A table for 12 hungry food nerds, a 999 call and ingredients missing? it's all in an evening's work at the Broad Chare25 Broad Chare, Newcastle upon Tyne (0191 211 2144). Meal for two, including drinks and service: �65People who work in restaurants share stories from the dinner rush the way soldiers talk of war. You have to be one of them to understand. Sometimes service is humdrum, an endless cycle of menus given, orders taken, dishes brought and bills settled, all without incident. And then there are the services which the front of house will remember for an awfully long time; the ones where events and circumstance conspire in an attempt to make the wheels fall off, and everybody dreams of the moment when the last dish has been sent, the last bill settled. The team at the Broad Chare, a big-boned, bustling food pub just off the quayside in Newcastle's city centre, could be forgiven for feeling that way about a recent dinner service.First of all there was the realisation that the 9.30pm booking for 12, made via the web, was the cast and production team for The Kitchen Cabinet, the Radio 4 food show that had been recording that evening in the theatre next door. Which meant they were now feeding the likes of Thomasina Miers of the Wahaca Mexican chain, Henry Dimbleby of healthy fast-food group Leon and, well, me, among others. They blinked and carried on, even as they realised the previous occupants of that space were not vacating perhaps as quickly as might have been hoped. They managed the sudden announcement by the kitchen that various ingredients were running out ? lamb's kidneys were off, the watercress had finished ? with charm, sweetness and light.And then, from the other end of the room, came a shout: "Quick! Call 999. NOW!" One of the diners had suffered a seizure. Tables were pushed back and she was put into the recovery position on the floor. Dishes kept flying out of the kitchen and the front of house didn't miss a beat, even as the paramedics arrived. The patient recovered sufficiently to stand and walk out of the restaurant to get the once-over at hospital.For bravery under fire like this alone, I'd give the Broad Chare a massive round of applause. But on top of this the food is good and, in places, very good. A vast pie of long-braised venison in a rich and sticky stock thickened with pig's trotter ? there are few stews that will not benefit from the early addition of a foot ? under a glazed and shiny shortcrust pastry shell, enough to feed three for �33, was a truly glorious thing. Newcastle's tourist bus tour should add a stop so that people could gaze down adoringly at that pie ? as we did before scoffing the lot.There was a Welsh rarebit with a solid mustardy kick. There were rounds of bubble and squeak with fried duck eggs ? HP Sauce on the side ? and an especially good disc of black pudding. It was a light and fluffy affair and the advertised fiery kick was not shy. We cooed over that, too. Downstairs in the bar there are various bits of crisped pig ? skin and ears ? to nibble upon, alongside hand-raised pork pies and oysters from Lindisfarne. Similarly the menu mentions famed kippers from nearby Craster and cheese from Brinkburn. Though we didn't get there, both gooseberry and elderflower tart and a chocolate and salted caramel sundae sounded like the sort of things we could have done damage to. Beers come from up the Tyne Valley, including their own-label pale ale. Happily wines do not come from Northumberland ? a lousy idea. Instead, it's a list that bends the knee at the relevant European stations of the cross.If there is a quibble it is merely with the language the Broad Chare uses to describe this. It's all "proper" and "honest": "proper beer" and "proper food" served in a "proper pub". These things are in the eye of the beholder, and it can feel like unnecessary over-compensation. The word "honest" when applied to food is even worse. I'm yet to meet the kleptomaniac carrot, the sea bass that should be done for breaking and entering, the psychotic chicken? Food can't be dishonest; only the people cooking and serving it can be. And, as we already know, the people at the Broad Chare are one of a kind.Email Jay at jay.rayner@observer.co.uk or visit guardian.co.uk/profile/jayrayner for all his reviews in one placeFood & drinkNewcastleRestaurantsRestaurantsJay Raynerguardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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