On Saturday I had the pleasure of reviewing the festive menu at The Pine Marten in Harrogate.
The Pine Marten is a premium pub, bar and restaurant situated in Beckwithshaw, just outside Harrogate in North Yorkshire. The Pine Marten also has twelve bedrooms, should you wish to stay the night. We have visited the Pine Marten before and in summer it is lovely to sit in the surrounding gardens, equally in winter there’s a lovely open fire to warm you up. The Pine Marten is housed in a beautiful old stone building dating back to the 1820’s. The restaurant offers a diverse menu which caters for all occasions and tastes. You can also just pop in for cocktails in the stylish bar area.
We booked a table through bookatable for myself, my hubby, brother and sister in law. On arrival at the restaurant we ordered drinks from the bar and were directed to a comfy seating area to look at the menu. My sister in law and I ordered G&T’s and we were pleased to see the tonic was Fever Tree and that they stocked Hendricks gin. My brother ordered a pint of Leeds Pale Ale and my hubby (the designated driver!) had a diet coke! The restaurant is welcoming, friendly and warm. There were subtle touches of Christmas decor throughout the restaurant and a welcoming fire.
The Festive Menu is priced at £25.95 for three courses and has a really good range of options. Vegetarians are catered for and any people with allergies and dietary requirements are encouraged to speak with the restaurant for advice.
For starters my sister in law and I chose the smoked salmon and king prawn pot, which was beautifully presented in a “pot”, served with Devon crab creme fraiche and ciabatta. It was lovely and fresh, without being too heavy.
My husband chose duck liver and port parfait, with cranberry and sloe gin chutney. This dish was also accompanied with ciabatta. This was one of the dishes I had almost chosen, my husband thought it was delicious and he would definitely choose it again. He especially liked the chutney.
My brother chose thyme-roasted portobello mushrooms, which were served in a creamy chestnut sauce topped with goats curd and served with rustic toast. The dish looked amazing and was enjoyed by my brother. He is partial to goats cheese and this dish ticked all the boxes.
My sister in law and I chose the traditional Christmas dinner option for our main course and it was delicious. The food was attractively presented and was hot. We were pleased that the turkey wasn’t the horrible “rolled variety” and that there was plenty. The dinner was served with roast potatoes, chestnut and cranberry stuffing, a cumberland and red onion pig in blanket and bread sauce. There was also a beautifully seasoned dish of veg, including sprouts, carrots, broccoli and parsnips.
My husband and brother opted for the rather interesting sounding slow-cooked pork cheeks in a red wine jus with creamy mashed potato, black pudding and crispy pancetta. Their verdict was that it was lovely, if a little rich. The pork cheeks melted in the mouth, but they would have liked more black pudding, which was incorporated into the mash.
By this point, it’s fair to say that we were all a little (searching for words to describe more glamorously …) stuffed! Thankfully we didn’t feel rushed and there was a suitable length of time between courses.
For dessert my brother and I chose raspberry and gingerbread creme brulee served with ginger biscuits. Very sweet and rich with a crunchy topping. The ginger biscuits were lovely, the creme brulee was served chilled and possibly could have benefited from being served as soon as the topping was grilled, to warm the dish slightly. It was still delicious though and the raspberry centre was divine.
My husband chose chocolate ganache tart, which he simply “loved”!
My sister in law chose chocolate orange parfait, which was also enjoyed and was beautifully presented!
We spent a lovely evening at the Pine Marten and we certainly weren’t disappointed by the food, atmosphere and surroundings. We would definitely book again in the future and it was a lovely festive start to the Christmas season.
We booked our table through bookatable online, which was really easy to do. As the date drew nearer I received emails reminding me about the booking. My family and I would definitely recommend a visit to The Pine Marten.
*For the purpose of this review I sampled my guests and I sampled 3 courses from the festive menu at The Pine Marten. All words and opinions are my own.
