The Plough Harborne launches new whisky menu on December 15th.

Posted in Bars and Pubs, Independent, Independent Birmingham, Pubs by

The neighbourhood pub on the High Street in Harborne The Plough Birmingham is launching a new whiskey menu, showcasing a selection of rare and exclusive award winning Artisan whiskies from all over the world.

Taking in Japan, Australia, India, and America, Ireland, Sweden as well as Scotland the new menu launches on the 15th December 2014

The shots range from £3.30 to £15.00 depending on your budget and bravery.

The list will be home to World Whiskey Award winners as well as hand crafted whiskies produced in micro-distilleries such as Copper Fox in Virginia, Corsair in Nashville, and a few in Illinois and even New York- Hudson Bay Bourbon.

Their will also be three single malts that are no longer available, such as the Edrudour 11 year old Burgundy, cask finish, the Milton Duff batch, only 22 produced and the Millford 15 year old from New Zealand.

The Yamazaki Single malt Sherry Cask 2013 was recently made the world’s best whisky by critic Jim Muray in his Whisky Bible 2015 and the plough is offering 10 varieties of whiskey from Japan.

The new list compliments the existing whiskey and spirits list that showcases a world class product in the comfort of the homely Plough.

Also, for the festive season The Plough has revealed its own Winter wonderland in the form of a new al fresco bar called
‘The Night Jar Winter Bar’ which serves a selection of festive drinks and has an open fire, with blankets and hot water bottles for when the temperatures drop so much that it becomes unberarably cold, and everyone is so close to the open fire their isn’t room for another reveller to feel the heat.

The Plough will serve hot drinks, such as Cinamon Hot chocolate with orange Liquer, spiced pineapple juice with rum, marmalade cider with Bourbon, Festive mulled wine and complimentary roasted chestnuts.

It all sounds fantastic, i’m the one by the fire, and Ruth will be asleep next to it with a glass of mulled in her hand.

You can find all this fun at The Plough, 21 High Street
Harborne, Birmingham, B17 9NT

0121 427 3678

http://www.theploughharborne.co.uk

http://www.opentable.co.uk/the-plough-harborne

-Best 25 places to have Sunday Lunch-The Times 2014
-The best 50 coffee shops-Independent Newspaper
-Open Table readers-Top 50 Beer Gardens.

All photos courtesy of The Plough press office, with thanks.

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Veggie Foodie Guide to: The Birmingham Christmas Markets for vegetarians

Posted in Events, Festivals, Food Festivals, Independent, Independent Birmingham, Pop up's, shops, Tapas, vegan, vegetarian, Veggie foodie, Veggie Foodie Guide to by

Navigating the Frankfurt German Market in Birmingham City Centre at this time of year for vegetarians and vegans can be difficult.

The times I’ve been out with Ruth, family and friends and whilst the meat eaters have a array of fleshy delights us veggies are left eating cake and pastries and if we are being greedy Garlic Bread. Good but hey, we like Christmas too 🙂

Then of course it is easier for veggies to drink more at the market than eat some super independent food.

This year it appears their are though some jewels to be sought out and tasted. Yes, you have to search and yes you have to walk a bit, but it is worth it..trust me 😊

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The Birmingham Christmas market that stretches all the way from The Bull Ring up New Street into Victoria Square and onto the area around the Town Hall, and the Art Gallery up to The Hall of memory and up to the New Library of Birmingham and the Big Wheel.

The lower part from the Bull Ring to Victoria Square is the long running and expensive generally German Market which turns Birmingham tourist crazy for a month and makes Brum feel like a European city bathed in Christmas joy. It’s good fun and full of drinking dens, but little hot good veggie food.

The Frankfurt Market leads into the Birmingham Christmas craft markets by the Art Gallery which is much more independent and has a greater amount of food outlets that veggies can enjoy and stretches up to the New Birmingham Library.

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On wandering around the markets last week with my brother Pete (also vegetarian) we found a number of options.

Within the Birmingham craft market (further on from the Frankfurt Market) by the old Central library and Birmingham Art Gallery lie two good options to begin with for veggies.

First is Woktastic which serves noodles and a variety of Japanese dishes some veggie options. A good option. They also have a stand at Paradise Forum and restaurant too.

