Restaurant reviews | So what is Sticky Walnut really like?

Restaurant reviews

So what is Sticky Walnut really like?

This is not so much a review as a report from the front line on the UK’s most unlikely gourmet hotspot, Sticky Walnut in Chester.

From their Twitter stream you’d imagine it was the kind of place that would play visual jokes on you of the Heston purple-jelly-tastes-of-orange/orange-jelly-of-beetroot variety but that's not their schtick.

For those unfamiliar with it, the account which is run by chef Gary Usher is utterly manic, peppered with bizarre, deliberately misspelt tweets and regularly changes its name. (At the moment it’s ‘&expensive’, presumably a reference to an adverse Trip Advisor review). Despite sending up his own restaurant - the current biog reads “Winner of the international best photo of an apple on a restaurant wall 1996. Runner up in best use of the word 'and' on a restaurant menu 1999/2000” Usher has managed to raise £100,000 on Kickstarter (including a contribution from yours truly) for his next restaurant, Burnt Truffle (yes, Burnt Truffle) which should open in early summer 2015.

Sticky Walnut is in a modest neighbourhood of Chester called Hoole, sandwiched between an estate agent and an Indian takeaway. You could easily overlook it walking past - it looks more like a cafe than a restaurant, let alone a place that offers food worthy of a Michelin star.

We ordered 3 starters as the prices were so good - dark earthy glossy oven roast beets with the eponymous sticky walnuts and fresh ricotta, some deeply charred quail with carrot, dukkah and a vegetable nage (a surprisingly cheffy word for Sticky) and seabream with moreishly crispy ‘puffed’ chickpeas and mango salsa, a combination I’d normally run a mile from but which turned out to be a beautifully judged combination of flavours and textures and a top match with a glass of Amalaya torrontes and riesling from the very decent wine list.

I also went for fish for my main course - some fabulously fresh hake with kale, brown shrimps and a velvety smooth lemon and fennel (I think) purée while my host had a rather less exciting warm brassica salad with pickled romesco and caramelised cauliflower - a good stab at providing an interesting veggie option but I would venture to say veg isn't Usher's strongest suit.

Desserts, which we indulged in out of sheer piggery, were an outrageously rich chocolate tart with blood orange sorbet and a rhubarb trifle/crumble hybrid I’d like to try and make at home. Spot on.

The kitchen at the back of the restaurant remained subdued throughout. I’d expected a real life version of the SW Twitter stream with constant noisy joshing between the staff but it was utterly focused and professional. Usher who I’d briefly met at a social media conference in London was reluctantly prised out to say hello and is far shyer and more modest than the tweets and the tats (right) would suggest.

Like I said Sticky Walnut is full of surprises. If you’re in the area don't miss the chance to go.

Sticky Walnut is at 11, Charles Street, Hoole, Chester CH2 3AZ. Tel: 01244 400400. And on Twitter @stickywalnut

I ate at Sticky Walnut as a guest of Lemon Zestful PR but am guessing the bill was about £38 a head including service.

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