Levanter, Ramsbottom

I gave a huge cheer as Ramsbottom's Levanter won 'Casual Restaurant of the Year' at the Manchester Food and Drink Awards. I don't mind telling you that they got my vote after our visit a few weeks ago. Hidden behind the main flurry of shops and restaurants, Levanter and sister restaurant Baratxuri are nestled on Square Street, which feels like a peaceful little place to spend an afternoon eating tapas. 

First rule of tapas - staring blankly at the menu, fully aware of the fact that I will be unable to choose an adequate amount of dishes, owing to the fact 'they all sound so nice'. Cue a meat platter! Happy days. Lots of carnivorous 'bits' to keep me happy. Look at this meat!

I will always over-order carbs. Every time. However, Levanter's sourdough comes with these nice salsa and oil/vinegar dipping pots, which made me feel continental rather than greedy. 

Garbanzos - chickpeas, spinach and egg with cumin seeds, garlic and breadcrumbs: A festival of textures awaits in this dish. Not only is it packed with flavour, but the breadcrumbs and slightly toasted edges on the chickpeas gave a nice crunch too. Pop open that yolk!

Rabo de Toro - ox tail braised in Rioja, served with tomatoes, celery, carrots, butter beans and garlic: Star of the show. Beef in red wine will always be a hearty little number, but add in those smooth butter beans, which seem to have been steeped in the flavour of the dish, and it's sent to another stratosphere.

Merluza Y Salsa de Tomate - Hake fillet seared on the plancha, with sun-dried tomato and anchovy salsa: I'm not a fan of seafood but Phil is, so we always get at least one fish dish. He loved this one, which came served on a generous bed of salsa. This was a little too fishy for me, but even I loved the meaty hake.

It's always nice to have a ride out to Ramsbottom at the weekend, especially when wonderful food like this awaits. All the staff were warm and friendly, spoke about the dishes with some vigour, and seemed genuinely pleased to serve their guests. We got chatting to a nice couple who were sat next to us too, who were already planning their next trip, which would involve staying over and lots of wine! 

Go here for a relaxed dining experience when you have lots of time. Do not rush this one. Your food comes when it's ready, so you could happily spend all afternoon here without even noticing the time. We're also plotting an evening trip, and a visit to sister restaurant Baratxuri. 

Falshaw's Farm Shop, Bury

It's the age old quandary, where do you go on a sunny day that won't be rammers, and you don't have to spend several hours in a heinous traffic jam in order to get there? Gem found. Falshaw's Farm Shop is just outside Ramsbottom, overlooking the rolling countryside. You can sit and eat whilst joined by the lovely cows and sheep with their babies, and a few mental birds running around the gaff.

If you're a fan of outside dining, you can eat al fresco, or stay in the cool cafe if you prefer. There's a large lawned area to the side of the cafe, where children can play safely on the mini tractors, and adults can coo over baby cows in the field whilst getting a tan. If you fancy it.

It was pretty early, and after initially declaring we weren't in the mood for a fry up, there we were, with a rather large breakfast in front of us, watching the above mentioned birds chase each other round the farmyard, and listening to children laughing. Absolutely delightful.

And what's the most obvious thing in the world to follow a full English? Correct, ice cream! It was hotter than the surface of the sun. I opted for a hugely refreshing elderflower and gooseberry sorbet, which was the perfect antidote to the sun beating down on us.

Go here for a bit of tranquility, home made food, friendly faces, and ice cream. If you're under six, also go here for mini tractors.

The Mouse Trap, Ramsbottom

Imagine the scene... Boxing Day 2013; a day where most normal folk are suffering from a major dose of over-indulgence, and others are even considering whether they may have developed gout. What was I doing? Messaging a cheese shop about their tasting evening! It's just not normal, is it? The demand for places at The Mouse Trap's cheese and wine evenings is so high, that the next available Friday was at the end of March. We were willing to wait.

Our friend Kev had heard about it through a friend at work, and was dying to go. Cue some fool getting a new job and having a leaving party on the same night as said cheese and wine evening. I was not a popular individual! The next available night was 4th July. I calculate that as being roughly a six month wait. It was worth it.

The Mouse Trap is situated on the main road running through Ramsbottom, just a couple of doors down from the First Chop pub. For such a tiny town, Ramsbottom boasts some of the best food lovers destinations in the North West. Sanmini's, The Chocolate Cafe, Ramsons, Hearth of the Ram, The Eagle and Child, and now Levanter are all but a stone's throw away. Do you see why we love it?

