Fletchers – Nottingham
I’ve been a fan of Fletchers for a while but since my first visit to this restaurant in 2018 they have moved, along with the college itself, to a swanky new building near the train station. The premise is that students get real life experience in the kitchen, as well as in the dining room, and the customer gets a meal at a relative steal. Lunches are a very reasonable 3 courses for £20 that are available Wednesday – Friday with evening menus having more elaborate themes, from Scandinavia to North Africa which are one-offs. Our evening was ‘A Taste of Nottinghamshire”
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Nottinghamshire Menu – Fletchers – Nottingham
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The cry of adjacent basketball players was still ringing in my ears as I entered the impressive new building. The dedicated restaurant space is off to one side and functional, brightly lit with few frills. Things happen at a pace here and before long our wood pigeon arrived. A seriously ambitious dish given the surroundings. The bird itself cooked capably though not quite perfect with one of the two breasts bring a touch under and another a little over. I was most impressed with the red onion tartelette that had excellent crisp pastry, and a nice caramelised note alongside the natural acidity of the onions. No qualms with the cooking of poached brown trout, beautifully moist and pink in the middle. A nettle butter sauce had a pleasing green tang alongside a richness from that butter. The horseradish in the crushed potatoes complemented things well although the potatoes themselves had a slightly claggy texture. Our final savoury dish, lamb, had a vibrant arrangement of colours. If they weren’t using the most utilitarian of plates it would have looked even better. The star was possibly the confit rabbit beneath the lamb, lovely depth of flavour and a particularly pleasing partner to the silky mash potato. The lamb itself was also good, enhanced by a glossy, well made jus and sweetness from the carrot puree.
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Brown Trout – Fletchers – Nottingham
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A little pre-desert was gooseberry and elderberry custard. Both berries are ones you seldom see on menus and here their character has been handled well. Without a deft touch either could becoming over powering. The final course of bramley apple pudding was a well constructed slice of apple tart. The pastry could have been thinner and a touch less cooked but it was enjoyable nonetheless. The advertised lavender was an odd sprinkle of dried flowers across the plate, adding little other than an unpleasant dried herb in the mouth.
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Despite the few niggles I am always charmed by Fletchers. This menu at £33 was fantastic value in the current climate and used genuinely high quality ingredients, I could see our main coming in at £25 alone in some establishments. The service is always endearing and you really can’t expect too much from teenagers thrust into the quasi fine-dining atmosphere they are going for. So alongside really quite impressive and interesting plates of food you’re also helping out the students of the future, what’s not to like?
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