La Popote – the next chapter #Blog
Stephen Wundke
31st January 2020
About three years ago two lovely people called Lynn and Victor invited us to come and look at their family restaurant in Marton, with a view to them joining Taste Cheshire. We duly attended and were simply knocked out by La Popote. It was exactly the type of place that Taste Cheshire is meant to be telling people about. An independent business, specialising in French Food, using the best local ingredients and seemingly missed by many as the village of Marton isn’t really anywhere. When you ask locals they say we are 10 minutes from Macclesfield, 10 minutes from Wilmslow, 15 minutes from Stockport – anyway you get the idea, even locals arent anywhere exactly, they are just near places. In actual fact the village of Marton is easy to find – its on the A34 and that is a pretty major road but I get why the owners were keen for us to try and put them on the map. I am delighted to say that because of La Popote, Marton is well and truly on the culinary map of Cheshire and if you haven’t been – you should.
Roll on 3 years and Lynn and Victor have retired. Victor reluctantly agreed to hang up his apron and Lynn left her beloved secret walled garden behind but not before they underwent a severe vetting programme to see just who they could trust to carry on their passion and I am delighted to say that last night we met the new incumbents. Victor and Lynn can rest assured they have chosen wisely. We were greeted by a beaming Gaelle, one half of the partnership that is taking this restaurant forward. She explained she was a Parisian, who had met her partner in life and business, Chef and Brit, Joe, in Paris and that it had been Joe’s dream to come back to Cheshire and show off the cooking skills he had accumulated over the last few years in France. She willingly agreed that these were big shoes to fill at La Popote but that they wanted to bring contemporary France cuisine to Marton, create a second chapter in the restaurant’s life and it seemed the perfect time as there was simply so much happening across the food seen in Europe. Her enthusiasm and warmth is so endearing and nothing like the Parisian stereotype we Brits talk of.
After welcoming us with a lovely, crisp, dry and cold glass of champagne, Joe appeared from the kitchen, looking immaculate in his chef whites. He is oozing confidence, comfortable in both his own skin and his new surroundings and keen to get on with this new stanza in their lives. He explained that his lunch time menu changed weekly, his evening menu monthly; that produce would only appear on the menu in season so that everything he put on the plate was full of flavour and that his cooking simply enhanced great ingredients, not made them something God didn’t intend. This was clearly his love and I don’t doubt for a second the honesty and integrity of our hosts, it comes through every pore of their being. They will do whatever is necessary to win over the existing clientele and tell them they are in safe hands and of course grow their audience with their regular menu changes and culinary challenges. It’s clearly an exciting time ahead.
We were two of about 18, from the Food and Drink press in attendance and the idea of fine dining being put out to 18 all at once is almost anathema for any chef but Joe had put together a menu that would please everyone and allow him to spend time with his guests. It was five courses and we were looking forward to a sample of La Popote going forward. Should you never get the opportunity to attend one of these “press” functions, the first thing you notice is that once a course is served it’s about 5 minutes before anyone eats anything because we all have to photograph the course from 4 different angles. So we regularly eat things a little cold and “played around with”, while we find the right light and angle. This rarely endears us to chefs!!
Scottish Scallop
Our first course was one of Pan Fried Scottish Scallops with seaweed emulsion, gremolata and smoked almonds. Perfectly cooked scallop, lovely sharpness about the gremolata of parsley and lemon to counteract the sweetness of the scallop and a delightful way to start the meal. The second course of Salt cured Cod Loin, with a Bell pepper puree, roasted chestnuts and a crisp sage leaf divided the group, it was brave to put this on and as Joe said he wanted to challenge people, not just sit in the comfort zone. Course three was Poached Corn fed Chicken breast with a seasonal vegetable tart. For me the hit here was the tart, lovely blending of vegetables in a kind of lasagne way, with its layers and flavours. The course that followed everyone liked. This was age ground for Joe and his guests, Hereford roast fillet of beef, with wild mushrooms, roast potatoes, spinach and the star of this dish, the lovely, almost sticky, jus that accompanied it. In the end most proteins are pretty good if cooked well but the essence of a good chef we saw in the quality of this jus. By the time we got to our palette cleansing granita and Filo Pastry Mille Feuille, as nice as they were, we were full to bursting.
The atmosphere around the table was more a testimony to the new qualities of La Popote than anything that had preceded it. Fabulous hospitality from generous hosts, who care about their customers and want them to leave their inhibitions at the door and let Gaelle and Joe take you on a culinary journey. On balance that’s exactly what you should do.
Lynn and Victor, you have left La Popote in good hands and its future looks assured.
Taste Cheshire were gifted this experience by La Popote but we stand by our comments, if you don’t believe us, or even if you do, we encourage you to check it out for yourself.
Private: La Popote
Church Farm, Manchester Rd., Marton, SK11 9HF
La Popote is a small owner-run French restaurant and delightful garden in the village of Marton, consistently delivering delicious ‘real’ food and genuinely warm hospitality.
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