Tonight, Ian decided to take us out for a lovely meal in the village of Little Hucklow in Derbyshire. The venue was "The Blind Bull". Back in 2012, I walked through the village and noticed to my sad disappointment that "The Old Bull's Head" was apparently closed forever. Although it is not the basic country pub it once was, the renamed premises prove that resurrection is possible.
It is now home to one of the best gastro pubs in England. There is also pleasant accommodation just across the road in what was once a piggery.
Please don't ask me what the bill came to but fortunately, I didn't have to pay it. It was Ian's special treat. We had three courses and every mouthful was delightful. Each dish was prepared with skill, love and attention to both presentation and taste.
For my starter I had lovage soup and an egg coated in crusty breadcrumbs. Lovage is a herb and its taste was rich and earthy. I had never tasted it before. Here's a typical main course menu currently shown on the pub's website - not in fact the same menu that we were asked to choose from:
Pork, Wild Garlic, Turnips, Pork Sauce
Monkfish, Worcester Cabbage, Hash Brown, XO Sauce
Gnocchi, Asparagus, Braised Shallots, Burrata & White Truffle
Root Vegetable Ribollita, Charred Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Spiced Almonds
For my main course I had venison with accompaniments including spring greens and for dessert I had a kind of homemade ice cream sandwich with peanut butter biscuits. Ian had also ordered a bottle of fine South African chardonnay.
To get a sense of The Blind Bull's passion for serving very good food, here's an extract from the website blurb: "Food is central to The Blind Bull. So getting the best possible ingredients from our local, independent butchers, fishmongers and grocers is our first priority. When we can’t harvest straight from our garden, we aim to source 80% of our ingredients from within 10 miles of your plate. And you can be certain that our seasonally grown produce has been chosen with care and prepared with love."
I wouldn't dispute any of that. It was a truly great, faultless meal. The service was excellent and we drove home through the dark Derbyshire night feeling well sated. Thank you Ian!
Photo I took of the derelict Old Bull's Head back in 2012
from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/v3P7DAB
