Cardiff Marriott & River Cottage, Zest restaurant review

As far as strange brand partnerships go there are some absolute doozies.

The tie-up with Cardiff City and the Kenny Rogers Roasters chicken shop chain is a regular eyebrow raiser for away fans.

Manchester United’s partnership with Japanese paint company, Kansai, I guess, sort of makes sense. After all, under David Moyes, Man U have been about as exciting as watching…

So, in comparison, the recently launched collaboration between big corporate American hotel chain Marriott and the very British and charmingly dishevelled Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall's River Cottage brand doesn’t seem too odd.

As part of the deal, Marriott’s restaurants are launching seasonal menus using local produce, 80% of which is sourced from within a 60-mile radius. Executive chefs are also undertaking a couple of week’s training at the River Cottage Chef’s school.

Initially the concept is being launched at 2 hotels, including the Cardiff Marriott. The plan is then to roll it out across the UK. 

The menu at Cardiff’s Zest restaurant reads exceptionally well; in fact, there are no duds to be found. Plates like smoked venison with pickled mushrooms, crispy garlic and winter leaves or herb spelt risotto with roasted beetroot, goat’s cheese and mint are chock-full of interesting ingredients.

Wholemeal bread with Calon Wen butter kicked things off on a positive note.

I started with a sprightly salad of parsley, crab, top-drawer mayonnaise and a soft-boiled egg (£6.95). A slightly too heavy hand with the red onion and capers threatened to mask the lightness of the plate.

Mrs G’s salad of marinated chicken, raisins, pine nuts (£6.95) was a subtle yet enjoyable start to the meal.

Mains were both knock-out pieces of near identical looking, slow-cooked autumnal food. 

An unctuous piece of long-marinated brisket (£14.95) was served with a deep red wine sauce, buttery kale and a salty and creamy anchovy and rosemary dauphinoise.

A tender, flavour-packed piece of rolled lamb leg and shoulder (£14.95) was served in a meaty sauce with more of the buttery kale and a good dollop of chilli-flecked, earthy celeriac mash.

A pretty side of rainbow carrots (£3) were al dente and lightly glazed in honey.

Desserts hit the mark.

A super-creamy vanilla panna cotta (£6) had just the right amount of wobble. It was accompanied by crisp biscotti and spiced stewed apricots.

My flourless chocolate cake (£6) was uber rich, moist and tasty. It was, however, a touch too dense. A dollop of cream with a kick of cider brandy was the ideal foil.

Marriott’s collaboration with the River Cottage is producing some seriously good food. The service throughout the evening was also exceptional. It’s just a shame the slightly characterless dining space doesn’t do everything else justice.

In spite of the swirly carpets the Cardiff Marriott is well worth a visit.

Disclosure - I was invited as a guest of the Marriott. All food and drink was complimentary. 

The details:

Address - Cardiff Marriott Hotel, Mill Lane, Cardiff, CF10 1EZ

Web - http://www.marriott.co.uk/hotel-restaurants/cwldt-cardiff-marriott-hotel/zest-restaurant/5551607/home-page.mi 

Telephone - 02920 399 944

Oz Urfa, Cardiff Mesopotamian restaurant review

*This restaurant is now closed*

My geography trivia knowledge is seriously ropey.

It was only this year I discovered that Washington D.C. isn’t in Washington State. Surely, I ignorantly believed, it’s only logical they’re in the same place.

Also, when it comes to the locations of British counties, I’m pretty clueless too. This is evidenced by my embarrassingly low high score on County Count-up.

So, you can imagine, when I heard City Road’s latest addition was Oz Urfa, a Mesopotamian restaurant, my first response was: Mesopotamia?

A quick Wikipedia search later, I was enlightened and back in familiar City Road territory. Kebabs.

Well, mostly kebabs. Oz Urfa also has a large selection of mezze for starters and some interesting casseroles and grilled fish dishes for mains.

On the Friday evening we visited, Oz Urfa was rammed. I’m guessing this is in part due to its high ranking on Tripadvisor, but also because there are only six tables. Its diddy size along with the bustling open plan kitchen and warm service all contribute to a cosy, homely feel.

Whilst we ordered soft drinks to go with our meal, we became increasingly envious of the tables next to us making good use of Oz Urfa’s BYOB policy.  

Starters were excellent. A complimentary basket of bread was up there with the best I’ve eaten on City Road – warm, soft and plentiful.

The standouts of our very good mixed meze (£4) were a light hummus, a zingy mint yoghurt dip, and a spicy, red-coloured dish made with peppers, aubergines and sun-dried tomatoes.

A wonderfully fresh, salad of tomato, cucumber, lettuce and pomegranate seeds, was dressed with sweet pomegranate juice and olive oil.

Lahmacun (£2), a Turkish pizza, was well proportioned, flavoured and priced; the thin, crisp base was topped with finely ground, spiced lamb.

However, things went off-menu with our mains.

My siverek, a mixed kebab (£10) was missing the advertised chicken shish & lamb rib. This left me with well seasoned yet slightly dry lamb kofta, superbly juicy flame-licked chicken wings and disappointingly chewy lamb shish.

A mound of sticky, buttery, noodle flecked rice and a chargrilled green pepper and tomatoes were both excellent additions to the place.

Mrs G’s main was even more renegade. Despite ordering Ali Nazik (£10), a dish of smoky aubergine topped with chicken shish, she ended up with a casserole, albeit a very good casserole.

The bubbling stew comprised of tender chicken, sweet tomatoes and soft onions in a peppery, garlicky, buttery sauce. When we pointed out the error to the helpful waiter, a plate of rather good aubergine béchamel was delivered. Apparently, the two would combine to make Mrs G’s original order; I’m not convinced. 

Going someway to make up for the main course mess-up was a superb complimentary plate of warm, crisp baklava oozing with syrup and nuts.

I wish I could praise our meal at Oz Urfa without fault. However, the middle of the meal was just a bit too skew-whiff. In spite of this, I’d happily recommend a visit  – it would be worth the trip even for the bread and baklava alone.

The details:

Address - Oz Urfa, 156 City Road, Cardiff, CF24 3DR

Telephone - 07939429751