Restaurant Review – The Granary (at Weston Park)
I have been fortunate to have eaten in the Weston park house on a couple of occasions and had an incredible time on both visits so was looking forward to trying the Granary Grill, although it has been recommended to me several times I have never been.
The Granary Grill is set in the main grounds of the Weston Park stately home, you know you have arrived when the impressive granary is in view, stunning lighting and large windows, you just know you are going to have a good night!
The Grill is packed with character, beautifully designed, and extremely comfortable, we took a few moments to take in the surroundings and straight away we were relaxed, the restaurant seemed full, always a good sign. Tables are decorated with Candles in Champagne bottles helping to create that romantic, peaceful dining experience and the grill is in full view of diners. I assumed prices would be fairly high, however I was pleasantly surprised there were dishes available to suit all budgets.
There will be a new menu launched the end of January, and they will focus more on steaks on a Friday and Saturday night, many of their signature steaks will be returning and they will add monthly seasonal specials on their board, we are assured these will highlight the very best of seasonal produce prepared by the Head Chefs distinctive style.
We took time to study the menu, several tempting dishes on offer, a wide selection of real ales, wine and champagne all available to compliment your evening.
After careful consideration I chose the Country Style Game Terrine with spiced grape jelly and warm crusty bread priced at £7.50 and Ann my wife chose Mushroom Mozzarella and Thyme Bruschetta with truffle oil priced at £6.25. Whilst waiting for our starters we were presented with warm homemade bread, which was simply delicious!
Starters arrived, if they tasted as good as they looked then we were in for a treat! My generous portion of terrine came with a wedge of fresh bread and I simply didn’t want it to end, once I have eaten my bread I usually leave the remainder of my Terrine, not this time! Ann was full of compliments, claiming her mushrooms were the nicest starter she had ever had.
The staff at The Granary are extremely attentive and you are made to feel special and welcome, it is also important to know that all proceeds from commercial activity goes towards preserving and maintaining the beautiful estate, the staff obviously realise the importance of this.
For our mains, I chose the Pork Skewer, Pork and Leek Sausage, cider and sage meatballs, Pork Fillet, Chorizo and black pudding with an apple and thyme compote which comes with chips and garnish priced at £13.25 and Ann chose the 6oz Fillet Steak wrapped in smoked bacon and grilled stilton served with grill garnish and chips priced at £24. We had the choice of 8 side dishes to compliment our dishes, some of these were Parmesan Parsnip Chips and Creamy Mash these are priced at £2.50 each, however Ann chose the Caramelised Winter Roots. Sauces for your steak are also available at £2.
As you would expect many of the ingredients are sourced locally and of course they realise the importance of good quality meat, which is carefully sourced by head chef.
Both dishes looked stunning, chips were served separately and were chunky and perfectly fluffy inside, Ann’s side dish of caramelised Winter Roots also looked delicious.
My Skewer was well presented and prepared; the Pork extremely tender and an array of flavours, top scores head chef!
Ann’s Steak was perfectly cooked, the knife gliding through at ease and full of flavour, the bacon and grilled Stilton providing additional strong flavours, the vegetables I would highly recommend!
As you can imagine, now feeling rather full and satisfied the time came to make a decision on dessert, it was an easy decision and didn’t take us long to choose our next delight!
Ann chose the Pain Perdu with seasoned fruits and lemon ice cream priced at £5.85 and I chose the Queen of Puddings priced also at £5.85, I usually prefer Cheese and Biscuits but the Queen of Puddings seemed to be calling me!
My Queen of Puddings was divine, topped with a soft light meringue; each layer was a treat, surprisingly not too heavy and was a good choice to end my meal. Ann also thoroughly enjoyed her Pain Perdu a dessert she hadn’t tried previously but certainly glad she had made the right choice.
The Granary Grill is a lot more than just a sophisticated restaurant, next door you can find the incredible Granary Deli & Café offering many varieties of cheeses, meats and homemade products.
The restaurant is also very popular and well known for their incredible Sunday Lunches, perhaps something to consider for my next visit. The Granary Grill is now in my top 3 of restaurants that I have reviewed based on surroundings, service and top quality food, I would highly recommend the restaurant, look out for their new menu which can be viewed on their website. We thoroughly enjoyed our Granary experience and will be returning with friends and family to share our experience!
by Michael & Ann Haines
