One item I really wanted to try while in England was Yorkshire Pudding. There is something about the way it looks, that is so attractive to me… Luckily for me, one of the restaurant our extended family took us to had a great selection of dishes with Yorkshire Pudding! Yes! I know London has so many amazing restaurants you can try, but, it is also heavy with tourists. It is always nice to go away from the city center, and try some local restaurant in a smaller city/town. Here, about one hour out of London, we found this very pretty restaurant called The Jack Russell. Yes, like the dog.
It is a large building, surrounded by beautiful greenery. It had the feeling of history, with warm and welcoming atmosphere. It is not only a restaurant, but also an inn as well. You and your dog(s) can stay here, as it is a dog-friendly inn.
You might think it is rather odd to have a name of dog breed as a restaurant name, but as soon as you walk in, you get the sense of dog-loving people. The Jack Russell had this adorable guestbook, but it is not just any guestbook, it is for dogs! And they even had some dog treats right there for your (or anyone else’s) dog! Their adorable dogs, Barnie and Betty, were sitting at the stairs near the entrance to welcome everyone. So cute!
The restaurant side is very cozy, with a good amount of seating everywhere. I liked the soft, warm lighting, making it nice and homey. They offer local cuisine, locally-sourced, farm-to-table. They get most of their ingredients from the farms around the restaurant, focusing on sustainability. They also have herb gardens around the building too.
They brought a jug of water for the table, and it had some fruits in it! How lovely! It was very refreshing. Nothing like fancy complimentary water…
We ordered a Selection of Home Baked Breads (£5.50) for the table. It came with mixed butters. The bread was so good! Fluffy, moist, with subtle sweetness. The three kinds of flavored butters were really interesting, don’t remember exactly what they were, but they were all tasty!
We ordered some “Treats” which I assume is smaller in portion that their “Starters.” My hubby got Cajun Whitebait (£6), with saffron aioli. I chose Faccombe Fried Partridge (£6), with red pepper, chilli, and truffle sauce. We had whitebait similar to this one in Houseman in NYC. This was one meaty and crispy, moist and tasty! Fried Partridge came out with dark exterior, but they were not burnt or anything. Lightly fried, not greasy, kind of elevated, adult chicken fingers.
Now, the main. Most us ordered a dish that is served with Roast Potatoes, Roasted Roots, Seasonal Greens, and oh yeah, Yorkshire Pudding! Here is Roast Topside of Beef (£17). Doesn’t this just look amazing???
And here is Whole Roasted Faccombe Partridge (£17.50). Thing of beauty! This restaurant sits at the heart of Roman village of Faccombe, once a vibrant farming community. They still have farms in and around Faccombe, where most of these amazing ingredients come from.
My hubby and I decided to go with Roast Hampshire Pork Loin (£16), with Faccombe Apple Sauce. I was so excited to receive my plate, full of earth’s goodness, and a stunning Yorkshire Pudding, like a proud crown!
And the plate was huge! These photos just do not do justice! Once we removed the crown of Yorkshire Pudding, we were able to see all the other items on our plates. Mountain of pork loin, a nice amount of potatoes and veggies, and perfectly seasoned sauce…
It also had Pork Crackling too, which was very interesting. It was much thicker than I was used to, and very tough. It is a crowd pleaser, and I can see the appeal. However, it was a bit too hard and tough for me. The pork loin was super juicy, tender, almost melt in your mouth. So good! Yorkshire Pudding was really nice too, soft and airy, moist and satisfying. Great accompaniment to the meat and veggies, especially after soaking up some of the sauce! Veggies were very fresh and cooked just right. Everything on this plate was amazing!
It was a big feast, and I was quite full. But did I stop there? No! I was on my mission to discover all the amazing food and desserts in England, and I was not let my full stomach stop me… So, we all ordered desserts. The Jack Russell had great options for desserts as well. Yes! The prettiest one of all was Saffron & Star Anise Poached Pear (£7), with caramelized plums and blood orange sorbet. So lovely, isn’t it?
Another choice was White Chocolate Mousse (£7) with honey comb and autumn berries. Looks like Christmas, and it tasted as joyful as Christmas morning!
Since we had an amazing sticky toffee pudding at The Bladebone, my hubby wanted to try their Sticky Toffee Pudding (£7), with toffee sauce and vanilla ice cream. It was decadent and sweet, moist and rich. It was good, but I must say, I liked the one from The Bladebone better…
Since I was already quite full, I went with something a little less solid… But, it ended being the most fun dessert! It was The Jack Russel Affogato (£6.50), with vanilla ice cream, amaretto, and double espresso. It arrive “deconstructed” so that you get to create your own affogato right there!
I took my precious amaretto and poured over the vanilla ice cream. It was starting to look amazing… I could’ve just had that, the way it was, and I am sure it would been delicious!
But I couldn’t simply abandon the double espresso, with all that delightful aroma right at my nose. I slowly added the espresso over, and I think vanilla ice cream was enjoying the decadent bath.
Once I got all the amaretto and espresso in there, I went right in! It was exactly what I wanted, some coffee and sweetness to end the dinner. Espresso was quite strong, and amaretto had nice flavor. Ice cream was velvety and went perfectly with the bitter espresso.
The bathroom was a few steps up from the main dining area. It was really pretty in there, with beautiful tiles and exposed natural wood. Nice!
Then, they brought a book with our check in it. I love these types of creative, fun, interesting way to present the check to the customer. The book was The Talisman, The Betrothed. Neve read the book…maybe one day I should give this classic a try.
The service was very nice and friendly, we were well taken care of. We had a fun dinner at The Jack Russell with lovely company. It is always great to have delicious food with friends and family you love!
The Jack Russell – Netherton Hill, Andover, United Kingdom