The simple things in life, they say, are often the most extraordinary. Now, I don?t know who they were but they hit the nail on the head when talking about food.
And it was with that in mind, that I pondered the menu at Neill?s Hill on the Upper Newtownards Road. The restaurant had gone through a transition last year from the more formal Alden?s to it?s now more casual appearance, fitting in nicely with the current restaurant scene in Ballyhackamore.
The old room at Alden?s was a bit cold, but the change to its new form felt a lot more welcoming and warm. There?s more colour and with that it makes the room look bigger than it previously did.
On the menu are plenty of those simple foods that may not be the most technically proficient dishes on the planet, but when they?re done well, they are damn tasty and have you heading back for more (mussels and frites and steak sandwich are two such dishes).
The starters section was skipped in favour of the small plates, dishes of scallop and Toulouse sausages came out and I was most looking forward to the latter, but it turned out to be a bit of a damp squid.
Portioning was all wrong ? there was way too many slices of potato in comparison to the sausage and whilst there was plenty of scallion, there was little else of note to bind the dish together. With just a few changes it could be a great dish.
The scallops were perfectly cooked and came with slithers of ham hock, a smooth pea puree and a beautifully rich sauce binding it all together. It was to be the stand-out dish of the day.
Service was pretty good, other than a small gripe or two. Most notably having to ask for the wine glasses to be removed from the overladen table ? it?s tough enough with small children in tow without having 12 glasses on the table, spelling out ?accidental breakage? quite loudly.
Other than that, our waitress was friendly and attentive and it?s one of the few times a restaurant has managed to balance getting food out to the children with starters and quickly enough with the mains so we?re not eating in two sittings.
Chicken and chips and sausage and mash with gravy were ordered and dispatched at the same time as our small plates. Everything was as it should be, with quirky little buckets for the vegetables. However, the veg was raw, something which is perfectly fine to serve up to anyone, but I have yet to be convinced about serving a hot main course with cold vegetables.
As we waited for mains, my eye was taken with a blackboard that straddles between the dining room and the path to the kitchen. Few diners could probably see it from the restaurant other than those at the back wall. And I know it?s not a surprise that restaurants try to sell in order to manage stock, but to see notes to staff like ?sell chocolate profiteroles? and information on what not to put in the fridge chalked up on the board felt a little wrong to me.
When our waitress got close to the table with our main courses, I got the whiff of burnt food and as my lamb tagine was sat in front of me, I could see, and smell where it came from. The accompanying flatbread had went a touch too far and rather than nice smokey lines, it had moved into burnt territory. I attempted a few bites but it was just as unpleasant a taste as it was a smell.
The tagine itself was flavourful though could have done with heavier spicing and the cous cous was, well, it was plain and did its job. There was, however, pieces of lamb that were soft and tender and others that were dry.
Mrs F is loathe to pass a steak sandwich when it?s on offer and Neill?s Hill was no exception to the rule. The steak was well cooked though the additional jug of pepper sauce ordered lacked oomph. The steak came out on a bog-standard burger bap, which hadn?t been toasted, so by the time it got to the table the onions had left the bap slightly soggy. The fries, however, were crunchy and perfect.
Both kids opted for the profiteroles that came with babycinos. The pastry was covered in chocolate and then chocolate sauce was added in abundance, and my custard tart with spiced plum wasn?t bad. The pastry was good, though the filling could have done with a lot more vanilla.
It?s a shame we didn?t have a better meal at Neill?s Hill. I?d been hoping this review would have been gushing about how great it was and writing about the Backin? Belfast campaign and why we shouldn?t let those with masks over their faces ruin local business. Sadly it?s not the case. I hope though, that the flags protests stop being an albatross around the neck of local business and maybe Neill?s Hill can get back to doing their dishes justice, leaving customers singing about the simple things in life again.
?
Neill?s Hill
229 Upper Newtownards Road
Belfast, BT43JF
Tel: 028 9065 0079
Web: www.neillshill.com
John Ferris has worked in the newspaper industry since 1998 and has been a food blogger and newsprint restaurant critic since 2006, writing more than 1,000 food and drink articles ? reviewing hundreds of local restaurants as well as some of the world?s best. John Ferris writes restaurant reviews for the Belfast Media Group and is also a regular contributor on the Carolyn Stewart Lunchtime Bistro show on U105 as well as writing chef profiles for Hospitality Review NI.
Source: http://foodbelfast.com/2013/02/still-a-mountain-to-climb-at-neills-hill/
donnie mcclurkin whitney houston funeral live stream kevin costner whitney houston whitney houston funeral live pat buchanan slither slither
No comments:
Post a Comment