Cambridge News | cambridge-news.co.uk | May 10, 2014 | 25
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Fit for a king H
AVING just moved back to Cambridge’s Mill Road area (oh Gwydir Street, this is what you call love), my boyfriend Sam and I are on a mission to scout out every pub and eating establishment in the immediate vicinity. So far that has meant coffee and Steak & Honour burgers at Hot Numbers, takeout chicken tikka surrounded by unpacked boxes from the Curry Queen, pork scratchings, pool and quizzing at The Dobblers and drooling outside Backstreet Bistro via trips to Asda ... But the place we can’t stop coming back to is the Kingston. It turns out it’s an ideal spot for dragging visiting family members and out-of-towners to once they’ve grown bored of drinking tea and being made to coo over tea towels and the like in our new flat. It’s where we had our first cider after straightening the place into liveable shape, and where my mum and her boyfriend treated us to the pub’s hangover breakfast (“we thought you might need a square meal, we didn’t want you starving”) – which is amazing by the way. The full English (£7.65) comes with salty, crispy potatoes and a roasted mushroom that I am still daydreaming about. As such, when Sam’s mum Angela decided on a day trip, you can guess where we took her for dinner. After sightseeing and meandering about all day – and wrangling with our internet provider, the joys of moving house – we needed something seriously warming and hearty, fairly swiftly. Nestled in a booth by the door, boardgames stacked up behind us, fairy lights twinkling in the windows, we sipped red wine and Mexican beers, while racing through the main menu (think burgers, risotto, steak), but
៑ Give ELLA WALKER the slightest excuse and she will seat you at a table in the Kingston Arms. got distracted by the ever-changing specials board. Angela made the best choice, opting for sausage and mash. A bed of buttery potato on envyinducing braised red cabbage, swimming in dark, rich homemade onion gravy and topped with papery parsnip crisps (£9.50). I’ve never seen a plate of sausage and mash so decadent and so huge. The Kingston’s chef clearly thinks they’re serving giants (and this is not a criticism). Sam’s spiced lamb dish with sagaloo, chutney, rice and naan was just as sizable but much too dry (£11.75). The naan was cardboardlike and obviously out of a packet, while one slice of lamb was tender, and the other, tough and chewy. It was disappointing but on the scale of standard pub grub was still up there, just not the Kingston’s reliable best. My torn chicken and chilli tomato linguine on the other hand was definitely up to scratch (£11). A fiery, peppery sauce with molten bulbs of mozzarella tangling up with slabs of perfectly cooked chicken. It might have just been a pasta dish but it’s
better than any pasta dish I’ve had in a long time, even if it was so hot it made my mouth burn and my eyes weep. Sadly it was so massive I couldn’t finish it. I should have had it wrapped up to take home. Despite being utterly stuffed, it wouldn’t be a proper review if we didn’t tackle the desserts, so we ordered two to share. The lemon posset came with curled slithers of rind and two buttery shortbread biscuits, creamy and not too sweet with a berry coulis in a jug just waiting to be dribbled all over it; it was good, delightful in fact, but no match for the sticky toffee pudding (both £4.95). A wedge of treacly sponge (think half the size of a brick – I told you their portion sizes are mammoth), smothered in a sphere of melting vanilla ice-cream and sat in a gooey puddle of syrup. You couldn’t fault it, hence why I ploughed on, refusing to leave even a lick of toffee offee behind. Next time me I plan to eat nothing allll day and save ave The Kingsto myself forr n Arms, 33 Kingston St the Kingston; ton; reet, Cambr idge their food d CB1 Telephone: 2NU is more (01223) 31 9414 Website: ki than worth th ngston-arm . s. it. Future co.uk guests, Restauran t opening ho prepare urs: Mon-Thu no on-2pm, 6yourselves. s. 10pm; Friday noon -3pm, 6-10 pm; Saturday-S unday: 11am 12.30pm (b reakfast), no on10pm Cost: Dinne r for three people, incl uding drinks , came to £5 1.45. Food: 刀刀 刀刀 Service: 刀 刀刀 Atmospher e: 刀 Value: 刀刀 刀刀刀 刀刀刀
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