It's only a tiny place, much like many of the other establishments on Bolton Street. The shop is packed with mouse related memorabilia, chutneys, home baked goods, and an absolute shedload of cheese. We were greeted by a friendly couple, who offered us a seat by the window, took our wine to chill and then promptly poured us a glass. They don't usually serve alcohol, so guests are encouraged to bring their own, with corkage being included in the £9.95 per head tariff. We took a nice Prosecco. 

There were thirty six cheeses on the standard menu, plus a further four specials. Choosing from this epic list was a nightmare, but it was suggested that rather than do the standard five per couple, that we just share the ten between us. 

Your platter also comes with a decent range of accompaniments, all of which are refillable at no extra cost:

• Butter
• Apple and sultana chutney
• Tomato and balsamic chutney
• Black olives
• Fruit loaf
• Wholemeal seeded loaf
• Cheese crackers
• Fruit and seed crackers
• Herb crackers
• Crisp-breads
• Water crackers
• Red and green grapes

We went for:

1. Isle of Mull - very firm with a tongue tingling flavour. Perfect on the seeded bread with either of the chutneys.
2. Flamin Eck - a jalapeno infused creamy cheddar with sun dried tomatoes. A subtle warmth at first and then boom! Those chillies have quite a kick.
3. Comte - a beautiful hard French cheese that has a slight sting on your gums. I like this cheese sensation... 
4. Wensleydale and Cranberries - one of my favourites from the evening. Very creamy with a subtle flavour and plenty of fruit. 
5. Oakwood Smoked - A lovely rich cheese with a subtle smoky flavour. Great with the tomato and balsamic chutney. 
6. Lancashire Bowland - more like a dessert than a cheese. This was creamy yet crumbly with plenty of plump fruit and cinnamon. It was matched perfectly with the fruit bread and apple chutney. 
7. Camembert Rustique - a real gloppy little number with a smooth texture. I love a cheese that's trying to run off the plate. 
8. Brie de Meaux - pungent yet strangely inoffensive at the same time. I often find Brie a little underwhelming, but the strong flavours in this smelly little article won me over.
9. St Agur - reportedly the 'best blue cheese to come out of France'. I'm not a huge fan of blue cheeses, but this was creamy, delicate and all kinds of wonderful. Nice spread on the fruit and seed crackers. 
10. Blacksticks Goats Cheese - this was from the specials. I sometimes find goats cheeses too powerful, but this one was much more subtle. 

Kev getting cocky with the Flamin Eck and Paddy proving that you can take
the boy out of Horwich, but you can't stop him mixing the cheeses...

As you can see, we did a pretty stirling job of polishing off that cheese. I think we even ended up eating the rest of the grapes before it was taken away! While most mere mortals had a coffee after their cheese, I decided a massive hot chocolate with cream and marshmallows was in order. It's about addressing that all important sweet/savoury balance.

I think you all need to experience The Mouse Trap. Their selection of cheese is fantastic, and the people running it were just delightful.You don't have to wait months to book onto a tasting evening as they are open during the day as a normal cafe, or you can simply buy cheese to take home where no-one can see how much of a pig you are...

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Return to Sanmini's, Ramsbottom

We adore Sanmini's. The friendly family who run it, the small dining room, the home made South Indian cuisine... it's a place to go when you're in need of a little TLC. The last time we went was after an exhausting day of organising and running our Summer Fete, and it was just what the doctor ordered. Literally. The owners are both medically trained doctors!

My husband planned this trip to Sanmini's after I had been working all weekend on a particularly heinous IT project. And relax... We were soon seated in the five table dining room, and were munching our way through a pile of poppadoms with the most amazing dips. Our favourite, as always was the warm kidney bean one, closely followed by the tangy fruit chutney.

Our starters were absolutely stunning. My husband had the sauteed madras prawns, which came with a shredded mango and coriander side salad. This was very hot but had depth of flavour, and was cooled slightly by the mango. I was brave and picked a vegetable starter for the first time ever! Mine was a lentil bite made from spinach, cabbage, ginger, onions and green chillies and came served with tomato and vegetable and coconut dips. These were crispy on the outside yet soft on the inside with the odd crunchy vegetable. The dips were a perfect accompaniment.

