It is rare that I get round to writing up a casual dinner date in a local restaurant. It is even rarer that I do so the next day. I just couldn’t believe the amazing value I experienced at Public House last night.
As I said, it was a casual dinner date and so I did not take notes or spend a lot of time making sure I got the right photos, but looking back on the meal this morning I felt it warranted some attention.
I have only recently started using Top Table; as someone who usually knows exactly where I want to eat and who is willing to pay a premium to eat there, I didn’t think the deals would appeal. I was wrong.
Last week I was supposed to be taking someone to dinner in exchange for their worldly wisdom. It had to be easy to get to from Kings Cross and not too expensive, since I haven’t got a lot of money at the moment. I was pondering various cheap and cheerfuls I know in Islington when my friend, Jen, piped up:
“What about Public House? They often have really good deals on Top Table.”
Suspicious.
“Any good?”
“Yeah, I’ve been there a few times. The food’s great and they do nice cocktails, which I suppose is where they make their money.”
Hmm...
I had a look on Top Table and sure enough they were offering a range of deals, one of which was two courses for ten pounds on a Tuesday. Still suspicious I read the fine print looking for mention of a 'special' menu, but it said very clearly that the two courses could be selected off the a la carte, perfect! And the menu looked good. Really good.
Sadly, the person I was supposed to be meeting cancelled but I found a good excuse to go last night instead. Another Tuesday night dinner date with a friend was already in the diary. It seems Tuesday is the new Thursday. Perfect!
We were really spoilt for choice on the starters. I could have eaten every single one quite happily, which is a rare predicament and the sign of a good menu.
In the end I narrowed it down to the smoked trout with potato salad and beetroot puree or the mackerel with red onion confit and mackerel rillettes. I asked the (very obliging, if slightly skittish) waiter for his advice: A tough choice. He was definitely a fan of both but would err towards the mackerel.
Still deliberating.
"Perhaps it would help to decide whether you want something hot or cold."
“Which is hot?”
“The mackerel.”
“Done.”
In retrospect that should have been obvious.
The mackerel was perfectly cooked, which it is so often not, and its deep, savoury flesh was neatly offset by the sweetness of the red onion confit. The mackerel rillettes – diced mackerel lightly seasoned with chilli, preserved lemon and parsley – were also well balanced, but they didn’t pair well with the fillet and red onion. It would have made more sense on a ‘mackerel 3 ways’ plate where one knows that the various parts are not intended to be eaten together. This was not clear but I will give the chef the benefit of the doubt – he got everything else right.
Emma had the lambs kidneys on toast which were suitably unphotogenic; as Emma remarked, “They don’t look very pretty, but then kidneys shouldn’t.” And they were just as they should be – tender and gamey in a deliciously rich, buttery gravy.
Mains were a much easier decision. In fact I’d already made it before I arrived: Pigs cheeks slow braised in Somerset cider with potato and hazelnut mash and crackling. Emma went for the same, a preemptive step to avoid food envy, and I am pleased she did because, although it would’ve been nice to try a mouthful of something else, there was no way I was sharing this.
The pigs cheek was handled with unbelievable precision and delicacy – forget melt in the mouth, this melted on the plate at the gentlest touch, a mere flirtation with the cutlery . I hate the term but I think this was a textbook example of what the professionals call ‘fork tender’.
The mash was smooth with the occasional crunch of hazelnuts and paired delciously with the creamy mustard gravy. And that crackling! My only complaint is that there wasn’t more.
I was also impressed by the house pickled plums that accompanied the dish. They were slightly under ripe so naturally crisp and tart and this, combined with the flavour of the pickling juices, made for a fantastic sweet and sour side that worked wonders with the otherwise rich and savoury flavours. Novel and interesting.
Since all of the above only cost us £10 each we thought we might as well treat ourselves to dessert. By dessert I mean a third course because I decided on the Colton Bassett Stilton, caramelised shallot and pear tart from the starters. Well, it was a tart, it contained fruit, a 'caramel' element and covered the cheese course too. That was how it sounded anyway.
In reality it was very much a starter. I had envisaged puff pastry with sticky caramelised shallots and thick slices of poached pears topped with crumbled Stilton. What I got was a crisp filo pastry filled with a sloppy stilton béchamel studded with diced shallot and topped with pear, nicely poached but a little scarce. It did work and I ate it all, but I think the dish I imagined would have been nicer.
Emma’s chocolate tart was fabulous. Crumbly shortcrust pastry with a creamy chocolate centre, robust and bitter in flavour. The passionfruit cream would have been better described as passionfruit on cream, but Emma wasn’t complaining since she shouldn't eat cream and, in her words, "if it had actually been a passionfruit cream I would have been tempted to eat it."
The wine list has a good selection of mostly European bottles at reasonable prices, with half the whites and reds offered by the glass or carafe as well. They also had a few South American options and, since that's where Emma and I met, we went for both; an Argentine Torrontes followed by the Chilean Carmenere. The carmenere, I noted later, was the cheapest red wine on the menu and the best of the pair.
The service was helpful and attentive. Our waiter seemed a little timid when he approached the table, but he had to do so several times before we were ready to order and this may have made him nervous to do so again. He was well equpped to answer my barrage of questions and when he wasn’t sure about the answer he happily sought advice from the chef.
With a bottle and a half of wine and desserts on top, the bill came to £70 for two. So, yes, the alcohol did bump it up a bit, but for a meal of this standard, that is still what I call very good value.
Public House: 54 Islington Park St, London, N1 1PX; 020 7359 6070
Entrees from £6 to £7; Mains from £10 to £14.50