I often joke about having champagne taste and a beer budget, so you can imagine how excited I was to discover that Prévost (the restaurant at the top of my ‘must visit’ wishlist) is offering a set 3 course lunch for just £18.50 during August.
Prévost has put the Peterborough on the map as a place to experience fine dining at it’s best. Led by the incredibly talented head chef Lee Clarke, its culinary creations have already earned the restaurant inclusion in the prestigious Michelin Guide in it’s first six months as well as being recently announced as a new entry in the Good Food Guide’s Top 50 for 2018.
The restaurant is hidden away down a side street in Priestgate. It’s a mere 2 minute walk from the city centre but if you didn’t know to look for it you’d miss it! If you do know what to look for, however, an unassuming archway leads you through to a courtyard and Prevost’s welcoming entrance.
Inside Prévost is intimate and yet spacious all at the same time. The decor is modern with copper lighting and bar equipment, comfy sofas, a welcoming fireplace and a light and spacious dining area looking out onto a herb garden.
The Lunch For Less menu is a set 3 courses which changes every week. We opted to add on a plate of freshly baked sour dough with cultured homemade butter for an extra £2.50 per head. The bread had a wonderful springy texture and a delicious crust which worked perfectly with a good slathering of the salted butter!
The starter was described simply as Ham Hock with Spiced Apple and Plum, but this was a dish full of complexity and character. Lee brought the dish to each diner’s table personally, explaining that the accompanying salad was fresh from his mother’s garden which I thought was a lovely touch. The presentation was a joy with vibrant colours bursting off the plate, begging you to get stuck in.
This is the sort of dish where you really need to load your fork with a bit of every single element and then savour it in your mouth, allowing each taste to burst through. Acidity, creaminess, sweetness, salt, it was just perfect.
Our main was Confit Salmon and Fennel. Again, a simple description which didn’t give too much away and I loved the element of surprise that this created for us. We had fun picking out all of the different components – small white drops of sauce turned out to be a delicate horseradish, the fennel was presented 3 ways (I think!) showcasing how versatile it can be in skilled hands. The salmon itself had a delightfully crispy skin and lay on a bed of barley which reminded me of a white wine risotto. It left me craving more even though I knew dessert was still to come.
In all honesty I wasn’t expecting to enjoy the dessert because I don’t like banana but the Banana Soufflé with Malt Ice Cream was a sensation and my highlight of the whole meal! The soufflé was perfection – puffed to a great height over the rim of the dish with a crisp top and a light as air centre. The banana flavour definitely came through but in such a sweet subtle way that I enjoyed it without being overwhelmed. The accompanying ice cream rounded the dish off beautifully.
In retrospect we didn’t actually need the extra bread course at the beginning because the other courses were so generously proportioned and satisfyingly filling. Never let it be said again that fine dining means minute portions!
Overall I can’t fault the experience. To be able to enjoy cooking at this level of detail and care for less than £20 a head is just wonderful and whilst I’d encourage everyone in the area to snap up the offer whilst it lasts, at the same time I don’t want you to because I want to be able to get booked in again without a queue forming around the block!
Lee’s ambition is for Prévost to become the first Michelin starred restaurant in Peterborough and whilst I’m no food critic, I’d like to think that he’s well on his way achieving it.
Address: 20 Priestgate, Peterborough PE1 1JA
Type: Restaurant, Fine Dining
Opening times:
| Tuesday | 6–9pm |
| Wednesday | 12–2pm, 6–9pm |
| Thursday | 12–2pm, 6–9pm |
| Friday | 12–2pm, 6–9pm |
| Saturday | 12–2pm, 6–9pm |
Price: Usually starting at £32.50 for a 3 course meal, current Lunch For Less menu is £18.50 throughout August 2017.
Website: www.prevostpeterborough.co.uk
Disclaimer: This restaurant review is not sponsored and we paid for it in full (well… the fella did – thank you very much for the wonderful treat 🙂 ).
I have met Lee briefly at a photoshoot but we booked under my boyfriend’s name and upon observing the other tables I was assured that they received the same outstanding service as ourselves.
