The Frame

The Frame
8 St Martins Square, Leicester LE1 5EW

I’ve been writing a few ‘listicles’ about Leicestershire’s restaurants and in doing so have revisited a few articles on this blog. It made me realise how much I miss regularly eating out since reviewing jobs dried up and all that Covid malarkey.

So last night I felt it was time to try somewhere new and made it to The Frame in St Martin’s Square. It has a generic “Mediterranean” tag, which of course could mean paella and bouillabaisse but is actually more from the Eastern end, with Greek, Turkish, Lebanese vibes. It opened in 2022 and is in that former nightclub space in the elevated bridge type structure over the square. Promisingly it was quite difficult to get a table on Friday night, and there were repeated warnings during the process that the table was for 90 minutes – it seemed optimistic to be turning tables at gone 9.30pm but at least they were being clear.

Decor is lovely, it’s an attractive space with clear cool lines, and a kitchen behind a big glass panel as you enter the upstairs room so you can watch the grill and wave at the chefs should you wish (we did wish). Walking in I was reminded why I’ve missed going out – it was really buzzy, with every table full of happy diners, young staff flitting around, a cocktail-maker doing his thing at the bar and lovely smells permeating the room.

The menu is sensibly short and focused. Starters, meze and a small selection of mains are listed with a suggestion that they ‘come when they are ready’. In fact the cold meze came first, then hot meze and the larger dishes came later, so actually all conventional timings.

We ordered tzatziki and muhammara and it pretty much reassured us that here was a place that knew what it was doing. The former was impeccably fresh and well-balanced – nice sharp yoghurt, fresh mint, pickled cucumber and lemony sumac combining well. The latter, a roasted red pepper dip laced with pomegranate molasses and dressed with crushed walnuts and pomegranate seeds also brought smiles of satisfaction. I don’t know if they bake their own bread but the accompanying pita was great – soft and pillowy, a world away from supermarket equivalents.

Calamari were soft and tender with garlicky aioli in spiced oil that demanded to be swept up by the remaining pita. Grilled chicken wings were really good – lovely chargrilling, meaty and moist and some delicious lightly soused red onions. .Fingerlickin’good.

Chicken shish had similar virtues but with lovely chunks of breast meat. The spinach and feta borek was delicious but extremely rich and not sure it needed the smoked butter placed on top which very nearly pushed it over the edge. The apple in the accompanying salad helped cut through that richness though.

So, good food in an attractive restaurant with a bubbly Friday night atmospshere. Lovely stuff.

Christmas at Herb

96 Granby St, Leicester LE1 1DJ

’Tis the season to be jolly. Though sometimes one of the less jolly aspects of the season is eating out with a restaurant’s Christmas dinner menu. Obviously good restaurants do it well, but it can be seen as a way to bump up margins and knock out food to customers who aren’t going to be too demanding.

Keralan vegan venue Herb does offer something better. Having been impressed recently with their new, adjacent Vegan Bar, I returned for their Christmas set menu. The people behind Herb are Christians (extensive Xmas decorations and the wonderful fresco of Michelangelo’s Last Supper are a bit of a giveaway), and several of the items featured are Keralan Christian dishes given a vegan twist. So, along with the copious amount of food provided, there’s a definite sense of seasonal feasting here.

You start off with a little flask of warming rasam, a peppery soup that plays a similar cure-all role in Southern India as chicken soup to Jewish communities. Then a selection of pre-plated starters: tofu pepper fry was good – though as a non-vegan I would have preferred the texture and flavour of paneer; a crunchy oat-coated vegetable cutlet was very good; sweet potato vazhattiyathu was absolutely terrific even to a sweet potato sceptic such as me. This is more familiar as a chicken dish in Kerala but the rich, mellow spicing worked fine here. Chutneys were excellent.

