7 minute read
DINING OUT NEAR GRANTHAM
The Engine Yard at BELVOIR CASTLE
If you’ve yet to discover The Engine Yard at Belvoir Castle, or you’ve not popped in since lockdown has been eased, it’s time to revisit this exceptional dining and shopping destination. It’s rich in opportunities for a great day out, with Emma Manners, the 11th Duchess of Rutland, creating a unique place on the site adjacent to Belvoir Castle, redeveloping it since 2018. The latest addition is a brand new brasserie dining experience at its restaurant, The Fuel Tank...
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The Duchess of Rutland remains entirely indomitable in her desire to improve the visitor offering at Belvoir Castle. We’d go so far as to say that she’s the best thing that’s happened to the place since 1840. Why 1840? Because that’s when visiting aristo Anna, Duchess of Bedford, felt a bit peckish between lunch and dinner, and called down to the lackeys to bring forth a pot of tea (darjeeling, they reckon it was), some finger sandwiches and perhaps a cake or two (or three). And some scones. Afternoon tea was born... at Belvoir Castle! Fast forward 181 years and the present Mrs Davis, Anna, Duchess of Sleaford – equally indomitable, as it happens – declared one on Saturday morning recently that she fancied going ‘somewhere’ and doing ‘something.’ Despite the vague remit, I knew immediately that Belvoir Castle’s Engine Yard would fit the brief perfectly.
For the uninitiated, the site once held the 20-tonne beam engine pump which sent water up to the castle. In 2018, Her Grace Emma Manners, 11th Duchess of Rutland, set to, investing £2.5m in the site to create a posh new retail village which now comprises about 20 businesses.
OPEN FOR FOOD
Monday to Wednesday: 10am – 6pm Thursday to Saturday: 10am – 9pm Sunday: 10am – 5pm At the heart of The Engine Yard, though, is The Fuel Tank, a really great three-storey café bar with a gin joint – The Balloon Bar – on the ground floor. Already visitors could spend a day out enjoying the interiors and homeware retailers, the small but very good garden centre and the little delis, chocolate shops and so on. But this month, the new Brasserie now open at The Fuel Tank means there’s yet another reason to enjoy a visit to the site. Gabriella Gregory & Stuart Hancock have partnered with the Duchess to create the new Brasserie on the first floor of The Fuel Tank. The couple have also opened up their new farm shop, Wild Jacks, in one of the site’s outlets and they own Lincolnshire butcher Odling’s and bakery Welbourne’s. >>
>> Gabriella and Stuart will be supplying The Brasserie with its meat, fruit and veg and baked goods, ensuring exceptional quality local ingredients. So the new dining out experience is already off to a good start. The present Mrs Davis and I therefore made a return visit to The Engine Yard (this time an evening visit) to enjoy a sneak preview of The Brasserie for press and ‘influencers’ just prior to its public opening. A redesign of the uppermost floor of the Fuel Tank yields about 50 covers, with high-back chairs upholstered in a funky fuchsia and lime. As well as looking quite fun these also divide up the room a bit and help to create a bit more privacy and deaden the sound in a space that otherwise could have been large and less intimate. Clever. There was lots of natural light as the sun set during our visit, crisp white table linens and smart glassware. It’s a very pretty place to dine, much improved and now more fit for purpose as a smart restaurant as opposed to its previous life as a café. The Brasserie’s menu carries a choice of three appetisers, seven starters, seven main courses and four Belvoir Grill options – from rib-eye to Chateaubriand – with four sauces for the latter and six side dishes. After, there’s a choice of six puddings. It’s a very well-considered menu too, with very good interpretations of familiar dishes. Starters include cured salmon, ham hock and paté as well as a Camembert sharer, but each is unique and brilliant in terms of its flavours and its presentation... portions are very generous, too. The present Mrs Davis went full Velociraptor on a 10oz Lincoln Red rib-eye, and it was a great cut of meat. Triple cooked chips were lovely and crisp on the outside and as fluffy as clouds inside. Meanwhile, my 12-hour blade of beef was rich beyond words and presented with sautéed forest mushrooms; absolutely first class. Despite being luxuriously satiated I couldn’t resist dessert, spotting the excellent white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake. >>
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Brasserie Appetiser Engine Yard warm bread, Long Clawson Stilton paté and butter £5.95. Brasserie Starters Ham hock terrine with piccalilli and picked veg £8. Fuel Tank chicken liver paté with Duke’s relish £8. Cured salmon with roasted beet tartare and citrus mayonnaise £12. Brasserie Main Courses 12 hour blade of beef with oxtail croquette, Dauphinoise potatoes and forest mushrooms £22. Baked pork loin with roasted shallots and peppers, Lincolnshire Poacher and bacon crumb £18. Moules mariniére with cream, garlic and seasoned fries £17. Brasserie Desserts White chocolate and raspberry cheesecake, shortbread crumb base and raspberries £6. Stonebaked Pizzas Pizza Margherita £10. Tanked Up: Ham, pepperoni, red peppers, red onions, chorizo & cheddar cheese, £12.50. The Butler: Chicken tikka, mango chutney, red onions & coriander £12.50. Balloon Bar Cocktails Duchess’ Garden: Sloe gin, blackberries, rose cordial, top with sparkling water, £7.90. Duke’s Old Fashioned: Blueberries, bourbon and cherry £8.90.
NB: All menu items are subject to change.
>> The latter was also excellent and all three courses were superb in appearance and taste, aided and abetted by a really lovely team at front of house.
Let’s not forget, either, that there’s also plenty to do around the site, in addition to excellent dining at the new Brasserie. There are outdoor spaces in which to enjoy a drink in the sunshine, and 20 different retailers to work your way around... not to mention a Grade I Regency-era castle with beautiful gardens to explore. For casual dining there are stone-baked pizzas available on the terrace, and you can also take the taste of Belvoir Castle home too, thanks to quality retailers with sustainable chocolate from Cocoa Amoré, single origin coffee and tea from Cherizena, or deli produce from The Country Victualler, Jorge Artisan Foods and Wild Jacks. Later this summer, the Engine Yard will also gain a Champagne and sushi experience in Vale House, adjacent to the Fuel Tank. So, whether you’re seeking a light lunch, or more substantial dining in The Brasserie, or just a glass of wine or gin ‘n’ tonic at the Balloon Bar, The Engine Yard is a true destination for dining and shopping. Rightly so, it’s thriving, with lockdown lifted and the whole country keen to get out and about in the sunshine once more. The team at Belvoir Castle, under the leadership of the Duchess of Rutland, has done a great job of creating a modern, vibrant and enjoyable place to spend time. The Engine Yard is a destination we can really, really, really recommend and that’s goes double for dining at the Fuel Tank’s new Brasserie experience, which offers flawless dining in a very well presented setting. n Booking is recommended. The Engine Yard is located adjacent to Belvoir Castle, NG32 1PA. Call 01476 247059 or see engineyardbelvoir.com.