For mains Paddy had the mutton kozambhu and I picked the virudhunangar kozhi kuruma. There are often mutton dishes on the menu at Sanmini's, which makes a nice change from lamb. It's generally got a much deeper flavour and is softer in texture. I think he picked it because the sauce was described as gravy... this was 'blow your socks off' good. A rich tomato based sauce was given a kick up the jacksie by lots of spices finished with fresh herbs. My dish was chicken in a creamy coconut based sauce. It was delicately sweet but still had that little kick. We also had the lemon rice and two chapatis.

We had already decided not to have dessert, but strangely found ourselves asking for the menu? Not sure how this happened. It was decided that the best course of action was to share one, which turned out to be for the best. The small, unassuming desert which arrived was probably enough to run a family of four plus a dog for an entire weekend! The Badam delight is a mix of almonds cooked with milk, saffron and cashew nuts to create a buttery dish which was similar to a very rich frangipan.

Please don't go to Sanmini's expecting a standard curry house. They are making authentic South Indian cuisine whose names you will not recognise, but you will adore all the same. The Sankar family do this as a hobby, and their hard work has seen them recognised in the Michelin and Good Food Guides in recent years. Go and enjoy the peace, the great hosts and the outstanding food.

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The Eagle and Child, Ramsbottom

I am such a demick. A couple of months ago we went to the Eagle and Child in Ramsbottom for the first time. We loved it so much, we went again a couple of weeks later. I thought I had already written about this, but clearly I was blinded by excitement and completely forgot!

We had driven past this building countless times en route to either Park Farm or the Fisherman's Retreat. It always looked a little bit shabby and unloved (think Trampy from the Shoe People). Not long after, metal shutters were put up and the gardens became overgrown. A sad story indeed until there were signs of life once more... Within a few weeks we noticed that the Eagle and Child was open for business. 

It can't have been long after that when a friend at work asked if I had been yet. She had been with her family and insisted that I go to sample the 'weird dessert'. She said it was tiramisu in a unique form. She wouldn't tell me any more than that! My first guess was wrong. I can probably bet a tenner that yours is too... I heard they grew their own vegetables and had some chickens too. Sold to the greedy girl!

I would definitely recommend booking. We turned up without a reservation at about 5.30pm on a Friday and got the last table! There is a small onsite car park, but there are some bays off the main road opposite the pub too. We were both hungry like the wolf when we arrived, so thought we would get some nibbles whilst we waited for our mains. Nibbles. The pictures below show the massive bread board and scotch egg we ordered. My husband also had a beer tasting board! We were pretty full by the time we had polished these - yes, we ate the lot. The bread comes with some beautiful tomato relish, pesto, oil and balsamic vinegar. The scotch egg is accompanied by home made piccalilli. All nibbles should take this form... So much bread... So happy.

By the time our mains arrived we were suffering a little. But then we saw them. I chose the gammon steak with egg and chips (one of my all time favourite foods) and my husband had the steak and ale pie. Portions are generous with emphasis on flavour rather than fluff. Attention to detail in a rustic form; the food was well seasoned and tasted fantastic. It's weird how that full feeling can conveniently leave you the second something mouth-watering is put in front of you.

By now we were suffering from mild death, having devoured what felt like all the carbs in the world. But then I remembered. The tiramisu... Now I cannot stand coffee flavoured things. Except coffee. So I did what I had to do... I made my husband order it. Sorted. I on the other hand decided that sticky toffee pudding and ice cream might just assist in settling my already bursting stomach. 

Sure enough, several 'oohs' and 'ahhs' piped up when a little plant pot arrived at the table. This was not the shape I had imagined... After all, this is a family restaurant. In my defence, she had built it up to be something outrageous! The menu should have given it away, describing the dish as 'terramisu'. This was a creamy coffee flavoured dessert topped with crumbly chocolate (possibly cake...) and a few leaves and flowers. Simple yet rather amusing!

My sticky toffee pudding was a dense, sticky pile of wonder. As Mary once said, practically perfect in every way. I'm confident I could drink a pint of that toffee sauce. 

We hit it off with the Eagle and Child. A relaxed atmosphere with excellent food and chatty staff. We couldn't wait to go back! So, a couple of weeks later we rang them on a whim to see if they had any spaces for Sunday lunch. Bingo! We decided to try different nibbles this time, so got a sausage sharing platter between us. The 'snag bangers' come with tomato relish and grain mustard mayo. You also get two mini loaves and butter as standard if you don't order the bread board. Just as wonderful as the pictures suggest.

