When friends in Suffolk suggested we stay over for a weekend, they said they had an ideal place for dinner on the Saturday night. When they told us it was The British Larder we were delighted because we have for some time followed their website www.britishlarder.co.uk and think it is excellent.
The British Larder has a menu that reads very well indeed with a focus on local ingredients. There's a strong sense of Suffolk on the menu and it's a county that probably doesn't get enough credit for its wonderful produce as perhaps it should. The odd thing (in the more general sense) is that more places don't have a menu like The British Larder for if you are a country style pub/restaurant, this is the menu that you really should aspire to. There are no burgers, pies or fish and chips here. Instead, there's roasted rack of lamb, pan fried hake, Dingley Dell pork belly. It's a kitchen that does proper cooking and it's a wonderful thing.
As noted, we're there with friends, including a vegan, and a major plus point is that he's easily accommodated, but so also are we with around seven options on the menu at each stage. Accordingly, there's plenty of food diversity around the table, and with everything sounding so good, the only difficulty is choosing. Being in Suffolk, my choices had to feature pork somewhere and I chose the starting pork dish, Dingley Dell Pork Tasting: Hock Scotch Egg, Crispy Bacon and Frisse Salad, Raised Pork Pie, Pig Rillettes which was an astonishing celebration of pork in various forms and through variety and quantity, became momentarily the focus of conversation when it was brought to the table. It ticked the boxes with each component delivering a well prepared and well cooked porky treat including an unadvertised light and crispy crackling.
Good job that I ordered a lighter main after that pork dish, for me then a fresh and summery hake fillet. But of the dishes presented here, it was a generous cut on a fillet of beef that was the talking point, while the roasted rack of lamb looked similarly divine. It lifts the spirits to see ingredients carefully sourced, respected in the kitchen and presented with care at the table and it seems almost odd that this should be sufficiently uncommon to be comment worthy.
The British Larder then should be applauded for what they do. It's not a cheap menu by any stretch, but people shouldn't begrudge that if they care what is on the end of their fork. There are still too many town and country places that serve bought in food, reheated rather than cooked, but at The British Larder, it's the real thing by people who care. Suffolk doesn't seem over-run with high quality eateries, something else that seems odd, but this The British Larder should be on everyone's food itinerary if they live in, or pass through, Suffolk.
The British Larder has a menu that reads very well indeed with a focus on local ingredients. There's a strong sense of Suffolk on the menu and it's a county that probably doesn't get enough credit for its wonderful produce as perhaps it should. The odd thing (in the more general sense) is that more places don't have a menu like The British Larder for if you are a country style pub/restaurant, this is the menu that you really should aspire to. There are no burgers, pies or fish and chips here. Instead, there's roasted rack of lamb, pan fried hake, Dingley Dell pork belly. It's a kitchen that does proper cooking and it's a wonderful thing.
As noted, we're there with friends, including a vegan, and a major plus point is that he's easily accommodated, but so also are we with around seven options on the menu at each stage. Accordingly, there's plenty of food diversity around the table, and with everything sounding so good, the only difficulty is choosing. Being in Suffolk, my choices had to feature pork somewhere and I chose the starting pork dish, Dingley Dell Pork Tasting: Hock Scotch Egg, Crispy Bacon and Frisse Salad, Raised Pork Pie, Pig Rillettes which was an astonishing celebration of pork in various forms and through variety and quantity, became momentarily the focus of conversation when it was brought to the table. It ticked the boxes with each component delivering a well prepared and well cooked porky treat including an unadvertised light and crispy crackling.
Good job that I ordered a lighter main after that pork dish, for me then a fresh and summery hake fillet. But of the dishes presented here, it was a generous cut on a fillet of beef that was the talking point, while the roasted rack of lamb looked similarly divine. It lifts the spirits to see ingredients carefully sourced, respected in the kitchen and presented with care at the table and it seems almost odd that this should be sufficiently uncommon to be comment worthy.
The British Larder then should be applauded for what they do. It's not a cheap menu by any stretch, but people shouldn't begrudge that if they care what is on the end of their fork. There are still too many town and country places that serve bought in food, reheated rather than cooked, but at The British Larder, it's the real thing by people who care. Suffolk doesn't seem over-run with high quality eateries, something else that seems odd, but this The British Larder should be on everyone's food itinerary if they live in, or pass through, Suffolk.
Ravioli of Lobster, Smoked Prawn Bisque Sauce, Samphire, Confit Tomato
Salad of Middleton Asparagus, Asparagus Mousse, Soft Boiled Pheasant Egg
Dingley Dell Pork Tasting: Hock Scotch Egg, Crispy Bacon and Frisse Salad, Raised Pork Pie, Pig Rillettes
Bob Wilden's Roasted Rack of Lamb, Lamb Shoulder Croquette, Middleton Asparagus, Wild Garlic
Red Onion and Field Mushroom Tart Tatin, Braised Gem Lettuce and Broad Beans
Pan Fried Hake, Crushed New Potatoes, Creamed Dry Sherry & Fennel Sauce
Fillet of Beef, Boulanger Potato, Caramelised Shallots, Red Wine Sauce
"Our Famous Treacle Tart" Vanilla Ice Cream
Chocolate & Hazelnut Praline Cremeux, Praline Ice Cream
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