Review: Blackfriars at Home

June 1, 2020 by Rachel Kershaw in Eating Out 0

(AD – Gifted)

It’s been ten long weeks since lockdown was announced in England and my poor little blog has been gathering dust as I haven’t had much to report. Like many of you I’ve been keeping myself busy with DIY projects, de-cluttering missions and Netflix marathons.

I’m so pleased to be back with something exciting to write about, one of my favourite restaurants in Newcastle has re-opened its kitchen for collection and delivery Thursday – Sunday…

Blackfriars kindly invited James and I to sample their home restaurant service and having cooked each and every one of our own meals for the last three months, we jumped at the chance!

Here’s a run down of our luxurious lock down experience and all the info you need if you’d like to enjoy it for yourself…

Why Do We Love Blackfriars Restaurant So Much?

Blackfriars is one of our favourite restaurants!

This renowned restaurant never fails to serve up quality local produce in mouthwatering ways. We’ve been visiting it in the city centre for years and are big fans of the fantastic food and the romantic character of the historical surroundings. Although it has one of the oldest dining rooms in the country and has won a plethora awards, Blackfriars remains somewhat of a hidden gem as it’s tucked away behind China Town meaning you’re unlikely to stumble upon on it by chance.

What Does The ‘At Home’ Menu Have To Offer?

Some of Blackfriars’ most popular signature dishes have made it on to the small but perfectly formed ‘At Home’ menu and the chef is making changes every week to keep it fresh. Be sure to check out the website for the latest version: www.blackfriarsrestaurant.co.uk/MENUS

On the evening we dined, starters included Northumbrian ham terrine with piccalilli and fennel, smoked mackerel pâté with dill pickled cucumber and crispy sourdough, and goats’ cheese with walnut and roast beetroot salad.

Our main course options were slow-cooked ox cheek, roast pork shoulder or north sea fish pie. Plus, in the last few days, a further option of salt aged rump steak has been added to the mouthwatering menu! The vegetarian option of delicious butternut squash, chickpea & spinach curry also sounded divine.

How good does this rump steak look?

Blackfriars’ award winning Sunday lunches are also available with the option of slow-cooked ox cheek, roast pork shoulder or local speciality pan haggerty. All main courses come with perfectly matched side dishes.

The desserts sound amazing too, good luck trying to decide between sticky toffee pudding and rich chocolate mousse!

You can also treat yourself to wine, beer, luxurious pastries and sourdough bread. Click HERE to see the full menu and find out more.

What Did We Think Of Blackfriars at Home?

James and I both ordered the same for every course (very unusual for us!) we just couldn’t resist our favourites, goat’s cheese starter, ox cheek main and sticky toffee pud!

As we live within four miles of Blackfriars restaurant we were able to have our order delivered. It was left on the doorstep for us by the delivery driver so social distancing wasn’t an issue.

Get a doorstep delivery if you live within 4 miles

Preparation was quick and easy, we were supplied with a simple set of instructions to reheat the main courses and desserts in the oven. Our starters were salads so we could tuck in to those immediately.

To try and recreate a night out and do the food justice we made an effort with our table setting and we opened a bottle (or two) of good wine, I even wore make up which has not been known in lockdown!

Doing our best to recreate the restaurant atmos with music, candles and a plant from the bathroom, ha!

My presentation might not have been up to Blackfriars standards but it felt lovely to sit down to a restaurant prepared meal and enjoy a bit of quality time with my man. As there was hardly any prep involved there was no huge pile of washing up either. My kitchen would have looked like a war zone if James and I had cooked three courses like this from scratch!

We both agreed that we’d made the right menu choices, the quality and flavours were outstanding. The goat’s cheese was incredibly fresh and summery and the ox cheek literally melted in our mouths. My only tiny criticism is that I would have liked a bit more veg to balance out the meat which was a very generous portion.

Goat’s cheese with candied walnuts and beetroot to start

Slow-cooked ox cheek, butter roasted fondant potato, Savoy cabbage, braised shallot

When it came to dessert we added a scoop of ice cream and a sprig of mint to jazz up our sticky toffee puddings as hot desserts with ice cream is my absolute favourite thing. To be honest though, there was so much salted caramel sauce that the ice cream wasn’t really needed.

Sticky toffee pudding is my weakness

While I was plating the food up I thought the portions perhaps looked a little small in comparison to the servings of home cooked food we’ve been feeding ourselves recently, but I needn’t have worried as we were completely satisfied by the end of the meal.

It was so good I’m already thinking about what to order for Sunday lunch next weekend!

How To Order:

Meals are available from 4-7pm Thursday – Saturday and from 12-4pm on Sundays. Prices are one course £15, 2 courses £18 and 3 for £21. The delivery charge is £3.50 up to 5 miles. If you live further away you can arrange a collection from the restaurant (NE1 4XN)

To place an order you can email info@blackfriarsrestaurant.co.uk or call 0191 261 5945 from 3-7pm Thursday to Saturday or 10am-2pm Sunday. Go on, treat yourself to a little bit of luxury dining during lockdown, you deserve it!

You Can Also Enjoy Food From Sister Restaurant Hinnies!

Blackfriars is part of the Hooked On group of restaurants which also owns Hinnies in Whitley Bay. The seaside restaurant which is famous for it’s traditional Geordie menu is also now offering a similar service, click HERE for the details.