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Whenever Sheffield foodies chew over old dinners and get to the Charnwood Hotel two head chefs are always mentioned; Cary Brown, now at the Supper Club, and the late Wayne Bosworth. For my money there was a third. He may not have been as flash nor as brash but in his quiet classical French style Stephen Hall was up there with the best of them. He followed the Charnwood by running a pub, in the wrong place, and disappeared to run the works canteen for a catalogue chain before going into private cheffing and consultancy. Now he's back with the newly opened Seasons, on Abbeydale Road, with another Charnwood Old Boy, Andy Robinson, back after 15 years away from the stove. Seasons is a sleek little bistro with prices to match behind a smart etched window in less than glamorous surroundings, flanked by a boarded up building and an Asian grocers. There's a strong British streak all the way through the menu; cullen skink and prawn cocktail among the starters, steamed suet pudding, slow cooked lamb shoulder with hot pot potatoes, cod, chips and mushy peas on the mains and a Bakewell tart with dessert. There are moss green walls and culinary paintings with mismatched wooden chairs, all done by themselves or members of their families, so there's a certain homely quality about it. Prices are also homely, hardly anything over a fiver on the starters, all dishes comfortably under a tenner on the mains except for the steak. We were first offered toothsome little rolls with three kinds of butter, plain, chillied and pesto. Cullen skink, that Scottish soup of smoked haddock, leek and potato (£3.95), a sort of vichychoisse with fish, had those trademark Hall qualities, fragrance and freshness, although underseasoned for my palate. A special (there is also a blackboard) of smoked salmon pate, for £4.95, was excellent vividly flavoured with a dill and yoghurt sauce and a tiny salmon rose. When I first heard about the menu there was no question of what I was going to have, the steak and oxtail steamed suet pudding (£9.50). In my dreams I cut away the mottled brown crust for the innards to spill out as steam cured up towards the ceiling. And do you know what? It did. I loved the suet pastry and the contrast between the meats, the steak firm but tender and the oxtail melting like rillettes. It was propped on a tagliatelli of carrots and green beans and surrounded by roast potatoes. Good gravy, too. Across the table pan-fried chicken breast stuffed with a duxelle of wild mushrooms was a snip for £8.95, the flesh moist and the filling full of woodland flavours. Sweets are good, a Bakewell tart being given a spin with cherry brandy and some lovely custard plus and Irish coffee creme brulee served with a tiny piece of date and walnut cake. This is good cooking, although the kitchen has yet to get fully up to speed, and I am delighted that Stephen and Andy have decided to concentrate on British dishes at prices which won't frighten anyone. Music started subdued but for those readers who worry about such things it got a bit loud at the end. Service is friendly but as yet a little unpolished. We paid £37.25 for
food, £10.95 for a decent merlot and £1.90 for coffee. |
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