfy even the most sweet-toothed of people. I do prefer a nice crunchy biscuit base on a banoffee pie, but it was excellent all the same.

Banoffee Pie

The Bird at Birtle is a truly exceptional dining experience. It’s fine dining without the pretentiousness. Instead, it’s relaxed and friendly and extremely reasonably priced, but still with the finest quality of food. A faultless restaurant which proved so good I’m not sure I’ll be able to reserve it for special occasions. I can’t wait to go back.

A sample menu can be viewed online: http://www.thebirdatbirtle.co.uk/.