Albert’s Shed, Manchester

October 21, 2012 - Alex Leave a comment

date of visit: Sunday 14 October 2012

Manchester. Funny place. It’s a big, spread out kind of city and one that, to be honest, I’ve never really got along with that well. My first ever visit saw me deposited at the bus station (the trains were cancelled) in a less than salubrious part of town. And that has pretty much typified my experiences since: you can find the shiny shops and bars but, just as easily as you found them, you can find yourself in a street that looks and feels decidedly down at heel.

As we were scheduled to arrive in Manchester at around 7am, we knew we needed to have a plan to fill the afternoon, in order to get ourselves on UK time as soon as possible. Fortunately, a good few years food blogging while living in Leeds meant I knew where to start – by asking Alistair Bathgate. Good food, good surrounds, a decent wine list and (of course) toddler friendly were all on my list of requirements. We had a short list of two, which was whittled down to just one, Albert’s Shed, by the fact that we could get off the train at Manchester Piccadilly and walk there (thanks to the free wifi of various venues on Deansgate Locks because otherwise we might not have found it!).

Albert’s Shed is on the canal and has a spacious beer garden. Inside, it’s neutrally stylish and massive windows do a fantastic job of catching weak early winter sun and turning the dining area into a comfortable, light filled space.

We were warmly greeted, given a choice of tables and offered a high chair. Without asking. And without asking the Toddler was presented with colouring sheets and crayons. Before we even sat down, I was Albert’s Shed newest number one fan.

On a Sunday there’s a set lunch menu which is about 17 for 2 courses – it focusses on roasts, and the a la carte menu features modern British cooking. I was tempted by the gnocchi with rabbit but it was a starter and it was late and I was hungry so in the end I opted for the smoked haddock risotto, served with poached egg. Andy chose the Brunch Burger (at 3pm!) which featured egg, bacon, and bblack pudding along with the usual burger suspects. We ordered the Toddler the smoked haddock fish cakes – available on both the children’s menu (6.75 for two courses, including a drink) and the main menu. I’d been tempted by the fish cakes myself, which was lucky because he was far more interested in my risotto and his chips than his own fish cakes …

I really enjoyed the risotto – the rice had a good toothsomeness to it, there was plenty of fish but there was no overpowering smokiness, and the perfectly poached egg added extra creaminess and richness. Popping a poached egg on top of risotto is something I certainly need to do more of!

The fish cakes were good too – quite generous in size, with a lovely crispy outer and the right combination of fluffy potatoes and fish in the inner. I didn’t get to try any of the burger, but the fact that it was huge and there were no complaints from the other side of the table suggests that there were no issues there.

Drinks wise I started with a glass of the house Pierre Mignon Champagne. If Champagne is on offer for 6.95 a glass, I’ll be having it, thanks. It was pretty indifferent Champagne, if I’m brutally honest, but at that price my expectations were limited to something cold and fizzy! I followed this with a small glass of Airen (4). Airen is the most widely grown grape in Spain and is mostly used for the production of Spanish Brandy. It makes a reasonably neutral dry white wine – a little bit of weight, a little bit of stone fruit … Not the most interesting wine you’ll ever drink by the glass but also one you’re not likely to find on wine lists in Australia!

The toddler wrapped up with a bowl of fruit and we finished with coffees. The damage was 50 – that’s for 2 adult main courses, 2 glasses of wine, 2 beers (Andy was thrilled that Budvar was on the menu!), 2 coffees and the children’s menu. Probably not the cheapest lunch you can have in Manchester but certainly a very very pleasant lunch.

Food, wine and venue all ticked the right boxes but the real stars at Albert’s Shed were the staff. Absolutely everyone on the floor was unfailingly polite, ccompetent, cheerful and thoughtful.

I know it’s a cliche, but people really are friendlier in the north of England …

Giveaway: Nescafe Gold Single Origin Colombian Blend

October 11, 2012 - Alex 17 Comments

Disclaimer: Nescafé sent me the above hamper of goodies, including a pack of the limited edition coffee.

Eating Adelaide has 5 packs of this limited edition coffee to give away … read on!

Even before I received my pack of goodies from Nescafé I was thinking about the fairest way to assess the new, limited edition, Nescafé Gold Single Origin Colombian coffee.