There was never any doubt that I would have the beef roast, but my husband decided on the duck legs with white beans and black pudding from the specials. We had a fantastic meal first time round, but this time was arguably even better. I got a huge piece of beef rib with a gargantuan Yorkshire pudding. Hiding under this is a pile of veggies and assorted potatoes.

For dessert we had a Manchester tart and a strawberry cheesecake. God that cheesecake was out of this world. It was dense in texture and had a wonderfully strong strawberry flavour. I was devastated that I left a tiny bit!

I urge you to try the Eagle and Child. Yet another wonderful eatery pops up in Ramsbottom, and gives me another reason to visit this bustling little town regularly.

Please leave your comments below... x

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Hearth of the Ram, Ramsbottom

We are regular visitors of Ramsbottom. For such a small village, it has a wealth of amazing eateries within a short distance of the centre. The Fisherman's Retreat, Sanminis, Ramsons and the Chocolate Cafe are all fantastic places to go and spend an afternoon. However, we decided to treat ourselves to a nice meal out after our last working day before our holidays.

We had seen Hearth of the Ram taking shape whilst the restaurant was renovated a few months ago. Outside was beginning to look a little like an old favourite, The Clog and Billycock in Pleasington. Its name popped up at cake club and last week when asking Twitter for lunch ideas. It was playing on my mind...

We had a ganders at their website to see if it looked any cop, and then my husband saw two words which make him as giddy as a little kipper; scotch egg. A little like his obsession with Welsh rarebit, he has to sample the 'delicacy' if it appears on any menu. Once again, he holds one particular egg in high regard; that fashioned by Heston's own Hind's Head pub in Bray. When we got there we also spied the rarebit... this had escaped our viewing from home because the words 'scotch' and 'egg' had proved a little too much...

We arrived ridiculously early for our booking. I had hugely overcompensated (as per usual) for the Rammy Festival being on. I was convinced we would be snarled up in a horrific line of restaurant-kiboshing traffic. Not the case. In fact I have never seen Ramsbottom so quiet! Everyone was on foot. It didn't matter that we were early either. We were welcomed by a friendly chap who had more than a passing resemblance to Frankie Boyle who showed us to a comfy table by a window. People-watching paradise.

The scotch egg and Welsh rarebit come from the Simple Things Done Well menu. These two are bitesized items which work well as a side or smaller starter. Saying that, if I had eaten all that rarebit to myself you would have had to roll me home! Both dishes were superb. Worth going back for these alone! These are proper bar snacks; rustic and homely but packed with flavour.

For our mains, my husband picked the rump of lamb with creamed potatoes from the Dinner Menu, and I had the burger from the Simple Things Done Well menu. We also got a side of triple cooked chunky chips; purely for the purposes of testing...

I quite like this approach. When I go somewhere that loosely fits int he 'gastropub' category I ask myself 'would my dad like it?'. Yes, John would bloody love this. He could happily stick to the Simple menu whilst the slightly more adventurous can pick from the Dinner menu. This leans more to the refined side. There is talk of puree, veloute and jus for God's sake...

Although we had dishes from opposite ends of the menu spectrum, we were both impressed with the presentation and flavours. The mint on the lamb was beautifully subtle and the meat was soft and tender. The burger was cooked pink with a slab of good quality cheese. The only thing I would change here was the relish. It contained star anise which seemed to overpower the taste of the tomato. Perhaps a little too fragrant for this dish.

The fennel slaw was fresh and tangy and a nice variation on a theme. Portion sizes were good too. Although we both felt well fed, neither of us had that 'I'm so full I might want to cry/sleep/die' feeling. That was nice.

I was quite excited to see the dessert menu for two reasons. Firstly we had loved everything set in front of us so far, so things were looking promising. Secondly, this is the mantra on their menus... I like these people.

The dessert menu seemed much smaller than the one I had read on the a la carte menu online, so I was  a little disappointed that I couldn't sample their lemon meringue. I was also hoping to see some winter warmer type things, but alas no. Desserts swing more to the fine dining side of the menu. We ordered the Bramley apple tart with vanilla ice cream. We decided to share it because nothing really caught my eye. It was really cold outside so I was craving something warm and most of the desserts seemed to be served cold.

