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Of Winds and Whispers.


drron29
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We had booked a long way ahead and did respect the dress code which is smart casual with a jacket for the men.Coming off the cruise I had a selection of bow ties available so wore one.We were then shown to the table in the area of the bay window with the best views.There were 2 choices for dinner-a 10 course option for 138 GBP or a 7 course option for 115 GBP.We chose the 10 course option.Wines were expensive.fortunately a Sancerre was one of the cheapest.

You start with what is a large amuse bouche with a bowl of marinated salmon and sea bass with 3 accompanying crisps with different toppings.The fish was great.

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Even the bread came presented well.A freshly baked sourdough loaf-

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The first course was titled sea bass.with river oyster,yuzu and shiso.We loved it-

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Now reading before we came some of the menus I thought that some dishes were just trying too hard to be clever.The second course titled Ricotta sounded like one such dish.it came with celeriac,nasturtium leaves,watercress,fresh ricotta lighly smoked and hen of the woods.However it really worked and both thought it the dish of the night.Wonderful combination of tastes.

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Umami.Pipers farm chicken cooked in master stock,garlic pannacotta,frozen lovage,chicken skin crackers.Another dish that ticked all the boxes.we both loved it

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Hare.Best end and loin of Yorkshire moors hare,poached duck liver,young parsnip,kohlrabi cannelloni and baked chocolate.Very rare hare is not either of our favourite.The rest of the ingredients were very nice though.

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Sole.Cornish sole,cauliflower,charcoal emulsion,scallops and Iberico lardo.Sole is a little bland and taste wise the charcoal emulsion does nothing.The scallop covered with the Iberico lardo though was heavenly.

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For main course there was a choice of Trout or beef.Rojaan had the beef.Aged local beef,braised onion,parsley,Dorset snails,baked parmesan,black garlic.This was very nice with the surprise being the snails-basically minced and combined with other ingredients and wonderful.The beef was quite rare which is OK for us though some may not like that.

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I had the trout.Cured sea trout,liquorice scented salsify,beetroot,cuttlefish,chard,scallop taramasalata.I really liked it.

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Savoury.Brillat-Savarin,truffle,beurre noisette and sesame,pine nuts and Dartmoor ale.A dish I felt was a little too clever and the tastes weren't to Rojaan's liking.

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Sweetcorn.Sweetcorn from our garden,Manuka honey,buttermilk,popcorn,blackberry.Again sweetcorn is sweetcorn.Didn'tanything for the dish for us but the accompaniments were very good.

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Strawberry.Gariguette strawberries,sorbet and jelly,basil seeds,caramelised white chocolate,set custard.Again the basil seeds did nothing for this dish other than to add another colour in the presentation.

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Hazelnut.Praline parfait,caramel,bitter chocolate,frozen yoghurt.A nice end for me but Rojaan doesn't like hazelnuts.

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And to finish some more chocolate with coffee.

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Despite some of my comments we loved the meal-I was really nit picking.However if I was to rate the experiences we had at the Samling in the Lakes district-1 Michelin star,Manoir Interscaldes in Holland-3 stars and Gidleigh Park-2 stars.For value they were in that order.The best food was the Manoir.But we are both glad we have experienced all of them.They each cost us ~ $A1400 but that was 2 nights and dinners at the Samling and 1 at Gidleigh Park and the Manoir.

 

One area where Gidleigh Park was clearly superior were the walks around the Property.Spectacular so I will leave you with a couple of pics-

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I'll come back and summarise our feelings and if I can find them will show a few photos of the onboard food.

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