Then, nestled within the Christmas trees at the top of the steps lies The Mumbai Grill. For curry and a spicy kick it can’t be beaten. They have a vegetarian menu that includes a vegetarian platter, onion bhaji wraps, samosas, channa chaat, and a chana chickpea wrap. They also have balti chips.

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Then, further through the Paradise Forum over bridge past the Hall of Memory you will find local Pips Hot Sauce, a creperie, and a fully veggie and vegan falafel stall.

The falafel stand sells numerous falafel options, a veggie burger, and is the markets only completely 100% veggie option. Prices start from £4.50. It looks brilliant, and I can’t wait to try it. Their are falafel wraps, spicy Jalapeños, grilled Halloumi and other falafel dishes. See menu.

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Next door so to speak is a Creperie stand that sells sweet and savoury crepes and has veggie options on the savoury side. The creperie has outside tables and is popular.

Next door to the Creperie nearest the New Library of Birmingham is Pips Hot Sauce with vegan options.

Trader Pip Bradley from Kings Heath sells dishes such as sweet potato fries, nachos, salsa, jalapeños, guacamole, and vegan friendly sauces. Try a combination of the dishes and a few sauces maybe?

Pips Hot Sauce also sell gift packs of her superb sauces that can be brought as gifts. Well recommended.

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Back to The Frankfurt Market, their is a stand that sells pizza, and Italian sandwiches near the Town Hall and a stand in the centre near the fountain that sells a nice spinach and feta strudel. Plus, sweet ones too. One I’ve not noticed before.

Then last but not least is the aforementioned garlic bread stand, that is a delight. Try it with cheese, always a winner, but this year it seems not the only hot option. Stationed next to the long bar nearest to the Council House on Victoria Square.

As well as those hot food options their are a number of sweet food stands and some are brilliant. I will leave you to discover those 🙂

As always the Frankfurt Market divides opinions in Birmingham, but at least some independent and local food traders are involved in Birmingham’s Christmas Markets, and their is always Digbeth Diner and Brum Yum Yum to satisfy that independent street food demand.

If you get out into Birmingham have a good Market experience and eat, and drink and be merry, but watch those alcohol prices at The German Market that are quite steep compared to elsewhere. Their are a good selection of drinks at the craft market, near the town hall, including mulled cider, mulled wine and Pims.

Their is also a Hogan’s cider tent near the hall of memory with sofas inside. Looks great, very popular.

Have fun and thanks for reading and Happy Christmas. 🙂

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Library of Birmingham

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Winter Season Markets: Digbeth Dining Club: Winter Wonderland, Spotlight, Digbeth

Posted in Events, Festivals, Food Festivals, Independent, Independent Birmingham, Kings Heath, vegan, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

Birmingham has a thriving Independent food scene and its Streetfood is well known accross the Uk.

As I’ve mentioned many times on this blog , I’m a big fan of this informal and fun way of eating and for vegetarians and vegans it’s filled with choice and delicious indulgences.

This winter season their are many fab choices for the streetfood and Christmas Market fan.

As an alternative to the Frankfurt German Market, Birmingham has a few independent options and one of the best and most innovative and decorated this December is in Digbeth.

The Digbeth Dining Club @ Spotlight, Digbeth (just behind The Old Crown Pub)

It’s held every Friday and Saturday from the 5th December from 5.30pm, free entry (plus December 18th-21st) Yes, that’s a four day weekend From Thursday 18th-Sunday 21st December 🙂

For full details of the line up, check their website.

http://www.digbethdiningclub .co.uk
Twitter: @digbethdiner

Plus, others to look out for:

Are two this Saturday.

Winter Season Market @ The Bond, Fazeley Street, Digbeth.

Enjoy a canalside setting, a courtyard of streetfood, real ale, cocktails and independent crafty stalls of artists, artisan food producers, designers moored up on barges, and beneath a huge Victorian canapy.

-Peel and Stone bakers from the Jewellery Quarter
-Buddha Belly: Awad winning Thai street food, good veggie options
Fresh Rootz: Veggie and vegan food (award winning)
Fire and slice: Woodfired pizza
Hungry Toad: Mexican flavours

amongst others.

and craft ales from a routemaster bus.

Run by Street food traders The Bournville Waffle Company (puds from a converted caravan)

The cost is £1.50 adults, kids go free.

12-6pm Saturday 6th December

http://www.seasonalmarkets.co.uk
@seasonalmarkets

Brum Yum Yum are @ the Square Birmingham City Centre on the 6th December Free entry.