I was pleasantly surprised by this little number. Served more like a vanilla slice, the 'tart' was filled with creme patisserie and apples. It was beautiful. Really light and sweet with a tangy apple jelly. It's just a pity Summer buggered off as this would be perfect served with a little sunshine. It would be my personal preference to remove the popping candy from the ice-cream. I think this fad has probably died a death and it masked the taste of the ice cream a little.

We'll definitely be going back to Hearth of the Ram. We were made to feel really welcome by everyone we came in contact with and the food was well executed. I think they need to maybe expand their simple menu and save the fine dining dishes to a specials menu which can be updated daily. This would allow choice whilst expanding what they do best. I'm really looking forward to trying their food in the middle of winter, and have fingers crossed for homely desserts...

For more details about the restaurant, please visit their website www.hearthoftheram.com, their Facebook page and follow the on Twitter @HearthoftheRam.

Sanmini's, Ramsbottom

Sanmini's has been one of our favourite restaurants since about 2010. It had been awarded a 'three' in the Good Food Guide, so we were instantly intrigued. London's famous Indians Benares (Atol Kochhar) and Tamarind (Alfred Prasad) only scored a three and four respectively and they had caught the eyes of Michelin. We had to investigate!

Sanmini's is a family affair. Doctors and bankers by trade, the Sankar family run the entire operation, headed by mum and Managing Director Mini. The restaurant is tiny, but this is by no means a bad thing. The family are welcoming and friendly, and the whole experience feels like you are dining in their home (albeit one with waiter service and a menu).

The Sankar Family - photo from sanminis.com

It's positioned in the old gate house on Ramsbottom Lane. You enter via a side door and arrive in a small bar area. Next door is the dining room, which has just five tables so you must make a reservation at least a week or so in advance of the date you want to visit. The food is traditional South Indian, so please don't expect to see Chicken Tikka Massala on the menu, however the owners are happy to guide you through which dish might suit you if you are unsure. 

Poppadums are a bit special at Sanmini's. They are made from scratch on site and are served with the most amazing pickle tray ever. One is a spicy mix of potatoes, kidney beans and tomatoes which is served warm, the next is alike a tamarind concoction, there's a twist on mango chutney and a raita which tasted like it had a little mustard mixed in with it. I could eat the whole bowl of the one with kidney beans in!

Apologies for the quality of the pictures, but the lighting wasn't great!

Portion sizes are quite large at Sanmini's. Our starters (below) contained about as much meat as most mains! I had Chilli Chicken and my husband had Mutton Chukka Varuval, something he has been craving since the first time we visited.

Mutton Chukka Varuval

Chilli Chicken

The Chilli Chicken was really hot, so I ordered a mango lassi to extinguish some of the heat. This was gorgeous! Not too sweet, but thick and creamy. Perfect when on feugo.

Mango Lassi

For our mains we tried to get two contrasting dishes so we could have a good mixture. I had Kothu Kari Kozambhu which was a minced lamb dish with potatoes and my husband had Chettinad Chicken which was a spicy dish with a hint of coconut. It was served with freshly made chappatis and a side of lemon rice, which isn't something I've had before. It was very delicate and worked perfectly with the curries. The main difference between these dishes and your more recognisable curries is the depth of flavour. There are no thick, creamy sauces and no chilli ratings. Everything is cooked from scratch to your personal specification.

Chettinad Chicken

Kothu Kari Kozambhu

Lemon Rice

Chappatis

Now then. I'm going to upset the curry house die hards. There is no Funky Pie on the dessert menu. Wayne, Kev... I'm looking at you. And no, there's no Punky either. No trace whatsoever. Instead is a selection of traditional Indian desserts. All based around delicate fragrances rather than gloopy puddings. My dessert was similar to doughnuts in flavour and texture, and came with ice cream. My husband's was a cardamon infused milk pudding with vermicelli. It was very similar to rice pudding, but with more flavour and not as stodgy.

We were also particularly impressed that they even have their own ale these days! Nice touch.

I know we will be making a return visit to Sanmini's, as we haven't had a bad meal there yet. The service is attentive without being intrusive and their enthusiasm for food is apparent at every course. They even offered to pack up the rest of my main course which I couldn't manage. Yes, I did go on to have a dessert. What's your point?

Go to Sanmini's if you want a different type of dining experience. Lovely people, fantastic food, great atmosphere. Perfect.

Please leave your own comments below x

Disclaimer: Sanmini's did not pay me to do this review. I went there because I needed light at the end of the tunnel after organising the Horwich Summer Fete. It was the perfect wind-down.