Restaurant-Guide.com
hand picked restaurants

This magnificent house in South Leicestershire has a number of distinctive features, one of which is the magnificent Wordsworth Restaurant with its mighty vaulted ceiling, accommodating up to 80 guests within a space that is breathtaking in its grandeur, and offering table d'hôte or à la carte menus.

A typical menu might consist of lobster chowder with bisque sauce and poached oyster, followed by pan fried venison, bubble and squeak and red berry sauce. From a stunning range of desserts making a choice is not easy, but for me it would have to be a dead heat between The Kilworth Tower of Fairies, with chocolate and vanilla profiteroles with caramel spun sugar and melted chocolate, or the mandarin mousse in a shell, where savarin soaked in grand marnier syrup combines with honeycomb ice-cream and butterscotch sauce to make a superb combination of flavours.

The Orangery is as compelling as the Wordsworth room - a fully restored Victorian affair of three lanterns that, instead of sitting alongside the main house as a sort of uneasy appendage, matches it in size and grandeur. What is essentially a brasserie menu is offered with home pickled mackerel, The Orangery muffin burger, and sticky toffee pudding as a mere sample of the wide range of choices.

In the grounds there is a theatre where serious thespianism is alive and well. At the time of writing they have just finished a fully supported three week run of The Pirates of Penzance. Those wishing to entertain may do so in great style at The Staging Post, an authentic log cabin restaurant providing corporate hospitality for up to 70 with a variety of menus to suit the occasion.

Le Mistral is one of a group of several new and very perky restaurants in the North Midlands, with an accomplished style and approach, and French flavour. They work on two menus, one a daytime job that deals with the requirements of a working day, offering such delights as croque monsieur, croque mistral, freshly baked baguettes with imaginative fillings such as brie and roasted grape, a soup du jour, minute steak, and an omelette du jour. This is quality food that meets the need and paves the way to something rather more relaxed and elaborate in the evenings.

Expect to find on the dinner/supper menu special starters from the blackboard, pate du jour, or platters, olive, charcuterie, cheese or 3 dips, all substantial enough for light meal status.

Main courses offer good French staples such as moules marinieres et frites, Marseilles meatballs, beef bourguignon, and steak hache, followed by desserts of tarte tatin and chocolate chilli cake.

An elegant wine list offers a carefully selected range of bottles, and is a happy hunting ground for connoisseurs, with a large number by the glass. Their house wine from Domaine de Laroux is a gift from the gods. Continental lagers and bottled beers from UK feature some of the best, including Liefmans Kriek and Marston Pedigree.

If these restaurants do not succeed there is no justice on earth.

The word tiffin is believed to have entered the English language when Indian custom superseded the British practice of an afternoon dinner, leading to a new word for the afternoon meal. The word is still used in India to refer to a light snack taken at any time of the day.

Let's move over to De Montford Street in Leicester, where The Tiffin is the name of a traditional Indian restaurant that serves excellent food created with flair, using ingredients of integrity.

A perfect lunch or evening meal there could begin with tangy chicken fried with cucumber and spices, or a plate of Indian cottage cheese barbecued with tomato, and peppers. The tandoori section embraces delicacies such as marinated and grilled tiger prawns or the well known tandoori chicken. Main courses yield specialities like tawa lamb with fresh herbs and spices; pan-fried fillets of salmon served on sizzling bed of onions, and Kashmiri vegetables cooked in cream and fruit.

House wine is available at a pleasantly modest price.

The White Bear is a remarkable pub in Stretton, just outside Alfreton, and provides a warm and cosy retreat where you can indulge in some delicious food and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere. With its wooden beams and low ceilings, there's an element of charm that takes you by surprise because of its unexpectedness, considering the busy road where they are located. Nevertheless, the dining experience is fulfilling in all aspects, a fact that surely none would wish to dispute.

Starters on the menu could include classics such as prawn cocktail with Marie Rose sauce and lemon or maybe the soup of the day and this could be followed by a rump steak with hand cut chips on the side. Amongst the desserts, don't miss the apple and raspberry crumble for a fruity finish to the evening. Drinking options are also plenty with wines, ales and beers topping the list.

The word Kayal is used to refer to the serene backwaters of the South Indian state of Kerala, sometimes referred to as 'God's own country' because of its natural beauty. Kayal opened its doors in Granby Street, alongside vegetarian restaurant Halli, serving customers authentic South Indian seafood in a simple yet appealing setting.

The popular venue introduces customers to the state's backwater cuisine, and with its long coastline and many inland waterways, Keralites love seafood, baked, steamed, fried or as flavoursome curries, not to forget meat and vegetarian creations.

Start your meal with drumstick soup, known for its medicinal qualities in ayurveda; a platter of mixed seafood, batter-fried banana, or stuffed lentil pancakes called masala dosa. Mains of prawn; Malabar chicken; meen pollichathu, pomfret in banana leaf; creamy mutton stew, duck roast, and vegetarian specials of olan, and sides of moru curry or crab thoran can be accompanied by biryani, coconut rice, or traditional Indian bread.

Trust a dessert of vermicelli payasam to help you sign-off in style. Wines, beer and champagne complement the food.