This year has thrown all of us plenty of curveballs already, and sadly it seems far from over yet. So, in a bid to carry on carrying on, and give our guests further reason to continue returning, we are thrilled to launch our new Autumn A La Carte Menu.
As always our focus when creating this menu was to showcase the very best seasonal bounty that the autumnal months have to offer, so you can expect robust, rich and hearty flavours. Fulfilling dishes that truly comfort, full of texture and layers of flavour. This menu launch is a celebration, not only of the ingredients the months of October through to December bring us, but of the sustainable producers and growers who champion Lincolnshire’s provenance.
As with our summer menu, we have continued adapted to allow more dishes than ever to be tailored to a plethora of dietary requirements, with most dishes being able to be offered as gluten free options. This season we have also developed the A La Carte offering further by investing in wine pairings, thanks to our supplier House of Townend. To enhance your experience our wine supplier has called upon its expert team so you know which wine will perfectly accompany your meal – from start to finish.
A quintessential autumn appetiser – chicken liver parfait. Lighter and smoother than its pate counterpart, the texture of parfait is almost aerated, a quality that comes from the cooking process. Paired with rhubarb two ways, a welcome acidity cuts through the rich parfait, and sweet home-baked fruit loaf which also happens to be soaked and beer and spiced rum before being baked.
A stunning appetiser if we do say so ourselves, Smoked Salmon, Crab Cake, Beetroot, Peas. Four elements, a myriad of cooking methods and one delicious result. The salmon, supplied by master smoker Alfred Enderby, is rich, buttery and beautifully smoky. The crab cake is a fun addition to this dish, with hints of local horseradish and lemon, dusted with beetroot flakes and cooked to perfection. Three different varieties of beetroot are prepared in three different ways to add depth to this appetiser – beetroot gel, salt-baked beetroot and pickled beetroot.
Our vegetarian appetiser for autumn, Roasted Oyster Mushroom, Smoked Garlic, Tarragon, Capers, Croute. Our take on a traditional garlic mushroom starter, this dish shows just how hearty vegetables can be. Meaty sliced of oyster mushroom – its trimmings fried off adding an almost mushroom jerky element to the plate – is met with the soft and gentle, smoky hum of garlic. Tarragon, from the manor gardens, and capers finish off the dish so you experience the balance of sweet, sour and pickle.
Hand-dived from Scotland, the scallops used in our Scallop, Belly Pork, Cauliflower, Truffle appetiser are of superior quality. The fattest, juiciest scallops, we remove the roe and dry it to make it into a powder which is used to season the scallop prior to cooking. We have become renowned for pairing our scallops with meat, and this season it is belly pork. Scallop and meat makes for such a good marriage. The belly pork is a confit, cooked at 68-degrees for 24-hours. Once cooked the pork is blow-torched to give it the perfect crackling. The cauliflower, hugely versatile, is this time grated, almost being used as a couscous substitute, all topped with truffle oil.
It wouldn’t be an autumn menu without beef featured, to that end we give you the Fillet of Beef Rossini, Potato Terrine, Croute, Parfait, Madeira Cream. Layer upon layer of beautifully prepared autumnal fayre. Indulgent, hearty and satisfying this traditional French dish has definitely been given The Lincolnshire Chef treatment. Accompanying this for the mains offering are a few unusual options for us.
The Roasted Belly Pork, Pigs Cheek Burger, Carrot, Apple Fondant, Onion Puree, Charred Shallots. Harking back to the mini accompanying burger from a previous menu, this main is perhaps a lighter alternative to the beef. Another multi-layer dish, it builds up textures and flavours to make quite the impression. Then there is the Seabass, King Prawn, Carbonara, Poached Courgette. Regulars of ours will know finding a pasta dish on the menu is a rarity. This is both light and indulgent at the same time – the buttery seabass, king prawn – supplied by Premier Seafoods – and carbonara balanced perfectly by the poached courgette.
With Sprouts, Chestnuts, Bacon, Black Pudding, Bon Bon and Pin Gin soaked brambles, our duck dish is a showstopper. A number of our suppliers have come together here – Lincolnshire duck, Pin Gin and Coven Garden – to make this main a real homage to autumn.
In way of a main vegetarian dish for the season we have opted to focus on the humble cauliflower. So versatile it’s a fantastically adaptable veg. Chargrilled Cauliflower, Hazelnut Hummus, Frittata, Pomegranate, Goats Cheese. It sounds moreish doesn’t it? A light and fluffy frittata works as the base for this dish, upon which each of the elements are layered. A filling option for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.
Moving on to desserts, there are some superb autumnal flavours here that come through. Brambles. Toffee. Ginger. Brazil nut. All evoking tastes and smells of years gone by, Bonfire night. Christmases with the family. Scouring the hedgerow for blackberries.
The epitome of autumn – Bramble Bavarois, Jamaican Ginger Cake, Macaron, Mango and Coconut Sorbet, Roasted Coconut. A dish that looks as good as it tastes, the creamy yet light bavarois is the perfect vehicle for the sharp notes of bramble berries. Countless textures and flavours are built upon in this dish, the spice of ginger, the warmth of toasted coconut, the tang of mango, it all combines effortlessly to create a remarkable dessert.
An old favourite reimagined, Crème Brulee, Autumn Berries, Lemon Meringue, Brazil Nut Shortbread. That tell-tale ‘crack’ of sugar still lets you know this is a brulee, however, topped with mini lemon meringues, autumn berries, edible flowers from our very own gardens and served with a brazil nut shortbread – this is anything but ordinary.
Continuing a trend our pastry team started many menus ago – bringing their own take of popular chocolate bars to the table – we’ve brought back the stand-out favourite from last year’s seasonal menu – the Marathon Bar.
Served with caramel ice cream and old English toffee, the Marathon Bar dessert has everything you remember from the old ‘Snickers’ but deconstructed. Brought to you in a playful new format.
To read the full menu click here. Our A La Carte menu is served Monday through to Saturday 5pm until 9pm in both The Pig & Whistle and The Portman. To book your table in our Covid-19 secure environment, please click here.
