Review
We have been to Orwell Road a couple of times and it always pleases.
It’s rare to be lucky enough to have a proper neighbourhood restaurant on your doorstep that serves superior food at reasonable prices. Orwell Road does this in spades.
It’s smart and casual, a small dining room and semi open kitchen. There is an art deco style to the decor and everything is just very smart and stylish. Service has always been excellent, friendly and efficient, and the menus change monthly or so, are on season and there is some care taken with provenance.
Sunday lunch is one of those things that can be so hard to find what you want. It seems it’s either a carvery if nothing outside the city. So we took ourselves along to OR last Sunday for a 2pm table and a promising lunch.
The menu is smaller than normal, but that’s not a problem. There is enough choice and we start with a mussel chowder for her, which was beautifully presented in a black bowl, topped with a lid and a piece of fennel bread balancing on top of that. Fabulous flavours and a perfectly judged portion.
I had the salted cod croquettes with pickled fennel and a sauce griniche. These were four perfect little balls of crunchy outside, soft and melting up inside loveliness. The fennel and sauce worked well with the delicate, flavours.
There was a short rib for mains, and well we both went for the melt in the mouth with braised carrots and pickled walnuts. A side of roasted potatoes were demolished and really this was roast beef at its best.
Desserts brought us a pan an Otto and some fig ice cream, and we finished with coffee. OR is excellent. Lunch including a well deserved tip came to under €100 for delicious food and excellent service. This is two hours you don’t want to end, and strolling out afterwards, it’s a short walk home.
Go for lunch as we did, Saturday or Sunday, while dinner is a real treat and they run an early bird all evening Tuesday.
