The Manor House

Faced with yet another cold and frosty spring night, there was only one thing for it, dinner out in a cozy country pub. ‘Officially the best Pub in the East Midlands’ (see website) I thought ‘The Manor House’ at Quorn was where I needed to be.

 

First impressions as I drove through the gravel car park were good. A well-presented building with a friendly vibe. Inside, the bar and restaurant is well maintained and smart in appearance.  With its high ceilings and open plan arrangements The Manor House has a fantastic sense of space but also generates a feeling of warmth and comfort with its mixture of real wood flooring, soft furnishings and rustic tables and chairs.  

 

The bar area was bustling, busy with happy drinkers enjoying CAMRA approved and Cask marque accredited beverages. This helped to create a vibrant, upbeat atmosphere which spilled out into the dining areas creating an ideal ambiance for eating. At ease and hopeful we were shown to our table to begin our evening.

 

The Manor House serves seasonal, locally sourced modern European cuisine.  As a result, the menu reads well. Starters range from £4.95-£725 and include dressed crab, avocado, sea salt & fennel seed tuilles (£7.25) and textures of goat’s cheese & beetroot (£5.45). The main menu had some equally mouth-watering offerings including ‘pub classics’ such as ale battered haddock & chips, mushy peas & tartare sauce (£9.95/£13.95)  and a rather more refined section such as confit belly pork, potted brown shrimp, sea vegetables & sour dough (£15.45). Cleverly, 3 versions of the starters, mains and desserts from the a la carte menu also make it onto a 'prix fixe' menu (two or three courses). Unable to resist a potential bargain, myself and my fellow diner chose our dinners from the discounted menu.

 

First up, tempura tiger prawns. Four deliciously succulent prawns in a wonderfully light batter, served with mixed leaves, balsamic vinegar and a little side dish of sweet chilli dipping sauce.  A simple starter but a crowd pleaser none the less.  My only criticism with the dish was in the preparation of the prawns. Hidden inside the crispy batter was far too much shell which meant you either ate half a prawn or took a bigger bite up to the tail, resulting in you having a mouthful of crunchy shell for the rest of the course. I had the crispy pressed pig’s cheek & pickles.  A racing car wheel shaped disk of breaded and deep fried shredded pig’s cheeks, served with  gribiche sauce (similar to an aioli or a mayonnaise sauce but with chopped hard cooked eggs, capers, pickles and herbs) a salad garnish and a gherkin slice. Again, a very satisfying and pleasing starter.  The pig’s cheeks had a good strong pork flavour, and the sharpness from the pickles in the sauce and on the plate cut through the meat perfectly. Word of warning though, the texture of the pig’s cheeks is unusually stringy and can be quite chewy and so maybe not for everyone?

 

For our main course we both opted for the breast of guinea fowl, herb mash & wild mushrooms. A small but perfectly formed plate of food. A baby leak was precariously balanced on a breast and a leg of guinea fowl which was nestled between three green mash potatoe ‘walnut whips’. Delicate slices of wild mushroom in the sauce added wonderful bursts of deep, earthy flavour which complimented the taste of ‘chicken’ from the guinea fowl and buttery mash. A lovely plate of food, I just wished there was a bit more of it.

 

Still feeling peckish we decided there was definitely room for dessert.  ‘Pudding of the day’ from the main menu was Sticky Toffee. I had a craving for something stodgy, something that would fill me up good and proper.  So I set about trying to persuade the waitress that Sticky Toffee would be a helpful addition to the dessert choice currently on offer to me. She agreed (hurrah) and soon enough I was tucking into a generous portion of (surprisingly) light and fluffy sponge, drenched in a toe curling sweet toffee sauce, served with vanilla ice-cream.  As lovely as it was (and it really was nice) a generous portion of karma was also being served to me that evening. My friend had done the ‘right thing’ and ordered her dessert from the prix fixe menu. Described as ‘lemon, raspberry & chocolate’ we didn’t really know what to expect.  Had I of known this was actually the creamiest of lemon possets served with a refreshing raspberry sorbet I would have been forced to think again about going off menu. Had I known this glass of loveliness also contained delightful little drops of rich dark chocolate and was served with a fanatically large rectangle of some kind of flapjack and shortbread hybrid, I would never of even considered setting foot on the road to Sticky Toffee. ‘Lemon, raspberry and chocolate’ was delicious (damn it).  Definitely the best dish of the whole meal. Last time I order off menu.  Serves me right. Lesson learned.

 

So with the surprisingly substantial and scrummy desserts, the £17.95 prix fixe menu represented excellent value for money. All of the dishes were beautifully presented, cooked well and had something about them that made them something a little bit special.

 

I would happily recommend The Manor House to anyone. I would like to return to see how the a la carte dishes compare to those served as part of the prix fixe menu. Judging by the popularity of the pub (and the fact it’s officially the best pub in the East Midlands) I have every confidence it would be an equally enjoyable culinary and dining experience.

 

Restaurant 4/5

Food 4/5

Service 4/5

Value for money 5/5

Total 17/20