Andy said I should be making iced coffees but I’m not convinced that that’s how most instant coffee is used so I decided on a blind taste test. We have both ground and instant coffee at home so Andy was dispatched (despite complaining that it was almost 10pm and he didn’t really want a coffee) and I set about setting up the taste test.

I’ll resist my urge to detail the setting up of the test. We had three coffees: 2 the Nescafé and 1 our normal. Andy tasted entirely blind and I tasted knowing the combination but not knowing which was which.

The results?

Andy
Coffee 1: tastes like instant coffee
Coffee 2: significantly nicer, tastes like proper coffee
Coffee 3: also nicer than 1, but I think it’s instant

Alex
Coffee 1: smells like instant (it REALLY smells like instant), it doesn’t taste too bad – it does have some richness to it
Coffee 2: smells loads better and tastes better too, it has some nice lingering bitterness which isn’t overpowering
Coffee 3: [the duplicate coffee so I didn’t bother]

We lifted up the glasses to see which was which … and (thankfully!) the Nescafé was coffees 2 and 3. We were both in agreement that this was a much better instant coffee than our current one. I don’t drink a lot of instant coffee – mainly because of the instant coffee smell – and I was impressed. I’d be happy to make this for guests and it would be brilliant in cooking – not to mention iced coffees!

There are only 5000 packs available, and you need to order online ($9.99, free delivery). If you like coffee (and particularly if you are a coffee snob) this is definitely worth trying.

However, if you’re still sceptical I do have FIVE packs to give away. To enter, leave a comment below detailing your favourite coffee moment. You’ll get an extra entry if you like Eating Adelaide on Facebook – so make sure you use the same name that you use on Facebook!

The competition will close at 5pm (Adelaide time) on Monday 5 November. The draw will be random. Australian residents only.

Get commenting and good luck!

Asparagus Risotto with Salmon

October 10, 2012 - Alex 1 Comment

I think that one of the most essential go to recipes in someone’s culinary repertoire is risotto. To make a tasty risotto requires so few ingredients (if you’re pushing it, rice, onion, cheese and water is all you really need), and while it’s not quick to prepare, it’s not difficult.

And hey – who minds standing at the stove stirring a pot if you’ve got a glass of wine in hand?

I’d come home from the shops with quite a collection of goodies and, combined with what was in the fridge, offered Andy his choice of risotto fillings. Does risotto have a filling? Is it a topping? Flavouring? Whatever.

He chose asparagus and salmon. When we lived in England, the few precious weeks of summer where you could buy English asparagus (rather than the sad, thin specimens airfreighted in from Peru) were very exciting. Australian asparagus doesn’t seem to be as ephemeral but it’s still lovely to see it in the shops because it must mean summer is here.

For two people, warm some olive oil in a saucepan and add half a large leek, finely chopped, and one clove of garlic, crushed. Cook gently until soft (you most certainly don’t want brown bits!) and add 150g of risotto rice. This can be Arborio (probably the cheapest and most readily available), Carnaroli or Vialone Nano if you’re really pushing the boat out.

Stirring, cook the rice in the oil for a bit – it will start to go slightly transparent. Now, pour yourself that glass of wine and begin adding the stock. The stock should be on a very gentle simmer. I use those little pots of jellied stock that are available (and, after some very salty gravy the other week, I’ve just switched to REDUCED SALT – but sssh, don’t let my dad know!). Use what suits. At a push, you can use water.

Add the stock a ladleful at a time and stir until it’s fully absorbed. Then add another ladleful. I’m not too fussed about constant stirring but I do make sure that the rice gets a good move around the pan. Just don’t add more stock until the first lot is absorbed. If I start to run out of stock, I top it up with hot water. You could also add white wine.

I steamed the asparagus, cut into bite size pieces and I’d pan fried the salmon earlier in the day (rather a lot of salmon!). Once the rice was cooked – and I really can’t give you any guidelines here, you’re going to have to taste it and work it out for yourself – I added 2 generous tablespoons of pure cream (normally I used mascarpone but the shop didn’t have any) and a big pile of grated parmesan. If you like your risotto a little looser than it’s turned out, add more stock, a splash of white wine, or more cream.

Finish by stirring in the asparagus and the flaked, cooked salmon.

Serve topped with yet more grated cheese and plenty of pepper. See? You don’t even remember all that stirring, do you?

Want a more traditional risotto recipe? Try Risotto all’Isolana, which uses Italian sausages (or pork mince, if you’re in a pinch!).