Recently me and my friends have been turning 30. When you turn 30 something strange happens. You turn down the obligatory birthday night out and opt instead for a nice lunch with friends. It is far more civilized and far less likely to involve you sleeping on your bathroom floor. With this in mind we went to the French, Simon Rogan’s Manchester venture in the Midland Hotel. Famous for his Lake District restaurant L’enclume the French is his move into the ever competitive Manchester restaurant scene.
The Midland is a beautiful city centre hotel with all you would expect – marble floors, a piano player and a sleek wooden bar serving cocktails to the hoi poli of Manchester. We started with a beer in Mr Cooper’s House and Garden bar. It is a lovely place to while away a Saturday lunchtime. There was a range of beers available at around £4-4.50 a pint and glasses of wine around £7. The only slight annoyance is they insisted on taking our order at the table rather than bar. We only had 30 minutes before lunch and had to wait 5 minutes to be served and then a further 5 minutes for drinks. However, we were brought glasses of water and the house beer was excellent, crisp and refreshing.
We then went through to the French, less a separate restaurant in the hotel and more a sizable alcove in the corner of the spacious lobby. The service was impeccable. We were met warmly, seated and coats taken promptly. We were given a wine list (although we were only given one between six of us which was slightly awkward). The sommelier was informative and the service was attentive without being overbearing. Your wine glass was filled up and yet we never felt like we were being watched.
We opted for the six course tasting menu at £65 (the ten course is £85), a half-bottle of white wine (£19) and a couple of bottles of Chilean red (£30 each). The range of wines was extensive and whilst we picked the bottom end (i.e. the cheapest) they were still superb wines, full bodied and bold. The food was brought at regular intervals, first with a couple of amuse bouche and then the various courses. We happily whiled away the afternoon, sampling the various dishes which came in front of us. Overall the food was good. Not outstanding, but good none the less. The range of flavours and textures is what really stood out. From a mouth watering venison meatball to textures of turnip and sumptuous pork belly, the courses had been put together with great thought. Our only major disappointment was the dessert. I rather share Gregg Wallace’s view that a dessert should be decadent and opulent and leave you feeling happy with the world. This was a sorbet (albeit made from a salad leaf) and caramel and was more of a pallet cleanser. I think the ten course menu had another dessert and perhaps would have been worth stretching too.
On the whole however I think you go to these sorts of places for an experience and it certainly was that. We left contented, slightly tipsy and pleased with a wonderful afternoon.
Overall rating – 8.5/10
Food cost – £65 for six courses, £85 for ten courses.
Wine cost – cheapest bottle starts at £29 although there were half bottles from £19
