Brother Thai, Cardiff restaurant review

Whenever we’ve walk past Brother Thai after a session on the craft beers at Pop ‘n’ Hops, it’s always been packed to the rafters. And on the couple of times we’ve tried to get a walk-in table, it’s been a fruitless endeavour.

But, on a sunny Friday night, and with Brother Thai’s compact back garden open for business, we were in luck.

One of the OGs of south Wales’s street food scene, Brother Thai’s non-traditional Thai cooking has built up a legion of fans over the last decade. It’s clear they’ve been just as popular since they made the transition to bricks and mortar in 2021.

Understandably, Brother Thai’s restaurant menu is more expansive than their festival offering. As well as their signature filled rotis, on offer there are rice bowls, a clutch of small plates and even a couple of desserts.

A pair of cocktails were both summery gluggers – a Rum Aroi (£9.50) combined spiced rum, sweet amaretto and a zip of citrus, whilst a Watermelon Wat (£4.60) saw ginger ale spiked with watermelon and lemon.

First to arrive was excellent Thai fried chicken (£8.50). With a super crisp yet thin spiced crumb and impressively juicy flesh, the pair of deboned thighs were liberally drizzled with spicy sriracha and balancing sriracha mayo.

Brother Thai’s sticky beef roti (£9) was always an essential order at street food festivals and here it was as compelling as ever. The crisp, flaky and buttery folded paratha was packed to the edges with tender pieces of big-flavoured beef coated in a rich, sticky and savoury spiced sauce which was reminiscent of rendang. Delicately pickled cucumber and red onion provided acidity and coriander leaves delivered an extra pop of fragrance.

A pad krapao rice bowl (£12) was Mrs G’s favourite dish of the night. The deeply savoury stir fry of tender chicken, green beans and chilli was heady with the aroma of holy basil. Jasmine rice and a frilly edged fried egg were excellent accompaniments.

Last up was a plate of deep-fried mushrooms (£8.50) masquerading as a laab salad. Heaps of fragrant coriander and mint, a good kick of chilli and a citrusy zing, made this a lovely vegan take on the classic meat salad.

It’s easy to see why we’ve found walk-ins so hard to come by at Brother Thai because their huge flavoured Thai street food is a real crowd pleaser. Next time we need to visit on a Sunday when they serve a rather delicious looking khao soi special.

The details:

Address - Brother Thai, 35 Whitchurch Rd, Cardiff CF14 3JN

Web - https://www.brotherthai.co.uk/

Telephone - 029 2063 4834

Coombeshead Farm, Cornwall restaurant review

I can’t think of a restaurant I’ve visited where the connection between produce and plate is as strong as Cornwall's Coombeshead Farm.

Before dinner we strolled around the grounds where we saw curly-haired mangalitza pigs dozing in the woodland, a scarecrow protecting its valuable rows of crops, and the bakery where they make their famous sourdough.

And then we took our seats at their restaurant, which is located in one of the farmhouse's converted outbuildings, and were afforded front row seats at the pass where all that beautifully seasonal produce is served up.

Owned by Pitt Cue's co-founder Tom Adams and New York-based chef April Bloomfield, Coombeshead Farm serves a four course set sharing menu (£45) with the option of adding extra snacks and cheese. Of course, we ordered everything on offer and washed it down with some delicious booze including sparkling wine from Castlewood Vineyard in Devon, Deya pale ales, and both a Jurancon Sec and Jurancon dessert wine.

Having seen the mangalitzas just before dinner, its ham (£12.50) was the first thing we ate. And what ham it was - rich in flavour and glossy with fat that melted on the tongue.

Sails of crispy kale (£7) were dotted with sweet and savoury miso and a flurry of savoury Berkswell cheese.

Lightly peppery radishes (£6.50) were accompanied by a hazelnut butter made solely from nuts and radish tops - it was a very tasty and fresh condiment but it could arguably have delivered a bigger hit of flavour.

Onto the first course of the set menu and that mangalitza reared its snout again in the form of a superb coarse pate with a deep porkiness that was topped with a pesto-esque condiment of crunchy walnuts and wild garlic.

Tender asparagus spears were sat in a thick and creamy buttermilk dressing which sang with fresh mint.

They were accompanied by thick hunks of Coombeshead's famous sourdough, soft of crumb and a little toasty of crust, which was slathered with golden butter. I can see why they sell hundreds of loaves a day and it appears on the menu at restaurants in London.

More pig followed for our mains and it's fair to say it was one of the best bits of pork I’ve ever eaten.

A giant hunk of Middle-white Mangalitza crossbreed pork shoulder, which had been slow-cooked in milk, had the richness and spoonable tenderness of a piece of red meat like lamb shank or ox cheek. That creamy milk sauce was enriched with meat juices and cut with the dryness of white wine and fragrance of dill - I licked every drop from the bowl.

