Enjoy a meaty meal at Monty's Grill
David Hattersley seems to pop up everywhere these days.
The businessman bought Lendal Tower in a multimillion deal last autumn. He put in an (ultimately unsuccessful) bid to buy the Bonding Warehouse. And he spent £5 million transforming a budget hostel in St Peter's Grove into a four-star hotel.
Marmadukes, a generously-proportioned mini-mansion in one of York's more exclusive streets, has its own restaurant. Monty's Grill is open to the public, as well as hotel residents. When we dropped in for a meal recently, one of the secrets of Mr Hattersley's success became clear. He is obviously good at choosing staff.
Our meal at Monty's was very pleasant. But what really lifted it out of the ordinary was our waiter, Tony.
As befits an exclusive but homely hotel such as Marmadukes, the dining room is very much English period style. Dark woods, discreet lighting and thick carpet predominate, with a magnificent central chandelier.
From the moment we walked into this gentleman's residence of a restaurant, Tony took control.
He was cheerful, funny, and informal: putting us at our ease, making us laugh, sympathising at my plight in being unable to indulge in a bottle of wine (I had to drive afterwards) and recommending a modest half glass of continental lager instead. We could feel ourselves relaxing and expanding under the warm glow of his presence.
"If you need me, just yell Tony, we need you!'" he said, scurrying off to get our drinks. It was one of two catchphrases we became familiar with - the other being don't tell the boss', delivered with a conspiratorial grin when he filled up my coffee cup a second time for free, or allowed to me take home one of the thick card menus.
But what about the food?
Monty's Grill prides itself on being Yorkshire's first dedicated rare breeds restaurant. It serves proper, tasty cuts of meat from ancient English breeds such as Longhorn cattle, Wensleydale lamb and Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs.
The menu reflects this emphasis on simple quality. The choice is fairly limited - six starters and seven mains on the evening we visited - but everything looks substantial and homely.
I skipped the starters, wanting to leave room for a pudding. My wife Lili's eyes flitted over the pan-fried calves liver steak with peach chutney (£6.95) and half dozen Colchester oysters on crushed ice (£8.50), to light on the East Coast king scallops with nut butter and fresh pea shoots (£8.95).
Tony pointed out that I would have to wait while my wife ate her starter. I pointed out that I didn't mind.
Lili was delighted with her scallops, which arrived shelled and arranged invitingly on a large plate. They were wonderfully tender and flavourful, she said - something which, being unable to eat seafood, I could not confirm. I could confirm, however, that the accompanying lemon nut butter was both lemony and buttery.
By the time we were ready for our main courses, we were no longer the only diners in the restaurant, as two more couples had arrived. Such was our friendship with Tony that we felt a little jealous of the attention he lavished on our fellow diners.
As if to make amends, he came over to help with our choices. The Gloucestershire Old Spot pork T-bone with apple chutney and cider gravy (£14.95) was a treat, he informed us. "It's this thick!" he said, gesturing with his hands. Lily duly ordered it.
Tony also recommended the rack on black - traditional Leicestershire lamb rolled with black pudding and minted gravy (£16.95). My eyes, however, had already lit upon the summer shepherd's pie with Yorkshire cheddar mash (£12.95). I'm a sucker for shepherd's pie, and ordered it - only to realise, too late, that it was the vegetarian option, and a vegetable shepherd's pie. How I regretted that rack of lamb.
We'd better order some side dishes, too, Tony said, if we wanted vegetables. So we did - an order of new potatoes and the Monty's Medley of Vegetables at £2.30 a pop.
We had been warned that Lily's pork would take a while to cook, so weren't bothered by the slightly longer-than-usual wait that followed. We were comfortable, warm, and happy.
The pork was worth the wait. It was huge - a good three inches thick, sitting in splendid isolation in its bed of gravy on a large plate. Lili's eyes bugged out. But the meat was beautifully tender, she said, cutting into it.
I needn't have regretted that rack of lamb, either. My shepherd's pie was delicious: a wonderful, gooey stew of seasoned vegetables with a marvellous texture. The Yorkshire cheddar mash was a slight disappointment, and the side dish of new potatoes was warm rather than hot, as I like them. But the medley of vegetables was excellent: crisp, toothy, organic-looking whole carrots and broccoli and beans.
Lili passed on puds but, from the board, I chose the chocolate fondant (£4.95). I also ordered a filter coffee.
My coffee arrived quickly, and was excellent. My pudding took longer- the chef's first attempt fell flat, Tony said apologetically - but when it did come, it proved worth the wait: rich, light and chocolatey. Tony refilled my coffee cup to go with it. "Don't tell the boss!" he said.
Our meal came to £50.65 - quite pricey, admitted, but not as dear as we expected, given the quality and ambience. Monty's Grill does, inevitably, have the feeling of a hotel restaurant rather than a public restaurant, and it's a little off the beaten track. But Tony made it worth the journey.
"Will we see you again?" he asked, as we left. He probably will.
Stephen Lewis.
September 14, 2007
The Press