Forge Valley Kitchen, Wykeham: 'I went to the opening night of a master chef's new restaurant - it was sensational'

We don’t mooch about for three weeks of the month waiting for the moment a suitable place for the paper surfaces, at which point we pay attention, visit, eat and write up.

I can’t speak for my YP colleagues but I do this and that, including keeping the NYMNP food and drink website up to date, along with my chum and fellow reviewer Jill Turton.

We visit farms, bakeries, pubs, restaurants, cafes and cheesemakers.

It’s a tough job .... One of my assignments last year was a garden shed near Scarborough where a young couple were roasting coffee beans, packing them up and posting them all over the country. Their’s is quite the story.

Travelling more than four thousand miles to open a roastery in Yorkshire is a commitment you might think, but for Chris and Tash Brett, an entrepreneurial couple originally from Gloucestershire (Chris) and his wife Tash from Slaithwaite it was a challenge they were ready to meet.

They were living and working in Arkansas but wanted to ‘come home’ so their young son Arnold could get to know his cousins and grandparents.

They’d been enjoying the café scene in the US but couldn’t find a good cuppa locally – so decided to do it themselves.

They found a home in East Ayton, an outbuilding was converted, they began importing ethically-grown beans and got roasting.

There followed a residency, a brew bar in Wilson’s Food Hall in Seamer and very jolly it was, too. Oh, and possibly the best espresso I’ve had this side of Sorrento.

End of story, you might think. I thought so, and I was wrong.

Up pops one of Chris’s updates on Instagram and he’s standing outside a handsome stone building, saying ‘it’s T minus two weeks until we launch our café/bistro, come and feast on our home made cakes and sarnies, open all hours.’

Cute, I think, and make a mental note to swing by next time I’m over that way. The point to this tale is the next announcement. He’s in the building and standing next to him is a face I recognise.

The last time I saw Alex Perkins was on my birthday six years ago when a bunch of us went to his fabulous restaurant, Bridge Cottage Bistro in Sandsend.

Shortly after that it all went belly up, what with Covid and a landlord upping the rent.

Perkins is one of those intuitive chefs who learned his craft as he went along, picking up skills and turning them into an inimitable style.

A strong memory is turning up one lunchtime and his dad Stewart (now fisherman, once owner of the legendary White Horse & Griffin in Whitby) was lifting a crab the size of a small child out of the boot of his car, bound for the kitchen.

Alex came out and said ‘do you want crab for lunch?’ Twenty minutes later one of the best plates of food I’ve ever eaten was put in front of me.

We all mourned the closure of his restaurant. Well, dear reader, he’s back. At the Forge Valley Kitchen in Wykeham. I actually whooped.

It’s a raw January night but inside the big, handsome barn soft lights shine, and despite the vast space (beams, white brick walls, wood floor) it’s warm, cosy, even.

The menu is short and sweet, with a nod to Burns Night which was just round the corner when I visited.

This was a special supper club event (see website for further events) while they prepare to launch their full dinner menu in the near future.

There’s a haggis neep & tattie croquette, properly seasoned with a good crunch, and pickled veg and herb mayo; it packs a punch, and a very generous plate.

The colour on the gin cured salmon is stunning, with beetroot & horseradish crème fraiche adding another level of flavour.

Next up, a root vegetable hash brown, again with a lovely crunch on it, and a gloriously earthy back note as befits the season.

Added texture comes from crispy shallots, and charred leek mayo adds a blissfully umami richness.

It’s not a looker – not much of the food tonight is, apart from the salmon, but by now you know my love of brown food … talking of which … a plate of braised beef short rib comes my way, and oh boy.

It’s so dark, it’s black, sticky and tender enough to cut with a spoon. How many hours of cooking? I’m guessing about half a day, or overnight. The gravy reduction is the consistency of treacle – it’s sensational.

There are just two main course choices; the other is roast cauliflower with crispy potato gnocchi, and it’s another flavour bomb.

I don’t know who was first with the idea of roasting cauli, but it’s a belter – who imagined that this humble veg could be magicked into a delicious thing?

Here, sage pangrattato delivers texture (more successfully than the gnocchi which needed to be crispier – but I’m nit-picking.)

Dessert is a riff on cranachan: chocolate, oat, whiskey & honey, a bowl of sweetness to round off a lovely supper – with an exceptional coffee of course.

Full disclosure: it was their first night, something I usually try to avoid in the spirit of fairness – all sorts can go wrong, the whole enterprise can stumble. But nothing did.

The food was exceptional, the wine list short but intelligent and the charming servers had been well briefed. ‘Supper Club’ evenings will continue for the foreseeable; use the web address below to check announcements and book your table.

Perkins cooks with a big heart and bags of style. Dishes are innovative but with a simplicity that lets the ingredients take the lead.

This really is my favourite kind of food: robust, four things on a plate, huge flavours.

Welcome back, Alex, we’ve missed you.

Welcome 5/5

Food 5/5

Atmosphere 5/5

Prices 5/5

Forge Valley Roasters – the Kitchen, The Hillyard, Wykeham, YO13 9BP t: 01723 677079 forgevalleyroasters.com Dinner for two with wine: £123.30

Monday – Saturday 7.30am – 4pm, Sun 8am - 4pm. Visit the website for special supper club events