MK Review
This restaurant review was conducted on March 7, 2009 and the original can be read at www.mkreviews.com.
Mark Campbell and his family have been running the popular Birch for eleven years and are always developing their fine menu. Mark and his Head Chef David Nourse love to design new concepts to entice and impress their diners whilst having fun. Our table was ready and waiting for a 7:30pm sitting on a Friday evening. This was a much-awaited review as many friends and colleagues had recommended this restaurant.
Decor
As soon as you enter the building you come across the well lit bar, coupled with bar stalls and a vast selection of drinks. The busy furnishings make the decorations at The Birch splendid with mirrors, ornaments and varied plants making every corner and wall varied. You can dine in the lower restaurant or the conservatory. The Birch's website offers a 360degree panoramic view for all to see.
Service
A great waiter is always prompt in every task whilst being pleasant and non-intrusive in their methods. Here at The Birch the staff works together to deliver your food and each member of the team did just this. You can tell by the standards of service that the staff understand the food, how it is prepared and cooked.
Food
Exclusive ingredients mixed with a talented chef make a perfect experience to explore the pallet. Looking through the menu became tough as there are many fine dishes to absorb from medallions of lamb, daily fishes and black pudding to the fresh meats cooked on the open griddle.
For starters my companion selected the special parsnip and thyme soup which arrived in a large white bowl with crusty croutons and a drizzle of olive oil. This soup may have been too large for a starter as my guest became full from this delicious and creamy dish. The combination of brown butter thyme and parsnip worked very well together.
I headed for a fish night as fancied lighter dishes. I ordered the popular potted crab and prawns served with lemon and bittersweet tarragon butter. This big seller came in a ceramic dish centred on my plate. Dunking my crispy warm flat bread was delightful. The scent of the pot wafted under my nose but the creamy crab and well-cooked prawns were soon gone!
For mains I selected from the specials which Mark reeled off from memory, black bream, king prawns and cream fresh risotto with watercress (£15.95). The two fish were impressive and full of taste. The cream from the sauce worked well, giving this main course a combination of textures and aromas.
My guest selected the fillet mignon with a smoked bacon edge, green broad beans, porcini wild mushrooms in a creamy garlic sauce on a slab of crispy dauphinoise potato (£18.95). The rounded piece of medium cooked meat was marvellous, browned and crispy on the edges, the way most people like it. The wild mushrooms had an amazing nutty flavour and harder texture to your normal mushroom, powerful and endearing.
For desserts we sensibly selected the sorbets knowing how much food we had already engaged but then caught eye of the berry meringue souffle, a signature dish for The Birch and wished we had sampled that. Maybe next time! Our sorbets - lemon, lime and raspberry flavours came to our aid to finish our meal, oh and a cheese platter with biscuits and grapes to share. We could not resist the local and continental cheeses. A great sharing dish.
Atmosphere
The restaurant was full with well to do people who like great fresh food. There was lots of wine being poured on many tables making the dining experience a joyous one. Mark seemed to know many people and enjoyed entertaining. There was certainly a good feel about the place which is warm and welcoming.
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