There are two main courses to pick from – aubergine hollowed and stuffed with tofu and cauliflower, slathered in a herby spinach sauce, and Keralan royal okra poached in a banana leaf with spices and sweet red and peppers. The tiny okra were soft, non-slimy and hugely tasty. Both dishes were lavishly garnished with soft spicy potatoes, crunchy chick pea fritters and a range of fresh vegetables sauteed Kerala style. Along with those came a rice pilau and, another highlight here, kallappam bread. Made with fermented rice flour these beautifully soft and spongy breads are a traditional breakfast item but their gentle texture and surprisingly complex flavours make them fit for any meal.

Spicing throughout the meal is gentle but complex, not fierce. I discerned very little chilli. I did manage pretty much all of mine, but the staff, cheery and helpful all night, can pack up any leftovers to take home. In fact, I even managed the ice-cream and fresh fruit salad desert.

A great option for Christmas feasting, whether you are a vegan, vegetarian or, like me, committed carnivore. As with all restaurants in the Kayal group, gift vouchers are available for Xmas presents for the foodies in your life.

Donald Watson’s Vegan Bar

Given all that’s going on, what a delight to welcome the opening of a really lovely new bar in the centre of Leicester.

Donald Watson’s Vegan Bar is part of the Kayal and Herb group and is actually located within the expanded premises of Herb on Granby Street, though it has its own entrance. First that name – Donald Watson was the founder of modern veganism, indeed he invented the word, and he lived and worked in Leicester for many years working as a joinery teacher. And true to his legacy, all the drinks in the bar are vegan – beers, wines, cocktails and spirits.

It’s taken time to ensure all this, but it does mean that there’s nothing remotely worthy or cranky on show here. Many brands from the interesting end of mainstream brands are present and the bar has tremendous character. The eclectic, magpie approach of Kayal founder Jaimon Thomas is again here present with signature touches such as the Royal Enfield motorbike behind the bar, funky car seats, steampunk tables and statement artworks such as a Platinum Jubilee portrait of the late Queen.

Bar manager Ross describes it as a cocktail bar for grown ups, and he relishes the idea of bring a bit of theatre to the serving of his cocktails. Obviously there’s some synergy with the adjoining – mainly vegan – Herb, but this is very much its own thing and ideal for a cocktail, aperitif or nightcap when having a night out in the city. Or spend the whole evening there of course – vegan bar snacks from the Herb kitchen available. Ross has plans for cocktail making classes, wine tasting, corporate events and so on, making the most of the flexible offer they have with restaurant.

A big welcome them to a fun, sophisticated and highly distinctive new bar.

Evington’s moves toward a new era

I’m breaking my silence here for a quick post celebrating a low-key Leicester business that probably won’t get covered elsewhere.

Evington’s wine merchants on Evington Road is, quite bizarrely but wonderfully, approaching its centenary in 2026. And it’s been run by the same family all that time. It looked maybe as if the run was coming to end as the learned, genial and committed Simon March approaches retirement. But now the company is continuing with Simon’s son Olly coming into the business.

Evingtons

Olly’s first task has been to overhaul the website and that has now relaunched today. It’s nice and easy to search through the shop’s stellar collection of fine wines, including a great selection of ports and champagne. There are images and tasting notes of all wines. In the challenging retail environment of Evington Road (it’s on the corner of Mere Rd), the shop has fairly negligible passing trade. It survives through a dedicated customer base, cultivated through tasting events in the shop and around the county and an online trade attracted by its expertly curated selection of fine and rare wines. If you’re looking for a 1998 Chateau Musar (or the 2000, 2009 or 2010), or the ambrosial 1996 Quinta do Vesuvio port from Symingtons, this is the place.