#Christmasfest

vintage bargains, Bert and Gerts, streetfood.

http://www.brumyumyum.com
@brumyumyum
@thesquare
facebook/Brumyumyum

for full details.

Finally Brum Yum are back in Kings Heath for their Christmas streetfood KingshEATh on the 13th December at The Village Square Free entry.

I will update the food vendors when I have more details.

Thanks for reading.

#TastyChristmasmorsal: Bistro 1847 Veggie Christmas menu

Posted in Cafés and Restaurants, Cocktails, Independent, Tasty Morsels, vegan, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

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Bistro 1847 in Birmingham City Centre last week launched its modern vegetarian Christmas menu.

They have a two course and three course menu available from Monday to Friday over lunch and dinner, plus Saturday all day and Sunday lunch.

There is also a six course taster menu available. Contact the bistro for the menu.

The menu includes vegan options too.

To make a booking call Birmingham on 0121 236 2313.

Or email them at Christmas@bistro1847.co.uk

Booking is advised.

For the menu see

Click to access ChristmasPDF.pdf

Or at http://www.bistro1847.com under Christmas

Please note the menus may differ to the ones on the website.

Menus: 2 courses £18
3 courses £24

And a tasting menu is £40 for six courses plus coffee and petit fours.

Bistro 1847 are also running a cocktail masterclass for £29.00 for 2 courses and £36.00 for three courses including 2 cocktails which you will be shown how to make yourself.

For my review see below:

Bistro 1847
26 Great Western Arcade
Colmore Row
B2 5HU

http://www.By1847.com

@by1847

0121 236 2313

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Review:

A visit to Bistro 1847 whatever the time of year is a joyous experience of perfect harmonies and sweet choral voices, but at Christmas it’s like a sweet Christmas carol that evokes the season and makes you swoon and smile.

As always with Bistro 1847 the dishes are innovative, quirky and a pleasure to the eye. The service on the night Ruth and I visited was spot on, attentive and friendly with an enthusiasm for the seasonal menu and knowledge of the excellent cocktails which we enjoyed.

Ruth and I chose off the Christmas mini a la carte-grazing menu.

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To begin we ate:

Lemon-grass, chili, coconut, parsnip, potato crackling, wild mushroom, (2nd photo)

Ruth really enjoyed the complex flavours and the combination of textures on this dish.

I ate the

Wild herb sauce, wild sea cabbage, Brussel sprout, potato crackling and ‘parmesan’ dumpling: (1st photo)

I have to say an outstanding dish, you either love or loath sprouts, but even the most hardened sprout hater would love the textures and slightly crunchy cabbage and bitter sprout flavours of this dish which was a real twist on the Christmas tradition. Lovely.

To follow we both chose the same dish:

Spiced squash and nut praline filo, real ale gravy, seasonal vegetables.

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Probably the most traditional Christmas dish on the menu. Deliberately chosen for this reason. It ticked all the boxes for us, a real warming, filling comfort food dish, with lovely notes of squash and real ale gravy. The filo was delicious, firm, but soft, beautifully presented, a real winner.

For desert Ruth chose and enjoyed the Christmassy toffee flavours of the Sticky toffee, chestnut, smoked ice cream

I chose the sorrel, white chocolate, Apple, Douglasfir.

Very Bistro 1847, a lovely combination of flavours with the white chocolate running through the dish, really nice.

We finished off with two coffee liqueurs, which were a coffee hit, almost espresso like, lovely.

The Christmas mini a la carte menu is a lovely festive menu. Innovative, thoughtful with a delicate leaning to the season, tradition and most definately jolly and different.

On the night the Bistro was full, which was lovely to see and why we booked and wished to visit on a Friday night.

For a different Christmas type experience with good veggie and vegan dishes Bistro 1847 is a restaurant worth checking out.

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Our two meals and cocktails were kindly complimentary, we also purchased ourselves two glasses of organic wine and a side of fresh bread. All opinions expressed are my own and honest as always. A favourable review was not required.

I would like to personally thank all the staff at Bistro 1847, chef Alex, and Damien for all their kind support of my blog this year.

Thanks guys and have a very happy Christmas and New Year.

Here’s to the New Year’s dishes. 😊 and further visits in 2015.

