Brunch at Harvey NicholsI had a great day out at this weekend. My wife had her heart set on Balenciaga bag that she has been saving up for, she had been eyeing it for a month or two. Anyway, it required a trip into Harvey Nichols in Bristol, next to the Temple Meads Shopping center. After some um-ing and ah-ing Phoebe was about £1k lighter in the wallet. If it was my money I would have gone crazy, but it was her money (with a little bit from me as an early birthday present) so I wasn’t going to question her spending.
After we were done reviving the country’s economy, we both felt a little hungry. Despite the fact that we had both had a light lunch and dinner was just a couple of hours away, I decided we should grab something to eat. I remembered a couple months back we went to the Wine and Food festival in Bristol and Louise McCrimmon, the head chef at Harvey Nichols did a presentation. I can’t quite remember what she cooked but I do remember it looking and sounding really nice. It was something along the lines of poached fish… it sounded like the kind of classic light meal I was looking for.
We went upstairs to be greeted with the brunch menu which was just what we wanted, although we did flirt with the idea of having a full lunch but in the end decided against it. We were shown to our seats and met with the most golden coloured restaurant I have ever seen! The seats were covered in a bright gold material, the curtains were more of a dull gold and the padded walls were a grey gold colour. Combined with the lighting and the sun shinning though it made me think I had walked into the pharaoh’s tomb. Despite all the gold, it wasn’t offensive on the eyes – subtle it wasn’t, but it kind of worked.
The service was fine, we seemed to get a slightly “odd” waiter who kept making strange remarks but at least he was attentive. We were lucky enough to have turned up on the third Sunday of the month, when there is live music. It was perfect for a nice mid-afternoon meal. And it got better when I was presented with this…
Poached Smoked Haddock with Baked Egg and Hollandaise sauce on a Brioche bun. Essentially a fancy eggs Benedict with smoked haddock. Phoebe had Buttermilk Pancakes with Back Bacon and Maple Syrup. I had to encourage her to have it as the combination of pancakes, bacon and maple syrup didn’t sound that good to her. However after a little encouragement she went for it and was glad she did.
My brunch was delicious. The smoked haddock and the hollandaise sauce worked well together. I would occasionally get a strong taste of vinegar but it didn’t spoil the sauce. The strong smokey fish was perfectly matched by the sauce, preventing the fish from over-powering everything. The egg was perfectly cooked, nice formed whites with a runny yolk. The bun was a little tough to cut through but otherwise it was just a great plate of food! It was well seasoned too, I normally have to add pepper to the sauce or salt to the egg but I didn’t even consider looking for them.
Phoebe’s buttermilk pancakes were special. They were crispy on the outside but fluffy on the inside and tasted fantastic. I can’t say I have ever had buttermilk pancakes before but these tasted much better than the pancakes I’m used to. As Phoebe later said “I don’t think I can eat other pancakes anymore”. The bacon was, well bacon. Still great but nothing special, nice and crispy but I think for three pancakes, it could have done with two rashers of bacon rather than just one. Still not bad for £4.50.
Overall it was a really nice place to eat and we will be back again, maybe for an early dinner some evening? The prices were very reasonable, the food was good, the restaurant was nice and the service was good too. So if you are in the area and looking for something good to eat for brunch or lunch, you won’t be disappointed going to Harvey Nichols in Bristol. On top of that, I’m now trying to think of a good Eggs Benedict recipe for myself.