News & Reviews

For a real treat, it must be Loves

13th May 2010

And hot on the heels of the ‘Michelin Three’ (Simpsons, Purnell’s and Turners) could just be husband and wife team, the Loves, who have brought their award-winning restaurant from Leamington Spa to the heart of the city centre. Loves has a canalside location near Brindley Place that will really come into its own in the summer months. And inside, while certainly sleek and smart, there was a relaxed atmosphere to the place. Chef Steve Love prides himself on the (often locally-sourced) produce that goes into his contemporary British cooking.

But what really stood out was what a feast for the eyes every plate of food was. After a selection of breads –including Guinness soda bread – we opted for the a la carte three-course menu.

My starter was a thick strip of delicious Loch Duart salmon that was so soft you didn’t even need a knife to eat it. Placed on top were, in three dainty piles, a crispy oyster, caviar, and a sweet tomato fondue. It tasted just as good as it looked. My friend Phil had a similarly elegant-looking chicken, peanutand lemongrass satay. There was a great contrast between the sweet of the peanut brittle, and savoury of the mung bean dahl that accompanied it. For main course, I ordered a beautifully delicate piece of Cornish plaice in a Japanese-style dashi stock. Phil’s locally-sourced Warwickshire venison impressed, too. Cooked three ways, the loin was particularly tender and the shoulder meat cooked to perfection, too. Both dishes were imaginatively presented. Mine came with smoked almond gnocchi, glazed chicken winglets, chestnuts and blood orange curd – and an impressive wall of chicken crackling that rose up from the plate. Again, the sweet-savoury contrast was superb in Phil’s dish, the bed of barley vert being offset by a red wine jus and chocolate nib.

It was the little touches that took the meal to a different level. Likewise, the little amuses bouches that came between courses – an incredibly more-ish celeriac and goat’s cheese aspuma (a sort of foamy soup), and a zingy passion fruit cream. A refreshing, and fairly light, pudding followed for me. lemon tartlet was surrounded by red wine-marinated raspberries and pink champagne jelly, and a cooling raspberry and basil sorbet. Phil, though, had a rich and tasty chocolate fondant, with cumin caramel. It came served with iced sweetcorn parfait – one of a few (initially odd-sounding) elements in the meal that had me scratching my head at first, but then rubbing my belly once I’d tried it.Claire, who runs the front of house while husband Steve works his magic in the kitchen, helpfully suggested a white wine, whose grapes came from the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. This apparently gave it a smoky quality that complemented the fish dishes. You can’t avoid volcanic ash anywhere these days, can you...? But it was a great choice. The wine was a little more expensive than my normal tipple – as, to be honest, was the overall bill, which just tipped over into three figures (although that included drinks and service). But as a treat, rather than an everyday bite to eat, you more than got your money’s worth. And, slightly lower down the price range, Loves offers a tempting fixed price menu (three courses for £20 to £25, as opposed to our £38.50 option). Whichever you choose, Loves offers picture perfect dishes that taste as good as they look.


This article was written by Richard Jackson

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http://www.loves-restaurant.co.uk