BAKERS: Little bits of luxury

 

MARCH, 2010

Bakers at the Saddleworth Hotel

Huddersfield Road,

Delph.

OL3 5LX

01457 871888

YOU have to admire the drive of the Baker family in taking the Saddleworth Hotel up to a whole new level.

The impending launch of the new function suite in a couple of months time has been three years in the making.

Had they known they would be emerging from the chrysalis at a time of deep recession they would probably have kept their hard-earned money in their pockets.

But fortune favours the brave. Already, publicity for the dazzling new function suite is bringing bookings and the standards set at the Bakers restaurant have earned acclaim in two much-prized rosettes from the AA for its food.

This is not for everyone. This is fine dining and when I tell you that itÕs £60 per head for the menu of the evening or £75 per head for the banquet-style taster menu, you can see why I say that.

Make no mistake, the food is exquisite, beautifully prepared and presented. And while that is what you would expect at such a tariff, what you would also demand is a setting that is quite splendid and staff that are of the highest possible standard. 

You get both to a level that makes you feel very special - if not slightly embarrassed by the sheer elevation of it all. We arrived on a chilly, foggy Saturday evening, by taxi, and took the few cold steps from the car park to be greeted by a member of staff who showed us through into the restaurant and the bar at the far end.

In one corner a piano was playing itself and there was a warmth and a regal feel to the room with tables cleverly positioned so none really overlooked another with the room divided into three section by alcoves and archways.

Taster menus are something that we adore. They present an air of expectation as each course comes to the table - not knowing what creation the chefs have concocted for you  - but also trusting them to serve a meal that both excites and entertains.

I have often sat in a restaurant not really knowing what to choose and were it not that it would sound pretentious, I would love just to say 'let the chef choose and send out what he thinks are his best three courses'.

Well, this in essence, is what happens with taster menus and they change depending what is fresh at market, what is in season, and dare I suggest what mood the chef is in!

We started with a garlic soup which was marvellous. So smooth and with a taste that lingered just long enough for you to appreciate the work that had gone into it.

A game terrine and bruschetta followed, with each course given its own little moment in the spotlight with a descriptive fanfare.

A seafood pasta dish followed, then what turned out to be my favourite course of the whole meal. Would I really have chosen calf's cheek? Probably not. Would I have it again if I saw it on a menu? Certainly would. The meat melted in your mouth. It wasn't a large portion, none of them are, but none of them need to be.

We sipped on our wine - informed by the attentive staff that we would be charged by the glass or the bottle whichever turned out to be the least expensive - and discussed what we thought might follow. We both said it would be fish and we were right with a work of art that was John Dorey with scallop riding bareback and all on a bed of wilted lettuce.

The scallop so smooth it almost sliced itself before the knife could get to it, the fish itself just a joy. Each course came served on some theatrically oversized plates with smaller-centred indents but I do have to admit that I must have lost count of the courses when giant flat plates were placed in front of us.

I was wondering just what could be coming that would be served in such fashion - and then realised that a drum of Stilton was making an entrance. I was now in my element and felt no shame in asking the waiter for a second scoop. I actually think someone in the kitchen had also lost count, because after that we got two dessert creations.

But hey, even the best are not perfect and as we sat with coffees awaiting our carriage home, just for a moment we realised we had had a taste of what it is to be well off.

The price tag will be way beyond many budgets but Bakers certainly offers something not readily available elsewhere in the vicinity.

A recession might not be the best time to ask the question, but they are asking and those who enjoy fine dining will just have to take a peek.