How much longer the physical shop will remain I’m not sure. It’s definitely worth going now for a visit and a chat with Simon or Olly. It’s a lovely characterful shop and ideal if you are looking for special purchases ahead of Christmas. Also check out www.evingtons-wines.co.uk

The Wheatsheaf at Greetham

When in need of spiritual sustenance my favoured strategy is a drive out from Leicester to Bloody Oaks Quarry in Rutland. This tiny nature reserve is a rare local example of a limestone grassland, making it a haven for some rare and beautiful butterflies and I love it. Here is a gratuitous picture for fellow fritillery fans from a recent visit:

But there are other kinds of sustenance and fortunately Rutland, with its plethora of dining pubs is good at providing that too. On visiting Bloody Oaks last week, I chose to go a further 5 minutes up the A1 to the village of Greetham and to The Wheatsheaf. It’s four years since I reviewed it on this blog and on behalf of Great Food Club, and I’m pleased to say nothing much has changed – from the little assemblage of ducks residing in the car park to the informal welcome and the outstanding cooking from Carol Craddock.

Carol has great experience and a revered standing in the industry from time spent in the Big City. She’s not alone in finding that at some stage in life it’s rewarding to use your skills in a more relaxed environment where you can control the parameters and do what you want without excessive stress. For the people of Rutland that means classic cookery at an accessible price, and where every detail from the sherry vinegar dip and the quite wonderful piquillo pepper and goats cheese butter with the bread, shouts quality.

I picked the Lunch for Less menu and started with Spanish rillettes, a nice twist on a classic with smoked paprika spiking up the rough-cut pork belly and collar meats. Lightly soused vegetables were beautifully done too. Main course was an enormous confit duck leg on a crisp rosti with fresh greens and light-as-air quennelle of whipped horseradish cream. Good technique and deep flavours everywhere.

Not only did I demolish these substantial dishes, but given how good they were and the fact that I’m unlikely to get out there again for a while, I went all in for the desert. Again faultless, a spot-on pannacotta, made with buttermilk adding just a touch of acidity and served with a lightly grilled peach and a shortbread biscuit.

At £23.50 it’s considerably less than you would likely pay for three courses at, to pick at random, TGI Fridays in Highcross. Insane. If I’d gone a la carte there’s still plenty of value in dishes such as grilled spiced quail with pomegranate dressing or roast fillet of chorizo crusted cod, arrocina beans, piquillo peppers, artichoke and spinach.

It’s a fair old trek from Leicester I know, but if you’re out in the East or you just find yourself on the A1 and it’s time for lunch, you really should give it a go.

Chloe Gourmet – a little piece of Paris

Other than Covid, of course, I’m at a loss as to quite why it’s taken me so long to properly discover Chloe Gourmet. I was aware of Assia’s (aka Chloe) online patisserie business but it’s taken a couple of years to make a visit to her lovely Cank Street cafe. It’s now going to be a regular treat.

Frenchwoman Assia says she has tried to recreate a slice of Paris and sure enough it definitely has that feel with it’s stylish dark décor and hugely tempting array of patisserie and viennoiserie displayed to great effect.

After a simple coffee and macaron last week I was back today for lunch with a friend. Just look at the care and style put into this club sandwich:

And this croque monsieur was simply gorgeous – huge amounts of softly grilled Emmental and mozzarella with turkey ham made for the kind pillowy cheese toastie you just won’t find in an English cafe.

It’s impossible to resist the cakes and we picked an elegant financier stuffed with a raspberry compote and an unctuous pistachio and apricot tart. Lovely pastry, beautifully glazed fruit – yum. I’m saving my absolute favourite pastry – the Paris-Brest – for my next visit but I have very hopes.

The fact that this slice of France replaced the venerable Crusty’s at 10-12 Cank Street says a lot about how Leicester continues to change. Cherish it.

Wild and Furrow Oat Drink

God bless the vegans and all that, but not really being of that ilk I’ve been a bit wary of the idea of milk-type stuff made from nuts, grains and so on. But at a visit to the opening event of Pratik Master’s Not Just a Corner Shop 2 in Swithland I met with Miles from Wild and Furrow oat drink and I was a convert at first taste.

Miles and his brother Angus are from an arable farming family, growing crops at Marston Trussell near Market Harborough. He has also worked in the coffee industry and saw the potential for new alternatives to milk, with oats being the most viable. They have nothing against the dairy industry, they are just motivated by the market opportunity for a great product.

