Enjoy Celebrity Radio’s James Martin Manchester 235 Casino Restaurant Review….
James Martin’s newest eatery is a sophisticated but relaxed affair in the heart of Manchester at the Casino 235.
Positioned on the first floor of the casino, this beautifully designed, spacious and elegant room has a modern fine dining feel.
The menu is accessible with fish, meat and local / season ingredients in abundance.
You don’t have to visit the casino to dine, in fact from my seat I was totally unaware that I was in the casino.
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The service is warm, welcoming, unpretentious and very friendly.
To begin I loved the refreshing charred squid with Carnelian Caviar & mint. Beautiful start to the meal (Pic 1).
Next the pea and black garlic fondant looked gorgeous (pic 2), but sadly didn’t quite live up to expectations.
Finally the cured and smoked Goosnargh duck (pic 3) was sensationally tasty and a true highlight of the meal.
All dishes below are ‘taster’ size for the review.
Double click all pictures for full view.
As you would expect from a 4* restaurant, there’s lovely linen napkins and indulgent touches like ciabatta bread and delicious butter on arrival.
James Martin Manchester has a chefs table that can seat up to 20.
I could see it was a thrilling experience where chef explains every dish and course to the privileged guests. A lovely interactive way to enjoy a taster meal.
There is an a la carte menu available daily as well as a seasonal 6 course taster menu.
I loved that the staff took care of a young man celebrating his birthday, chef sent a Prosecco – nice touch!
For the entree’s I thoroughly enjoyed three plates:
To begin the seasonal Wye Valley asparagus with Cannelloni & fried duck egg was divine. It would also make an incredibly indulgent and fabulous starter!
The Monkfish (pic 2) was my favourite dish in terms of appearance and flavour. The fish was slightly over cooked for my taste but the edamame beans, miso caramel & sesame made for a very special dish.
The lamb chop (pic 3) was gorgeous with loin and glazed belly. The Asparagus, mint and rice wine dressing set the dish off perfectly.
For dessert James offers some lovely and refreshing dishes to end the meal.
To begin the marinated pineapple was delightful, light and fresh. (Pic 1)
The ‘Honey Pot’ was a real treat (Pic 2). There’s a gorgeous crème brulee, ice lemon, honey thyme, cookies & honey liquor jelly. Exciting, innovative and delicious.
And finally you can’t leave without trying James’ legendary bread and butter pudding. So light, made with croissant with whisky soaked golden sultanas – tremendous!
This restaurant is not ‘cheap’ and is not trying to be. It offers great service, presentation in a gloriously designed space.
Starters average £8 and mains from around £18 per head. Steaks range between £19 & £42.
James Martin should be proud of this restaurant. I hope people venture through the casino to enjoy this delightful eatery.
Review by Alex Belfield for Celebrity Radio 6th May 2015.
