This week I'm going MEAT FREE! Abstaining from all things animal. Well, not ALL things animal...just the flesh. I'm not a complete mental.
Me and the lady headed to a veggie favourite of mine, Mildreds on Lexington Street. I've been going there for years with mummy and daddy Stabby as they've been vegetarian for almost 30 years (I was even a card carrying member of the veggie club between the years of 11-18). I know! Whoddathunkit seeing as now I dive headfirst into trying any bovine beauty or clucking bird - making up for lost time I guess.
They've recently changed the menu and sadly it didn't quite live up to the high standards they've set themselves in the past. Maybe it's because every time I've been before I haven't paid and everything tastes that much better when it's not making a dent! Plus, Mildreds has always had a special place in my heart as ground zero for when I discovered halloumi. The fall out was immense and will last until the day I die. Grilled halloumi is one of the greatest things known to man and I'm so happy the starter of panfried cherry tomato, halloumi and wilted spinach dressed with balsamic remains.
With its narrow bar leading into the just as narrow dining room what's immediately noticeable about Mildreds is just how packed it is! I've only come on Saturdays before, so I was surprised at just how many people were already eating and how many were waiting to be seated. Never one to be put off by a half an hour wait (after all, a packed restaurant is a good sign!), we propped up the bar and waited to be seated.
Our shared starter of pumpkin and ricotta ravioli with a creamy forest mushroom white wine sauce was a faultless start. Light, deeply filled pasta pockets were complimented wonderfully with a flavourful, but never overpowering sauce which featured juicy chunks of wild mushroom.
After a lovely start our mains didn't quite match the promise. Sunblushed tomato and buffalo mozzarella risotto cake was lacking in the vital mozzarella department. I was hoping for oozing strings of cheesy gorgeousness as the cake was pulled apart. No such luck. I also don't remember tasting too much of the promised sunblushed tomatoes. But the risotto in the cake was rich and tasty enough and the dish was saved by the star of the show - the zingy and prickly grape mustard sauce.
My Sri Lankan sweet potato, cashew nut and spinach curry would be considered a good home cooked effort, but eating out you expect a bit more omph and spice, plus the dish lacked seasoning and any accompanying moping side - some naan would have been lovely. It was pleasant enough and I ate the lot being a fatty boom batty.
Our waiter failed to note down our requested sweet potato chips, but by the time they arrived we'd more of less forgiven him as we were already stuffed and didn't really need them. Once again, they were ok, but I was really baffled is how a restaurant can charge £5 for cutting sweet potatoes into chips, cooking them and putting them in a bowl...late. Besides, my sweet potato chips are 10 times better. Here's the best (and only way) to have them: toss them in oil, salt, pepper and some paprika and roast for 25mins. BUFF.
Dinner ended with a delicious sticky toffee pudding that went in seconds. A very pleasing conclusion, although our waitress did try and charge us for an organic, rather than house Rose, but that turned out to be crossed wires rather than anything untoward. Shady minx. And she looked like Jamie Lee Curtis.
As we strolled into the night I couldn't help but feel satisfied. Satisfied is fine, but when you used to see on your school report 'Satisfactory effort' mum and dad were always a tad disappointed. You just feel that with a bit more effort you could achieve so much more.
Now where's the beef?
6/10 seems too harsh, while 7/10 is probably too much, so lets settle on 6.75/10.
Shared starter and pud, plus 2 mains, beer and wine cost £50. www.mildreds.co.uk