The drink is made with their own oats and those from other local selected farms and is basically oats and water mixed and heated, then finessed with a little cold-pressed rapeseed oil and sea-salt. The taste is rich, oaty and creamy – think of the cream around your porridge once it’s had a chance to steep. It is being used in coffee in cafes around the county and can be bought – in returnable glass bottles – in a rising number of delis and fine food stores in the region.

I’m a bit sceptical that it will improve my single origin yirgacheffe of a morning – I’ll give it a go at some point – but I do love it simply as a nice drink, and looking forward to using it on porridge and breakfast cereals. For further details of the business, their philosophy and where you can get the product visit the Wild and Furrow website.

Martin Brothers Micropizzeria

[Some of you might have seen a piece I wrote for Crafty St Martins Instagram account, the first of a series celebrating other fine independents in the city. This is a longer version of that article.]

Not too long ago pizza for many in Leicester meant a strange American bread thing with heavily processed cheese and salami or, shudder, pineapple. That and a visit to a salad bar where you would wring whatever value you could out of the occasion by carefully constructing a tower of wet lettuce, grated carrot and coleslaw.

Thankfully, we do have more options now. A key moment in Leicestershire was the arrival of Peter Pizzeria in Loughborough. Launched by a bunch of Italian slow-food enthusiasts, Peter evangelised their Neapolitan sourdough style, offered informal good times and high quality food sourced locally or from Italy, something they were able to reproduce when opening at Welford Place in Leicester.

Their success has helped develop a customer base for a better quality product and now, as the Covid clouds are at last starting to clear, we’ve suddenly got at least three interesting pizza openings. My first visit was to Martin Brothers new “Micropizzeria” in the suburb of Clarendon Park.

Brothers Josh and Aaron, along with Josh’s partner Vanessa, have been building a following at events and pop-ups since 2018, most recently with a residency at city centre bar The Two Tailed Lion. Now they have converted a former antique shop on Clarendon Park Rd. Can they reproduce the magic? Oh yes.

The menu is admirably straightforward – a couple of simple starters including a selection of anti-pasti and then around a dozen pizzas that can be customised with extra cheese and vegetables. Their pizza dough is fermented for 48 hours and the style, learnt during a study trip to Italy, is Neapolitan – thin with an airy crust, cooked super-quickly with a hint of char.

I’d previously been impressed by their puntastic “Stannis Burrateon”, with extraordinarily sweet yellow tomatoes and rich and creamy burrata – a little bomb of soft and creamy cheese that quivers inside a mozzarella casing. This time I had Big Frank, with plenty of fior-di-latte mozarella and strips of crispy pancetta and smoked chicken The key note here is quality and balance – everything in fact most High St pizzas are not. The smoke on the meats is delicate but present and there is enough to complement but not dominate the wonderful cheese and pizza base. The wafer thin slices of mild garlic are a delight and there is copious parmesan, fresh basil and a hint of home-made rosemary oil. It all combined so well I’m sure after one particularly pleasing forkful I let out an audible sigh of pleasure.

The brothers’ other key passion is beer and it is also given free rein here. There’s ten judiciously chosen craft beers at any one time – many of them you might struggle to find in a specialist bar. How many pizza restaurants do you know that offer a 16.3 per cent Imperial stout from Denmark? This being a lunchtime visit I picked a 5 per cent pale ale made with aromatic sabro hops from Bristol’s Arbor Ales – it was fruity, hoppy and gorgeous. Coffee was a rich and chocolately blend from El Salvador and while they do offer a homemade tiramisu for desert, I just went with a tasty pistachio cannoli.

This is a small, convivial venue and to keep the neighbourhood feel going, most of the tables will be for walk-ins, though bookings can be made for groups of four. It’s a compelling offer and its hard to imagine this won’t very quickly be taken to the heart of Clarendon Park locals.

Spice Bazaar

I’ve heard that many plaudits from the local community for Spice Bazaar at 326 Welford Road, that eventually I had to visit. And I’m glad I did because it is a fine representative of the threatened institution that is the British Indian Restaurant.

