Meeting Salty’s New Captain

RED, WHITE AND ROSÉ:

MEETING SALTY’S NEW CAPTAIN

By James Rayner

In Yarmouth’s Quay Street, hard alongside the town’s Tudor castle, is Salty’s — a local institution of over 25 years’ standing. Now, this former carriage house (and later sail loft) is fast becoming one of the Island’s top spots for fine dining.

Inside, new manager and sommelier Fran Ayling is ready to meet and greet. With pub-owning grandparents and a Cordon Bleu-trained mother, she grew up in the industry, being served chef-quality food after school and experiencing front of house from an early age. Following a degree in London came jobs in event management at a string of Premier League rugby and football grounds before returning home to the Island to take over the management reins at the Little Gloster in Gurnard.

Fran’s latest move has seen her join the new lineup at Salty’s, alongside talented

Head Chef Tom Axford, and together they’re taking the much-loved restaurant in exciting new directions. Turbocharging the change is Fran’s newly acquired WSET Level 3 — a qualification for serious sommeliers — and rumour has it she’s the only person on the Island to hold it.

Fran explains, ‘It’s knowing the difference between a Pinot Noir from

New Zealand and one from France’. To pass, a final nerve-wracking test is held by a group of Wine and Spirit Education Trust experts, involving blind taste testing wines to determine what region of what country each wine comes from, and how climate and geography affect them. Combining this knowledge with Head Chef Tom’s culinary creativity, the team has concocted an exciting wine pairing menu. It’s no easy task, as some of Tom’s dishes can include up to ten different elements! Courses include a starter of local asparagus, with soy pickled egg, sesame and ginger mayonnaise paired with a Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc ‘to balance out those tropical flavours’. For dessert, a mille-feuille of caramelised apple and bee pollen yoghurt sorbet is paired with a Sauternes wine from Bordeaux. ‘If a dessert is sweet, you want the wine to be sweeter, and this one really complements the caramelised apple’. Salty’s has also unveiled a new ‘connoisseurs’ wine list — for those looking to swirl, sip and savour something extra special. Recommendations include a Serghesio Zinfandel from Sonoma County, California and a Montrachet White Burgundy from the Côte-d’Or in Eastern France. As the corks start popping, one thing is clear: this is just the start. Salty’s continues to invest in the best local talent, supporting them, encouraging them, and offering creative free rein. Watch this space.