Thanks for reading

Andy 🙂

#TastyMorsel: New Openings: One Trick Pony Moseley Village

Posted in Bars and Pubs, Breakfasts, Cafés and Restaurants, Cocktails, Moseley, Pubs, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

Moseley’s newest bar opened its doors on November 21st. The South Birmingham suburb is awash with newish bars with a healthy leaning to serving good food in revamped buildings.

Hot on the heals of The Dark Horse and The Village
The One Trick Pony Club replaces O’Neils on the Alcester Road, and brings American style diner food to Moseley Village.

It’s owned by small chain Castle Pubs who own the nearby The Fighting cocks Pub and the Junction in Harborne.

The One Trick Pony’s menu is named Ruby Jean’s with an american diner twist and has a very healthy vegetarian list of options including veggie breakfast and burgers and sharing plates. As you would expect in Moseley and nearby Kings Heath, vegetarians are well catered for and along with a varied meat menu looks a brilliant place for groups and couples.

The focus is thus for meat eaters on ribs, hot dogs, and burgers.

For ale enthusiasts their is a keen menu including my favourite Thwaites Wainwright ale, plus local purity brewery beers and Doom Bar. Plus guest ales.

On Tuesday’s every week, they have announced 2 for 1 on Burgers and roasts on Sunday (unsure as yet on veggie option)

From photographs i’ve seen so far the bar looks posher and more sophisticated and modern than O’Neils which was dated and had had its day. Therefore more like The Dark Horse and The Village in design.

The One Trick Pony Club looks food focused and with a chilled decor looks as if it will become a firm favourite in Moseley and the surrounding areas of Birmingham.

The Veggie food options via their menu on their website http://www.onetrickpony.co.uk are:

Snack and Share: A good looking Veggie board for £11.50.

Includes 4 Hippy Sliders, fried halloumi, Tempura vegetables, Nachos, Chipotle Jam, Guacamole and sour cream dips.

Plus Nachos, Chilli Fries, Chips and dips

On the main part of the menu there is:

–Veggie Burgers–

-Hippy Humous-Spinich, lentil, humous
-A Shroomaloomi- Flat Mushrooms and Halloumi burger
-A Hippy Deluxe- Flat Mushroom and Emmental burger

-A veg Mac and Cheese

-Veggie Sandwich- up to 5pm only

-A veggie Breakfast

Which in my book is a good selection 🙂 Food will be served until 10pm.

I’m Looking forward to reading further reports, and sampling some of the veggie options at Ruby Jean’s Diner.

Look out in the new year for this 🙂

http://www.onetrickpony.co.uk

@1trickponyclub

@rubyjeansdiner
http://www.rubyjeansdiner.com

93a Alcester Road
Moseley
Birmingham
B13 8DD
0121 442 3901

has anyone already tried The One Trick Pony Club? What did you think of the food?

Thanks for reading:)

Follow me on Twitter @andydhare

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#VeggieBurgerWatch: Loco Lounge, Kings Heath

Posted in Bars, Bars and Pubs, Cafés and Restaurants, Cocktails, Independent, vegan, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

The Loco Lounge is a French inspired cafe bar in Kings Heath South Birmingham, and is part of the Lounges group of cafe’s. As well as the Kings Heath bar they have one in Harborne and one in Shirley in Solihull.

As a neighbourhood cafe bar, it showers you with quirky cosiness and is open all day from breakfast, brunch to evening lounging and cocktails. Its a cool place and is popular in Kings Heath for its welcome charm and friendlyness.

At different times of day it caters for differing customers, from parents with small children to students and after work date nights. It provides a softer surburban air to the bustling High Street outside and even has its own terrace area for alfresco drinks in decent weather.

The Loco Lounge is housed in a former bed shop. It has a good food menu and caters with a large Vegan menu and good options for snacks, burgers, full meals and tapas options.

It is the Vegan Menu which makes it unique in Birmingham and a welcome sight to see.

Good for vegans thus good for veggies.

As a local to the cafe, its the kind of place I will return too again and again to try food, coffee and cocktails at different times of day, so look out for more small reviews.

On this occasion Ruth and I chose to try the burgers. I chose the Falafal burger.

A butternut squash and nutmeg burger, grilled halloumi, red pepper, tomato chutney, wood roasted peppers, red onion and rocket in a brioche bun with house slaw and skin on fries.