The pork was topped with a vibrant mix of snap pea, chard and asparagus dressed with a punchy salsa verde whilst a bowl of lightly dressed leaves were dotted with crunchy almonds. They both provided welcome balance to the richness of the pork.

Dessert was an assemblage of tasty things. Rhubarb and haskap (a bit like a tart elongated blueberry) compote, buttery hazelnut crunch and silky creme diplomat scented with blackcurrant leaves were all bob on. However, a few of our mates thought it was a bit too breakfasty.

Oozy and pungent Yarlington cheese (£7) was dwarfed by superb crackers with a compelling caramelised note, reminiscent of a savoury waffle cone.

We had a super dinner at Coombeshead Farm. With its farm to table ethos, rustic cooking elevated with first class technique, and warm and relaxed atmosphere, it most certainly lives up to its reputation.

The next morning, our friends, who stayed at the farm overnight, sent us pictures of their breakfast feast featuring hot smoked beef sausage, courgette piccalilli, and a selection of stonking looking baked goods. I'll most certainly be returning to Coombeshead Farm and next time I'm checking in for the night.

The Details:

Address - Coombeshead Farm, Lewannick, Launceston PL15 7QQ

Web - https://coombesheadfarm.co.uk/

Telephone - 01566 782009

Caper and Cure, Bristol restaurant review

Jamon butter. Crab butter. Mushroom butter. Marmite butter. Scampi Fries butter. Doner kebab butter.

Is there anything that can't be turned into a gourmet spread to be slathered over sourdough?

I've eaten and loved the first four in the above list. Now I'm waiting for a restaurant to turn the latter two dreams into reality.

Bristol's Caper & Cure would be a very good candidate for the job as their jamon and crab butters are both absolute corkers.

With glowing reviews from national restaurant critics and fellow food bloggers alike, Caper and Cure has been on my to nosh list for over a year.

It joins a ridiculous number of acclaimed places in the city which I'm keen to visit soon including Little Hollows, Bianchis, Sonny Stores, the Little French, Cor, Bokman, Bulrush, Adelina Yard, Box-E, Tare and Noah's... I could go on.

Located in the uber-hip area of Stoke's Croft, Caper & Cure is a neighbourhood restaurant which puts their produce front and centre. A map of Europe dominates one wall of their intimate dining room, showcasing where they source their ingredients from; there's asaparagus from the Wye Valley, wine from Somerset, scallops from orkney and a selection of beers from Bristol. The passion for produce extends to the front of house team too who all radiate knowledge and passion for the food and booze they're serving.

Caper & Cure's compact menu of modern bistro cooking is all thriller and no filler. Dishes I want to bury my face into include cheddar and lardon croquetas, St Austell mussels with cider and bay, onglet steak with anchovy cream, and honey and vanilla panna cotta.

Snacks set the standard for the rest of the meal. Jamon butter (£5) would have been more appropriately named buttered jamon such was the pork content of this spread. Blitzed up jamon lubricated with a nominal amount of butter was delicious spread over the soft sourdough.

Slices of tender-as-it-gets braised octopus (£6.50) were dressed with a vibrant, delicately acidic chimichurri - it was a dreamy snack for a warm sunny evening.

Onto starters and a tumble Isle of Wight tomatoes (£9) of all sizes and colours were paired with creamy burrata and punchy black olive tapenade.

Crab butter (£12) was the dish which sang loudest to me on the entire menu, combining two of my favourite ingredients. It lived up to its name - a crab shell was filled with a glossy warm butter sauce flecked with heaps of sweet crustacean. Sourdough bread was a handy tool for ferreting every last drop of butter out of every nook and cranny of the shell.

Mains were very good but didn't quite hit the same highs as snacks and starters.

A precisely cooked fillet of meaty hake (£24) was served with tender spuds, broccoli and a vibrant salsa verde butter sauce with plenty of basil. It was a familiar dish executed very well.

Blushing pink and stupidly tender pork tenderloin (£23), stock rich lentils, a crispy disc of morcilla and hispi cabbage all jostled for attention with a mammoth flavoured chorizo sauce with a big hit of paprika. Every component on the plate was delicious in its own right but the delicate pork was a little lost behind the potent sauce.

Desserts were both belters.

Silky pistachio custard (£9) was topped with delicate brûléed caramel layer and served with a scattering of nuts and buttery shortbread pieces. 

An excellent selection (£10) of Cashel Blue, ripe and funky Rollright and Cornish Yarg with crackers and chutney was generous for its price.

We had a lush evening at Caper and Cure. It's the kind of neighbourhood restaurant which you'd be lucky to have around the corner.

The Details:

Address - Caper and Cure, 108A Stokes Croft, Cotham, Bristol BS1 3RU

Web - https://www.caperandcure.co.uk/visit

Telephone - 0117 923 2858