Red Mullet, poached apple jelly, celeriac and grains of paradise, hazlenut crumb

We had some faboulous red mullet in this weekend. I had it on my du jour menu as a starter.
It is layed head to toe and seasoned and then rolled tight in cling film. It is poached in barely simmering water for about 9 mins. It is sitting on a celeriac remoulade which is mixed with some toasted grains of paradise. A little poached apple is resting in its jelly. The crumb is hazlenut, breadcrumb and malden salt, toasted through the oven.

Line caught seabass fillet, plum tomato fondue, steamed courgette blossom, candied black olive, basil puree, lemon oil

Here is a dish i have been working on for the new Spring a la carte menu. The flavours work here very easily. I will be doing the dish with fantastic line caught wild seabass caught off the Lymington shoreline. Seabass is such a popular choice on our menu that you have to do it justice by not going to crazy on flavour pairings, as the guests in our restaurant are not always that adventurous. But at the end of the day it just has to taste and look good and have the best possible ingredients. I like the colours, taste and freshness of this dish and cant wait to launch it.
I will look at the presentation again.

Saddleback pork belly

Hi all,

We obtained this great half Saddleback breed pig last week. Here the belly has been cured and confit really slowly until practically falling apart. Served with baby leeks and spring onions in a clam glaze, Palourde clams, fresh corn bread in rock and puree form. The sauces are a parsley and clam foam and a rich truffle sauce. The fat is shaved off and crisped up into a galette. The pork belly is lastly seasoned with a BBQ spiced Maldon sea salt.

Goats cheese curd, red wine and apple

This is a small terrine made with red wine, Granny smith apple juice and goats cheese curd. Served with a tomato syrup.

Home smoked organic salmon, sweet peppers, watercress croustillant, candied lime

This is smoked salmon sitting on some marinated sweet peppers, which are peeled and diced and marinated in a gastrique of wine vinegar and sugar. The croustillant is filled with a watercress espuma. The sauces are red pepper syrup and watercress coulis.

Flavour pairings

This is something i was working on this evening. I love butterscotch and have wanted to use it for some time. My thought process led me to foie gras terrine, as you have a more creamy richness to a terrine than when you sear. With the deep caramel note in butterscotch i thought it would pair well. I was wrong! For me the butterscotch was to sweet to match. I then added a little cider vinegar, lemon juice and fig puree to freshen the taste and lighten at the same time.

I was not dissapointed. the fruit puree and slight acidity did wonders to balance out the rich, cloying sweetness of the sauce and it paired very well with the foie.

I garnished the dish with blackberry set in its own jelly, truffled marshmallows, poached grapes and rosemary blossoms.

The only thing i would change on this dish is having more sauce on the plate, possibly sitting under the foie pave.

Working the new a la carte

The past couple of weeks i have been working on the first draft of my new a la carte menu. Its a long thought process as you have to take onboard everyones feedback, and its all different!! It is a very important part of the buisness and feedback is welcome. It makes me think, seasonal, fresh and uncomplicated. Looking at colours and design on the plate. Some like it simple and others want to be wowed. Some want to eat fast and some want a dining experience. the first dishes are tested out on the du jour menus, using the ingredients to hand which are so overused that i cant wait for Spring to start. I want the waiters to communicate to me with guest comments, so that i can guage reactions from senses. Hows the presentation?, Taste?, Did the guest clean the plate?

These are two of the dishes that im working on. The salad i am happy with. The terrine needs a couple of tweaks.

• Seasonal vegetable salad, shallot dressing, spinach mousse, lemon thyme gel
• Foie gras and rhubarb mosaic, candied ginger brioche, rhubarb and long pepper sheets