I really enjoyed the burger, it had a good flavour, with a hint of nutmeg and grilled halloumi providing a contrasting texture. I love falafals, and this burger was well made and with good skin on fries on the side was plentiful and satisfying.

We ordered some onion rings too, which were very cripsy and well made.

Ruth enjoyed her lounge beef burger, and with a couple of glasses of wine and couple of ales was good very good value.

On the night the bar was quite busy for a Wednesday evening, and had a steady in and out of people, from couples, friends, and small groups. The service was attentive, you order your food and drink at the bar and then it is brought to your table.

We didn’t try the cocktails on this occasion, but the menu looked good and varied.

Also the Tapas menu which has an incentive of tapas Tuesday where you can order three tapas for £9.75 plus a glass of house wine.

The Veggie options on the menu are numerous and include a vegan breakfast (their is a veggie one too), paninis, the falafal burger and sandwiches, plus some specials and the afore mentioned tapas menu. For veggies, their is also a veggie kedgeree, pancakes, a risotto, a curry, and a Mac and cheese, plus the above vegan options.

The Loco Lounge is a fun place. Their a board games to play, bookshelves with books to read, vintage furniture, rustic wooden tables, and large front windows that allow a good view of passers by and the busy High Street.

They also do a lot of special events, full details on their website.

The Loco Lounge is everything it aims to be. A French inspired neighbourhood cafe bar which aims to please everyone. For this it is a success, and absorbing place and well recommended.

Now, to make my way through the rest of the menu. 🙂

The Loco Lounge,
32-34 High Street,
Kings Heath
B14 7JT

0121 444-1296
http://www.thelounges.co.uk (for menus)

@locolounge: Twitter

Twitter: @andydhare

Thanks for reading.

We paid for our meal in full and all opinions expressed are my own and honest as always.

Has anyone been to The Loco Lounge? What did you think?

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#ScoFarGo: Scoff Street Food is coming 29/11

Posted in Events, Festivals, Food, Food Festivals, Independent, Independent Birmingham, pizza, Street Food, vegan, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

Sharpen your spoons, Dinner is coming

The Midlands first #Streetfood collective Scoff Street Food have organised a big street food event for the
29th November 2014 at Fargo Village in Coventry. #ScoFarGo will have free entry , street food, real ale, live music, a vinatage market, workshops, magic, and cooking demos.

With lots of food for veggies and vegans.

Traders announced are:

Big Daddies (hot dogs)
The Hungry Toad ( soul food)
Spectacular Goat (Pizza) with veggie options
Meat Shack ( Burgers)
Fresh Rootz (Vegetarian and vegan food)
Canoodle (Pan Asian) Veggie options
Bournville Waffles
Jabberwocky ( Gourmet toasties) Veggie options

Scoff Street Food is run by traders for foodies and aims to give a better deal all round to everone whether trader or customer.

Every weekend they hold a #Streetfood day at
Fargo Village in Coventry from 11am-5pm (Saturdays) See website for traders.

http://www.scoffstreetfood.co.uk

Scoff was formed by a group of street food traders from the Midlands putting on events. It serves great food, combined with a sensible pitch fee, a collective that includes Flic Luxmore from food vendor Jabberwocky, Big Daddies Diner, Hungry Toad, Spectacular Goat and Flic’s other half Barny.

#ScoFarGo is just one example of where the street food scene is growing in the Midlands. Customers love great food at affordable prices, served informally and outdoors.

For veggies and vegans its superb, plenty of choice, quality dishes, and where else can you have pudding before lunch or dinner, followed by more cake. 🙂

What with Digbeth Dining Club, Brum Yum Yum and now Scoff Street Food there is plenty of choice.

So for a pre Christmas feed and enetertainment visit
#ScoFarGo at Fargo in Coventry on the 29th November. 11am-5pm, Free entertainment, and good food.

Its a collective you know 🙂

It’s Street Food baby.

@scoffFood
07870 422 617

@FargoVillage

http://www.fargovillage.co.uk

Fargo Village is Coventry’s creative quarter, specialist shops, markets, studios, music and arts. Plus Street Food.

http://www.scoffstreetfood.co.uk

What do you think of Street Food? Do you think it offers vegetarians and vegans a good choice of food?

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Pika Pika Pop up @Cherry Reds Kings Heath

Posted in Bars, Cafés and Restaurants, Catering, Cocktails, Independent, Independent Birmingham, Kings Heath, Pop up's, vegan, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

Sometimes the best meals you eat are the ones that are not planned, but are spontaneous. Ruth and I hadn’t planned to eat at Cherry Reds in Kings Heath, but at Fletchers bar, but because they had chef problems we found ourselves there instead.

