On Wednesday my dad celebrated his 65th birthday, he’s now officially a pensioner! He went away for a couple of days with his wife, Jenny, to some Welsh town with a name I forget and probably can’t spell if I did know it. They got back home last night and we arranged to meet up for lunch today at the renowned Walnut Tree so I could join in the celebrations.
The Walnut Tree is located nestled near some Welsh hills, in a tiny village called Llanddewi Skirrid. For me the sat nav was vital in finding the place, luckily it pronounced I’d reached my destination after I’d driven past the restaurant, rather than before.
The sun was shining and Dad and Jenny were enjoying a drink outside when I arrived. We were served some 'nibbles' to enjoy with the drinks and chose our dishes from the menu. And it gave me the chance to give them their birthday presents - not surprisingly for me they were mainly books!
Once we had chosen what we wanted we were led to our table in one of the two dining rooms. The dining rooms are bright and airy, they have interesting art on the wall and they’re simply furnished which works well. The curtains and the menu covers seem to have the same design, which is a nice touch.
For our starters, Dad and I chose the same thing; the crab salad with a herb mayonnaise and Jenny had the deep fried courgette flowers with tomato and basil sauce. Bread rolls and butter were also placed on the table. I haven’t had crab in years, and it was lovely, with good chunks of white meat in the ‘salad’ and a pleasant citrus tang.
For the main course, we all had different things. I normally hate people choosing the same dishes, because I think it’s rather unadventurous and it also means we get to see fewer plates from the kitchen. And no, it’s not because I don’t get to try more food, it is simply that I’m nosey and like to see what there is! Jenny chose the monkfish with cucumber and mustard sauce, I had the loin of Berkshire pork, belly and cheeks and Dad the fillet of beef with roasted shallots and red wine sauce. I realise now that maybe having pork wasn’t the most exciting option, especially after I thought I’d had my fill of pork from 6 years in Germany. But it was really good, I’ve never had cheek before and it was very tender and rich in flavour, the crackling crackled and the loin was succulent and tasty. The cabbage served went very well with it and the mashed potatoes were fab, all buttery and a proper treat!
I will confess that I was the only one who indulged in a pudding. I remember when I was younger that a meal out for me was enduring the torture of the savoury courses and then diving into the pudding course. I have improved, a meal out now for me isn’t just about the last course! But it should end with pudding in my world. So I had the chocolate soufflé with cinnamon ice cream. The soufflé was warm and gooey, the ice cream was creamy and tasted of cinnamon, I couldn’t have asked for more.
They served Jenny’s coffee with enough sweet things for us to share – fudge and brownie squares which ended the meal well.
The bill came and wasn’t horrendous and we all agreed it was great food at a decent price and Dad liked the fact that they called the sparkling water ‘fizzy’ water on the bill, no pretentions!
So happy birthday, Dad, hope you liked the lunch and thanks for inviting me. P.S. It was Raglan castle :)
The Walnut Tree
The Walnut Tree is located nestled near some Welsh hills, in a tiny village called Llanddewi Skirrid. For me the sat nav was vital in finding the place, luckily it pronounced I’d reached my destination after I’d driven past the restaurant, rather than before.
The sun was shining and Dad and Jenny were enjoying a drink outside when I arrived. We were served some 'nibbles' to enjoy with the drinks and chose our dishes from the menu. And it gave me the chance to give them their birthday presents - not surprisingly for me they were mainly books!
Once we had chosen what we wanted we were led to our table in one of the two dining rooms. The dining rooms are bright and airy, they have interesting art on the wall and they’re simply furnished which works well. The curtains and the menu covers seem to have the same design, which is a nice touch.
For our starters, Dad and I chose the same thing; the crab salad with a herb mayonnaise and Jenny had the deep fried courgette flowers with tomato and basil sauce. Bread rolls and butter were also placed on the table. I haven’t had crab in years, and it was lovely, with good chunks of white meat in the ‘salad’ and a pleasant citrus tang.
For the main course, we all had different things. I normally hate people choosing the same dishes, because I think it’s rather unadventurous and it also means we get to see fewer plates from the kitchen. And no, it’s not because I don’t get to try more food, it is simply that I’m nosey and like to see what there is! Jenny chose the monkfish with cucumber and mustard sauce, I had the loin of Berkshire pork, belly and cheeks and Dad the fillet of beef with roasted shallots and red wine sauce. I realise now that maybe having pork wasn’t the most exciting option, especially after I thought I’d had my fill of pork from 6 years in Germany. But it was really good, I’ve never had cheek before and it was very tender and rich in flavour, the crackling crackled and the loin was succulent and tasty. The cabbage served went very well with it and the mashed potatoes were fab, all buttery and a proper treat!
I will confess that I was the only one who indulged in a pudding. I remember when I was younger that a meal out for me was enduring the torture of the savoury courses and then diving into the pudding course. I have improved, a meal out now for me isn’t just about the last course! But it should end with pudding in my world. So I had the chocolate soufflé with cinnamon ice cream. The soufflé was warm and gooey, the ice cream was creamy and tasted of cinnamon, I couldn’t have asked for more.
They served Jenny’s coffee with enough sweet things for us to share – fudge and brownie squares which ended the meal well.
The bill came and wasn’t horrendous and we all agreed it was great food at a decent price and Dad liked the fact that they called the sparkling water ‘fizzy’ water on the bill, no pretentions!
So happy birthday, Dad, hope you liked the lunch and thanks for inviting me. P.S. It was Raglan castle :)
The Walnut Tree
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