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PENDOYLAN
The Red Lion
Dinner for two
We recently had the pleasure of meeting owner and chef Kamran (Kami) Soroush at the new Red Lion gastro pub in Pendoylan.
Kami is a larger than life character and larger than life chef, having enjoyed regular television and radio appearances over the years. His passion for good quality, simple food using only the freshest, finest ingredients was obvious during our chat.
His French style cuisine is influenced by his travels and favours his Persian heritage. He also told us of his love of fine wines and how proud he is of his extensive yet selective wine list. This man’s passion for all things culinary and of the vine holds no bounds.
Kami proudly showed us around the pub which he and his wife Azi bought in 2005. They refurbished the Red Lion to create a dining area upstairs which is both tasteful and inviting and which gives stunning views of the Vale with a terrace suitable for alfresco dining and a separate cwtch area for after dinner coffees. Azi’s talent for interiors are certainly apparent throughout the establishment.
Kami was sure we’d be impressed when we’d sampled his hospitality. He’d lain down his gauntlet...
We arrived in the bar area and were greeted by friendly staff and offered a drink. Kami had promised attentive staff. They didn’t let him down. We were left to mull over the menu and wine list. Our choices made, we were escorted upstairs to our table, which benefitted from the aforementioned view.
We particularly liked the table setting of grey Welsh slate and a single red rose. I was also pleased to see cutlery that I could touch up my lippie in, not that I would in public of course.
Our waitress for the evening was extremely helpful and smelt lovely (Estee Lauder Pleasures) – I had to ask. She took our order for starters and main and then left us to enjoy the view. Before our starters came, and as we perused the wine list, the sommelier arrived and said that Kami wanted to suggest a wine for us to complement our choice of menu.
A 2006 Chablis Grand Cru – Domaine Vocoret no less. This was brought to us to sample. What a fine choice. Our starters of grilled brie salad with cranberry, lime and saffron dressing and King prawns wrapped in bacon stuffed with wholegrain Pommery mustard with a salad garnish arrived. We both agreed they were not only beautiful to the eye but also amazing on the taste buds.
Then came our mains of Gigot (pot braised leg of Welsh lamb cooked in tomatoes, saffron, lime juice and garlic and a roasted Cajun sea bass with mango and avocado salsa flavoured with coriander and lime juice. Again full marks for artistic presentation with extra marks for taste. There were so many flavours in each dish but all had been used intelligently and none were superfluous.
We asked for a little rest before our dessert but still couldn’t wait to taste the apple and plum tart with crème anglais and the orange crème brulee. Kami had warned us that once we’d tried his homemade desserts, we’d be spoilt for life and he wasn’t far wrong.
As we enjoyed our coffees in the cwtch on the comfy settees and took in the lovely touches of the oversized candles and chunky wooden tables whilst thumbing through the book of mystical poems by Rumi, we pondered on how we could best sum up our evening at the Red Lion.
We both agreed that it was like being invited out for the evening and then finding, to your delight, that your hosts had laid on fireworks, but in this case the fireworks were the flavours in our mouths.
The Red Lion Gastro Pub
Pendoylan Vale of Glamorgan CF71 7UJ
01446 760332
www.newredlion.com |
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