We wanted to escape the cardboard boxes that were sitting in our new house, having moved in on that day and feeling tired and hungry we chose well. That’s the thing with Kings Heath, you can eat well 🙂

On arriving at Cherry Reds we were told that they had the Pika Pika pop up on tonight and they had a free table..Hurray!

I’d wanted to visit the pop up for awhile, as they seemed to have very good and varied vegetarian options , but hadn’t got round to it. So it was a good opportunity.

Cherry Reds in Kings Heath is a very inviting place with a cool, chilled vibe and atmosphere, alternative, and cosy. It’s well known for its pop ups, and Pika Pika is one that has a good reputation. The service in Cherry Reds is friendly, and they do excellent food, both day and evenings, from breakfasts to dinner and superb cocktails and world beers and ale.

Pika Pika are a Japanese catering company and they run a Japanese food pop up restaurant every 2nd Monday at Cherry Reds in Kings Heath. The food consists of Home made Japanese starters, snacks, and sides and main courses. Some of the food is to share. A full desert menu is available from Cherry Reds on the night. There is as i’ve said a wide choice of vegetarian options, both main course and smaller sharing tapas like dishes. Menus change every month.

The main course dish we both ate on the night was called Vegetarian Nikujaga: which is mixed vegetables with a shirataki noodles, cooked in a pot with special soya sauce, served with boiled rice and Pika Pika salad.

We both really enjoyed the dish, deliciously flavoured and with a contrasting noodle and vegetable flavours with a lovely soya sauce biting through it. The rice was also delicious served round, a lovely main course and introduction to Pika Pika’s food.

We followed this up with a beautiful Cherry Reds Chocolate brownie, sorry no photo, but it was very good indeed.

I also enjoyed a couple of English Staffordshire lagers and Ruth had a couple of glasses of white wine.

We both enjoyed our first visit to the Pika Pika pop up. The vegetarian options on the menu change monthly to keep them fresh and to entice vegetarians to eat their every month, and certainly a return visit is very likely, as the food we ate was well made and of good value and in the cool and chilled atmosphere of Cherry Reds is a good way of spending a Monday evening.

For bookings contact Cherry Reds on contact number below.

We paid for our meal in full. My opinions are my own and honest.

wearepikapika.tumblr.com

@wearepikapika

Cherry Reds Kings Heath
16 York Road,
Kings Heath
Birmingham
B14 7RZ

0121 441 3155

@ilovecherryreds

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#Coffeetime: Yorks Espresso Bar Birmingham City Centre

Posted in Bakery, Cake, Coffee, Coffee hour, Coffee Time, Independent, Independent Birmingham, Veggie foodie by

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I’ve watched the new Yorks Espresso Bar on the corner of the Great Western Arcade and Colmore Row (opposite Snow Hill Station) progress from an empty building to what can now be described as the most unique and trendily urban hangout selling delicious coffee in a city full of great independent coffee shops.

I visited last week, its first week of business to try it out and was rewarded with a brilliant and rewarding coffee experience.

Yorks Espresso bar, little brother of Yorks Bakery on Newhall Street 10 minutes up the road sells great coffee. It’s different. I has a vibe that’s feels very welcoming, knowledgable, and passionate about coffee and its whole experience. It’s modern and cool.

The new bar is the first of its kind in the UK to have a ‘kegorator’ serving cold coffee from a beer style keg system in the bar. I was able to sample some. It’s delicious, refreshing, and punchy in flavour, well recommended,

I also enjoyed a delicious Yorks Flat White, and single espresso. Both beautiful. The flat white like at Yorks Bakery is superb, creamy, with a touch of class, maybe the best in Birmingham City Centre. The espresso packed a punch and was excellent too.

A coffee paradise.

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Yorks Espresso bar also serve the trademark Yorks cakes, sandwiches, pastries and muffins. The cakes are lovely if like at Yorks bakery, though I didn’t eat on this occasion.

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The decor has a comfortable mezzanine section upstairs and downstairs where I sat bar stools to watch the passers by from. Being nosy that’s where I sat watching the rain ease.

The bar is rustic, and has a long wooden bar with tiled wall areas and menus written on glass on the walls. Very hip, very Yorks.