Obviously in Leicester we are blessed with a very wide range of “Indian” restaurants, from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, to Pakistani, Gujarati, Punjabi and Nepalese-inspired. But for many of us there will remain a special place in our hearts for the cuisine largely brought in by immigrants from Sylhet in Bangladesh and adapted and refined to British tastes over the last 60 years. Discussions about “authenticity” have limited relevance here – the food of the British Indian Restaurant has wandered down its own evolutionary path and we enjoy it.

When I was reviewing for newspapers I tended to avoid these places, partly because everyone tends to have their favourite that they are devoted to and it felt there was little a reviewer can do to alter opinions. But of course, food can be done badly or well and Spice Bazaar does it splendidly. We started with poppadums and seven different pickles and chutneys – including a sweet coconut relish flavoured with rosewater and a fearsome chilli and garlic one. Then straight to mains – Chicken Dhansak was excellent, with good quality meat and scoring high with the two key elements of a good dhansak of this type, a velvety texture from lentils and a sweet-sour tang from pineapple juice and chunks.

I had Genghis Said, not a familiar name from British Indian Restaurant menus, but combining familiar elements of chicken tikka, moist and spicy, with lamb keema enveloped in a rich and satisfying sauce. Lemon rice was deliciously sharp with, I think, preserved lemons and herbs, matching nicely with our sweet, honey-drenched peshawari naan.

Front of house is run with charm and patience by Abdul Giash, while the kitchen is run by his Dad, who is a bit of a Leicester curry institution, going right back to the days of the old Koh-i-Noor on Conduit Street next to the station. Abdul explained to us how he still roasts and grinds his own masalas.

It is getting harder to recruit both wait staff and chefs with this kind of dedication, plus there is an increasing sense that young people don’t want to sit around in restaurants for an evening, preferring to graze on the go. In a few years there might only be a few “dark kitchens” on industrial estates sending out food on bikes. But for now be grateful for small, intimate and friendly venues like this. Not surprisingly it is popular with locals in its Clarendon Park and Knighton hinterlands, and judging by the pictures on the wall, fans include the Leicester Tigers. Booking is likely required at weekends, but do consider it when next you feel the need.

Leicester Restaurant Week – Update

As local readers won’t need reminding, we’re about to enter the first Leicester Restaurant Week, Nonetheless, here is a reminder.

There are now some 30 venues signed up and offering a range of special menus for the week 18 to 24 October. Typically these are two or three course set meals at an appealing price point, some from regular menus but some offering something special.

I went to the launch event last week at the lovely Sonrisa and it was great to hear from Simon Jenner of organisers Leicester BID that they had worked with participating venues to avoid simple discounting. The idea is not to just take the hit on margins in order to get people in, but to find a way to highlight your restaurant in a sustainable way – something widely affordable that could get people in and remind us of why we love going to restaurants.

Blanc at 76

With that in mind, here’s a few offers that look particularly appealing. The Knight and Garter are offering a special LRW menu of three courses for £20 – my pick being beetroot-cured gravlax with avocado and dill creme fraiche and fennel and caper slaw, followed by pumpkin and sage tortellini with goats cheese and spinach sauce, finished off with sticky toffee pudding. Then there’s an intriguing five course taster menu from Blanc at 76, a pop up restaurant within Granby Street bar Loka, which features the like of cod with roasted onion dashi and smoked potatoes. Orton’s, the brasserie in the Cultural Quarter, are going the extra mile and doing special dishes with wine matching each night of the week – for example Saturday 23rd sees a venison and Argentinian malbec, on Thursday 21^st it’s monkfish with cauliflower textures paired with a white Rioja.

Among the other participating restaurants are Kayal and Herb, Merchant of Venice, Sonrisa, Tandem, Chutney Ivy, Bodega Cantina, &Kith, Peter Pizzeria and Arabic cafe Dama Rose.

For the full range of offers go the week’s website www.leicesterrestuarantweek.co.uk

Afternoon tea with an Arabic twist at Dama Rose