Big British Food Map Dining like a don

Date Published:

15/09/2008

Andrew dined like a don in the university city of Cambridge

Cheers Monty

On Friday I paid a visit to the Crown in Southwold. I was there to film head chef, Robert Mace, cooking one of his starters. The Crown and its sister pub, the Swan, are part of the Adnams family, and out the back is Adnams cellar and kitchen shop.

One particular wine they stock is Monty's French red, as seen on Channel 4 at the moment. Naturally I had to try some. It tasted nice. I mean I liked it, but then my knowledge of wine is small, where as my enthusiasm for wine is huge. For something a little closer to home, try this.

One thing I've noticed as I've travelled round the UK is that no matter what size the city, town or village, there's always a war memorial. Sometimes they're grand structures with a long list of the fallen, other times just a plaque set into the village church wall with a handful of names on. But, in the The Crown pub in Hartest, near Bury St Edmonds, there's a more poignant memorial to those that didn't return.

At the outbreak of World War One the called-up men from the village must have had one last night in the pub. On the wooden ceiling beam near the fireplace each man nailed a coin, only to be removed when they returned from war. Nailed there too was a horse shoe for luck. 25 coins are still there to this day, with only a few holes where coins had been removed. Were they excited and full of bravado? Or were they scared and wanted to mark the occasion? Whichever it is it offers a peek beyond the traditional stone memorials and highlights the fact that the pubs of Britain contain a lot of our history, and that's something worth protecting.

10,000 miles of road

While motoring about the Fens this week my odometer crossed the 10,000 mile mark. The car had 113 miles on the clock when I set off from London on April 27th. Blimey, that's a lot of ground I've covered. And to mark the occasion here's '10,000 Miles' by Mary Chapin Carpenter. Have a listen...

Hans and Ruth in their new enterprise

Paid a flying visit to Cotto in Cambridge yesterday added to the Map by DanW, where changes are afoot. The restaurant was taken over two weeks ago by Hans Schweitzer and his partner, Ruth Butler. For chef patron, Hans, owning a neighbourhood restaurant is the end of a journey that's taken him right around the globe, including time as head chef at the Sandy Lane Hotel in Barbabos, where he cooked pasta with Pavarotti. Ruth's talents were honed as the restaurant manager for Midsummer House in Cambridge, and together they make a talented team.

A perfect pate

As for the menu, it features light, quick lunch-friendly dishes - it's the daytime crowd the two are targeting first, with evening dinners starting next week. Hans offered me the duck and chicken pate, which was stunning. "I use free-range corn-fed chicken livers as the fat content is higher and it gives a creamy taste and colour. As well as brandy I also add a dash of Chardonnay, which adds a touch of acidity," says Hans - top tip there.

The autumn chutney made with white peaches and spices complements it well. Next I tried a small plate of seafood linguini - again Hans' attention to detail is present, every baby tomato had its skin removed and the pasta was done to perfection, just how I like it. I feel as though I've been present at the birth of something, definitely one to watch for any Cambridge readers out there.

The roast beef of old England

Sure is to me. I visited the Art of Meat the other day, just look at that rib of beef - stunning. You can read all about it here. And with that it's cheerio to Cambridge and on down into Essex next week.

Last week Andrew was in East Anglia.

Next Andrew moved on to Essex and the Souch Coast

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