Yorks Espresso bar is already a favourite of mine and one of the finest independent coffee shops in Birmingham, I’m loving the vibe and urban coolness and rustic quirkiness. take yourself, take your friends, and then encourage them to take their friends too 🙂

A superb coffee treat.

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Yorks Espresso Bar
Colmore Row
Great Western Arcade
16a Colmore Row

@yorkscolmorerow
Facebook/ YorksBakeryCafe

Thanks for reading.

Has anyone been to Yorks espresso bar? What did you think?

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Bar Opus launch for breakfast, lunch, and after 5pm fun

Posted in Bars, Bars and Pubs, Breakfasts, Cafés and Restaurants, Cocktails, Coffee, Food, Gin, Independent, vegetarian, Veggie foodie by

Bar Opus is the newborn child of the Opus family of restaurants that include Opus on Cornwall Street and Cafe Opus at the Ikon Gallery. Both firm favourites of mine 🙂

This week Ruth and I were kindly invited by Ann and David of Opus to attend one of their pre launch evenings to sample the ‘after 5’ sharing plates and some of the drinks.

Bar Opus is at No’ 1 Snow hill, Birmingham City centre, a new complex behind Snowhill Station. That it resides in such a nice location is a positive for the bar with a clutch of through foot traffic, local businesses and the new Midland Metro tram line nearby when it’s complete.

Bar Opus has an inviting terrace area for those Alfresco lazy summer days and evenings which I can imagine will be a real sun trap and will provide the Birmingham with a continental type atmosphere.

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On arrival we were greeted with two glasses of Champagne and were straight away impressed with the light and modern decor which is a mix of Cafe Opus decor and a continental inspired light openness.

The bar was busy, with a lovely atmosphere. The bar area is split into a long bar, an open kitchen, some seating in the windows around tables for eating on and some bar stools and tables.

Near the bar is an impressive Musee d’Orsay (art gallery in Paris, if you haven’t been go) clock (see photos above) which gives
Bar Opus a real iconic central image that invites the eye. A real symbol of the bar and its continental leanings.

As a vegetarian I have always loved the Opus food, whether the formal Opus restaurant or the laid back cafe in Brindley Place with its fab terrace and Meat Free Monday menu.

The ‘After 5’ sharing plates were what we had come to sample. The premise is that from the open kitchen the chefs will serve up a variety of dishes from £4.50 onto plates where the colour indicates the price. The waiter will at the end count the plates you’ve had and produce your Bill.
The plates include meat, fish and vegetarian a whole plate is £10.50.

Ruth tried the meat and fish options that were handed round and loved the complex flavours and in some cases simplicity of the dishes, they were presented in a delicious looking way.

My vegetarian options were plentiful. The ones that stand out are the confit tomato & mozzarella croquettes, which were delicious, real Italian creamy mozzarella, which complemented a complex and lovely tomato texture. The other I enjoyed was the Daylesford organic cheddar rarebit which was the best cheese on toast ever.

They reminded me of the type of food that you find in Aperitivo hour in Italy which is a very relaxed thing to do with friends and family..try it with a Aperol or Campari Spritz or Negroni.

The food I tried at Bar Opus in conclusion was made with the same high quality ingredients as at the other two venues and I was impressed with the vegetarian selection on all the menus. The all day menu includes four different options which is superb.

To add I also enjoyed a lovely Negroni Cocktail which was well made and probably the best I’ve had in Birmingham.

Bar Opus has a lengthy cocktail list, a good wine menu and also stocks craft beer and their very own Opus lager. A lot of the menu has local gin makers Langley’s on it, the Negroni was made with Langley’s gin.

Bar Opus is a superb addition to Birmingham’s food and bar scene. As an all day venue from breakfast until evening it’s going to be a very popular and exciting place to go.

I can’t wait to visit properly and try out their all day menu and ‘After 5’ options in full.

Bar Opus is a bar redefined.

Thanks to Ann and David for their invites. The food and first two drinks were on the house and our glasses of wine hereafter were paid in full by me. I was not required to write a post for my blog.

All opinions are honest and my own.

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Bar Opus
1 Snowhill piazza
Birmingham
B4 6GH

0121 289 3939

Open from

7am-11pm Monday to Friday
10am-11pm Saturday

@baropus

http://www.baropus.co.uk

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