CityLife

Rookery Hall

Rookery Hall
Worleston
October 2010

Overall: 3/5
Decor: 4/5, Service: 3/5, Food: 3/5

Pity poor David Beckham. Out of the World Cup, out of England’s future, and on the front pages of tabloids for the past week.

Life in LA might be a dream for some, but the chap doesn’t seem to have had much luck since moving there. He may yearn for a simpler, more innocent time when all he had to worry about was the odd blast from Sir Alex’s hairdryer and trying not to ton his supercar on Cheshire’s A-roads.

In 1997, the poshest thing David and Victoria – then Posh Spice – aspired to was Rookery Hall, in the heart of Cheshire’s rolling countryside, near Worleston. This was where they became engaged, and later had a party to celebrate.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice place, but it just shows you how far they’ve gone in A-list domination that Rookery Hall was chosen for such a landmark
occasion.

But I can see what appealed to a young couple with lots of money and a desire to better themselves. The baronial, chateaux-like exterior of the main, original house – built in 1816 – is elegant, if diminutive in country house terms, and the setting amid 38 acres of grounds is pretty.

Primarily a hotel and spa, it was bought up by upmarket chain Handpicked Hotels a couple of years ago, but has always had a good reputation for fine dining in its restaurant.

The place has two AA rosettes and the kitchen is led by long-standing head chef Mark Walker, who was one of the professionals giving his time to demonstrate cooking skills at a busy Nantwich Food Festival last weekend.

When we arrived, the setting sun was glinting off the backs of those eponymous hotel rooks pecking at the lawns and the rays gave a warm glow to the yellow sandstone building.

But it is not total tradition. The hotel has been extended with a not unattractive modern wing and a spa converted from the stable block that has received rave reviews.

The dining room, though, is in the original house with the entrance through the charming formal arched porch.

The rectangular dining room itself is not huge and we fell on the mercy of our waiter to give us a better table, as our allotted one had us facing a wall within tripping distance of a serving door. Our puppy eyes were rewarded with a spot by a window.

The room was country house formal, white with 18th and 19th century paintings of toffs in riding britches and the like to break it up and plaster ceiling decoration. There were chandeliers and red leather chairs. In all, not spectacular, but in keeping.

And the room was full, with a few outside parties among the Rookery Hall guests.

The menu, though, isn’t a shrine to the past. There are traditional dishes but with imaginative tweaks among the eight or so starters and mains.

There are a couple of vegetarian options on both courses,  including a ‘spinach and parmesan panzanetti’. I’d never heard of this Italian delicacy, and Google hadn’t either. I can only suspect it was panzarotti – filled pastry or delicate, rolled pizza. That main was priced at £21.50, pretty expensive without meat or fish.

And the rest of the menu was pretty top-end in cost, too, with no main under £17. The wine list prices are also pretty steep with nothing under £20 and most £30 to £40 and above. But I suppose they have the upkeep of this old pile to consider.

My starter was Netherset Hey Farm Egg (£9.50): crisp egg, outdoor reared pork, brioche, mushroom butter, black pudding. Now, was it just me or had I just ordered breakfast? And slap me round the head with a full English, it was!

The egg, from a nearby village farm was, encased in the sausage meat, like an upmarket  Scotch one, and had a succulent flavour of the farmyard. There was a rasher of bacon, toast, a round pellet of intense black pud (which looked like something Ray Mears would pick up and sniff), a decent mushroom butter and homemade (I hope) brown sauce.

All very pretty, nicely laid out and it brought on a wry smile. But even though individually each aspect was expertly handled, as a whole it tasted not far from what the hotel would be serving up 12 hours hence.

My dining partner had the better deal with a breast of woodpigeon (£7). There is no real season for woodpigeon.

You can shoot it all year round, but feels right to eat it at this time of year and a dressing of hazelnut did the meat proud.

It came with a smoked black pudding that was not too overpowering.

Her main (£24.50) bore one of the longest titles I’ve ever seen on a menu: ‘Red Bank Farm Of Morecambe Bay Organic Salt Marsh Lamb Saddle’ – yep, too much information!

But it was good. There was a lot going on – maybe too much, but it worked for her. There was galette potato with a hint of truffle, melty shallot rings, a rich kidney brochette and a wild mushroom cassoulet.
Service, I’m afraid, was altogether pretty ropey.

The staff were friendly enough but they were almost all young and inexperienced. Little things were forgotten like no ice in the water jug (tap may still be beyond the pale at Rookery Hall), no explanation of the cheeses on offer and each course arriving about 10 minutes outside our comfort zone.  For the prices and standard of cuisine, it was a let down.

But I wasn’t grousing about my main. The breasts of Yorkshire Moor grouse (£25.95) was excellent.

The dark meat, cooked nice and pink, was tender and deeply gamey. Its accompaniments felt like a confluence of seasons. A summery watercress cream matched the meat brilliantly and there was the scent of autumn in the pear puree.

There was grouse leg confit in cabbage, too, a part of the bird that can be tough, but not here. Well done.

We had a £21 bottle of Raccolto a Mano Rosso 2006, an unassuming Tuscan wine which I presume is bottled especially for Hand Picked Hotels.

We shared dessert. A Horlicks and Kahlua brulee. It didn’t sound too appetising but was quite fun, the strong coffee liqueur flavour rounding off the taste.

David and Victoria don’t know what they are missing!

Rookery Hall, Main Road, Worleston, Cheshire CW5 6DQ (0845 072 7533, www.handpickedhotels.co.uk/hotels/rookery-hall/).

Tweet