Franklins Restaurant & Bar

FoodStories

A Local Gem. 21st August 2008

3 found this helpful

Franklins is our local restaurant, a leisurely 10 minute stroll from our front door in fact and oh, how lucky we are. It’s been said before and I don’t mind saying it again, this restaurant is a little gem to have ticking away in such wonderfully close proximity. Franklins is not a fine dining resaurant, it is ‘just’ one that serves consistently good grub and pays attention to detail. Such as good, freshly baked bread and solid side dishes - I always order the seasonal greens and they always arrive perfectly cooked with just the right amount of bite and wrapped in a blanket of buttery goodness, well seasoned and slippery.

this time around, I had smoked quail with raddichio and aioli. The quail was so intensely smoked it left a musky scent even after I wash the mitts I was using to chew every last scrap from its little legs.Fantastic aioli too, not overpowering but good and garlicky at the same time. Franklins has a way with meat - always loads of flavour and bold simplicity.

My partner chose the crab tart, a perfect mixture of brown and white meat - a really strong crabby flavour. The texture of the meat was well preserved too.

For our main course, we both immediately ordered the ox tongue with endive, snails and chorizo. When the dishes arrived they had forgotten the snails and chorizo but the waitress was very professional and,our plates were whisked away with the bare minimum of fuss, arriving back promptly adorned with bits of spicy pig and mollusc. From what we could gather the chefs were very embarrassed…

The ox tongue was beautiful, tender and melty with a fine blob of fresh, pungent horseradish on top. The chorizo was a very good one, spicy and rich, coating everything in its delicious oil. We felt the snails didn’t really add anything though. I don’t think they really taste of much anyway and you honestly wouldn’t have realised they were there - apart from the fact you could see them, of course.

We thought about cheese and/or dessert but were too damn stuffed to contemplate it. We ambled the short walk home contented, slightly tipsy and really rather happy, as always.

KeldaWallis

28th August 2007

2 found this helpful

Great place - wonderful seasonal food and a splendid wine list to accompany. I took my foodie father there for dinner and he made all of the right noises throughout the 3 courses. Definitely a place for a long, cozy, autumnal dinner with friends.