Raymond’s – Nottingham
I lamented the closure of Oscar and Rosie’s, not just on a culinary level, but in the knowledge that few restaurants before or after will be named after their owners cats. That said I couldn’t ask for much more of an exciting replacement with Marcus, formerly of Mesa, the force behind this new venture on the site of the former pizzeria. The makeover successfully built on the layered dining room, retaining the natural light but delivering a new chic with maroon tiles, dark woods and other moody touches. There is also a greater wine focus, a well thought-out and interesting list with lots of skin contact and natural stuff, such is the trend. Plenty to suit all tastes though, I enjoyed an excellent Vouvray and Gamay.
The menu is currently a handful of small plates, which will change seasonally, alongside a couple specials that will be on a more frequent rotation. Due to a supplier issue those weren’t available on my visit but it did mean we got to sample almost the entire menu.
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Bread & Tomato Salad – Raymond’s – Nottingham
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Bread made in house (£5) was impressively good, stylistically between and focaccia and some Turkish breads I have previously enjoyed. Nice to have a change from the ubiquitous sourdough. It was served with a purple dip that to my eye promised beetroot notes but was quite heavily spiced and tumeric/cumin became the dominant flavours. By no means unpleasant, just a touch too rich to my palate. Heritage tomato salad (£6.5) had whipped ricotta, anchovies and tomato salad. Simple but well dressed and seasoned with excellent quality tomatoes, the sort I can never seem to source myself. More ricotta in the shape of a summery stuffed courgette flower (£9.5). Easily the most delicate and demanding technical of today’s dishes it might not have had the punch of others but it was light and fresh.
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Tartarte – Raymond’s – Nottingham
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Into the real stars and first we had more of that bread but with the addition of steak tartare (£12.5). The quality of the meat shone through, soft and flavourful with a sharp hit of onion or cornichon to keep you honest. A light mustard sauce was a well judged addition that I might have liked a touch more of on the side, especially if you’re sharing. The signature dish of Raymond’s, I think, is destined to become the fried chicken (£8.5). It doesn’t look much but boy does it pack a punch. When ordering I had mistaken the chicken’s sauce as garam, not garum. The latter is a fermented fish sauce with soy, in this caramalised form with perfectly moist fried chicken it was an umami revelation. The simple addition of a handful of herbs was inspired, not only do they bring a freshness to the opulence of the garum but each mouthful gives you something different. Dill was probably the favourite.
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Fried Chicken, Garum Caramel – Raymond’s – Nottingham
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Given this was opening week, apart from soft launch and getting food bloggers in etc., I was impressed with the service. Marcus himself was jovially greeting and aptly dealing with many keen people like myself who had too many questions. There was little to fault save a couple of small details which I also passed on to the team directly. Already we have some standout dishes that I already wanted eat again and with the menu likely to change and the addition of specials I can see Raymond’s being a regular haunt….
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