The Lord Clyde – A Cheshire hidden gem #Review
Gaile Wundke
1st August 2016
Now and again, if a restaurant is a little further afield, we make a lunchtime visit which is exactly what we did when we were asked to review The Lord Clyde. We had very high hopes for this visit as with three AA rosettes and having worked at The Fat Duck and Le Manoir Au Quat’Saisons, you would expect co-owner and chef Ernst van Zyl to produce some pretty outstanding food and he most certainly didn’t disappoint.
Situated in the pretty village of Kerridge within the foothills of the Peak District, The Lord Clyde really is a hidden gem and one which should be sought out by anyone who appreciates seasonal and local produce, magically transformed into wonderfully innovative dishes.
The lunchtime menu is priced at £36.00 for two people and offers a choice of starters, mains and desserts and includes a 125ml glass of house red or white wine. The selection is good and although there was no vegetarian option printed on the menu, Ernst would have no trouble at all in whisking up something delicious at a diners’ request.
To start we chose the Quail – Norfolk quail, shallot, buttermilk, girolles and grapes and the Duck Egg – Poached duck egg, Shiitake mushroom, pickled fennel and toasted hazelnuts. Whilst we were waiting, bread arrived – made on the premises using their own milled flour, freshly baked and quirkily presented in a lidded box. It was accompanied by smoked and rosemary scented butters and sea salt. Without doubt, some of the nicest bread we have ever had in a restaurant and the lovely presentation made it that bit more special.
Our starters duly arrived and we both had the same thought – Wow! Ernst’s attention to detail is outstanding which was amply reflected in the presentation and the combination of flavours in each dish worked beautifully.
For mains we chose Chicken – Roasted chicken breast, courgette, salt baked celeriac, samphire and toasted spelt and 50 day aged Ribeye (£7.50 supplement) – Ribeye steak, fat chips, tomato, mushroom, peppercorn sauce. The steak was, in my husband’s opinion (and he’s had a lot of Ribeye!), the best he’d ever eaten and was cooked perfectly rare, just how he’d asked and the chips were fat, crisp and delicious. Then there was the tomato, at last a chef that can actually cook a tomato, rather than just char the top. It was soft and unctuous and its rich juices combined beautifully with the flavours of the field mushroom on which it stood! The whole plate got a big thumbs up and disappeared rather quickly. The chicken was superbly moist and the nuttiness of the celeriac and toasted spelt was offset by the salty kick of the samphire. A well-made jus brought the whole dish together complimenting, without overpowering, any of the flavours.
Not being used to 3 courses at lunchtime or in my case any lunch at all, we were going to pass on dessert, but were finally tempted to order one between us. We chose Strawberry – Goat’s cheese curd, balsamic vinegar and salted peanuts. The strawberry element of fresh strawberries and strawberry jelly worked really well with the tang of the goat’s cheese and the balsamic and salted peanuts added acidity and saltiness, achieving a perfect balance of flavour and texture.
The Lord Clyde is no ordinary pub, it looks like a pub, it sounds like a pub, but it is in fact an exceptional dining experience and anyone paying a visit will be richly rewarded for doing so. Ernst is incredibly talented and rightly deserves the awards he has so far achieved and I am quite convinced that it won’t be long before one or two more will be heading his way!