IF you don’t make haste you won’t get to taste David Gale’s revamped menu at The Lawn Club until March! They are closing for a couple of weeks to rearrange the ‘luxury garden shed’ bar in Spinningfields into an L-shape to take it away from the imminent car park for contractors demolishing Quay House.
All sounds a mite messy to Taste of Manchester, accustomed as we are to dining out with more spectacular views than the backside of JCBs, but do make the effort to get to the bar formerly known as Bloom where ex-Manchester Hilton exec chef Gale has already worked wonders with a casual menu.
A recent sampling confirmed our view that this is one chef with a background in top end restaurants in London, New York (Soho House) and London who isn’t dumbing down with dishes such as Grilled Lamb Steak with Confit Garlic, Borlotti Beans and Roast Artichoke (£14), Spiced Beef and Noodle Salad with Cucumber, Bean Sprouts and a Chilli salad Dressing (£7.50/£10.50) or, simpler still, Sausages with Warm Lentils, Crispy Onions and Hot Mustard (£8.50).
All the meat comes from that outstanding butcher, John Mettrick of Glossop, who David persuaded mega-corporate Hilton to source from during his time with them. He’s been busy since working for the enterprising James Wrigley at Lawn Club, and more recently Asian cooking whizzes Mughli at their Alderley Edge pop-up Railway Cafe. In 2015 expect him, at the least, to open his own restaurant in Spinningfields.
Meanwhile, at the Lawn Club (where we expect a new front of house regime to improve a disappointing drinks offering) we recommend, along with the three glorious dishes previously mentioned (the beef in the noodle salad particularly sublime), the Smoked Salmon, Warm Crushed Potato And Caper Salad With Soft Boiled Egg (£7.50/£10.50) and Crispy Beer Battered Fish with Crispy Peas, Hand Cut Chips and Tartare Sauce. Oh and, possibly, my favourite dish of the bunch – Creamed Vanilla Rice with Rhubarb Compote (£5.50 – standard pudding price).
Chef’s not reinventing the wheel, but this Spinningfields wheel is spinning very tastily indeed.
Lawn Club, The Lawns, Spinningfields, Manchester M3 3JE.
