Food review: Elite Bistros At Home
Andy Richardson heads to the north west where chef Gary Usher has joined the eat-at-home club to provide food that’s a cut above.
Delicious. There you go. Elite Bistros At Home reviewed in a word. Delicious.
Here’s some more. Well organised. That’s two. Or how about: Swift, tasty and good value for money. That’s seven.
While other at-home boxes veer from the exceptional to the disorganised, from the sublime to the ridiculous, Elite Bistros damn well nails it.
And that shouldn’t be a surprise.
The organisation is led by the charismatic and comically unruly chef Gary Usher, who was the subject to the TV show The Rebel Chef: My Restaurant Revolution.
A wilfully disruptive operator, Usher dropped out of school as a teenager and started washing pans. He worked for a series of quality chefs, including the Gordon Ramsay protégé Angela Hartnett, before leaving to start his own restaurant on the outskirts of Chester.
That venue, Sticky Walnut, was – and is – wonderful. Warming, welcoming and with great staff, service and food, it provided Usher with a foundation on which to build. It also provided a template for what was to follow.
He’s gone on to open more award-winning restaurants throughout the north west: Burnt Truffle, in Heswall, Wirral; Hispi, in Didsbury; Wreckfish, in Liverpool; and Kala, in Manchester city centre – a collection he’s waspishly called the Elite Bistros of the World.
Modern British cuisine dominates the menu at all of the restaurants, most of which were crowd-funded, and there are signature dishes that feature at many, including Usher’s braised featherblade of beef with truffle and parmesan chips.
Frequently understated, Usher doesn’t aim for the stars. By his own admission, he doesn’t consider himself worth of baubles from Michelin or a place alongside the greats. That, perhaps, is their loss for he serves up classy, thoughtful food that brings joy to guests.
There’s no reinvention or the wheel nor desire to put himself in the spotlight; Usher’s USP is serving tasty food at a reasonable price. It really is that simple.
And that, in the final analysis, is precisely what the vast majority of restaurant customers want.
Yes, a tiny percentage enjoy being dazzled by the modernity and technical ability of the crème de la crème. But all that most of us really want is a delicious lunch or supper that doesn’t break the bank, which is exactly what Usher provides.
Having expanded more rapidly than most in recent years, Covid-19 has left Usher’s group particularly exposed.
As losses mount because of lockdown and a fall in footfall, like so many independent operators he’s taken his offer online.
That means that Midlands diners who might not previously have ventured to the north west for his food – though this critic has – can get their fill without having to hit the M6.
With a prolonged period of restrictions likely to be in place at restaurants across the UK, Usher has moved with atypical speed to bring his Elite Bistros At Home package to the UK.
Providing an offering similar to that in his restaurants, it provides a choice of three starters, four mains, three desserts and three sides. The dishes are, quite simply, delicious.
With many restaurants still coming to terms with the dine-at-home phenomena, there’s plenty of room for improvement among them.
Some offer food that’s poorly labelled, that provides inadequate heating instructions, where components are hard to locate or where ingredients are, quite simply, wrong – the chef who was sending out scorched lettuce leaves remains the biggest culprit to date.
Usher, in contrast, nails it. His at home box is the best organised of the bunch, providing clear labelling and instruction so that assembling dishes is as easy as one, two, three.
We started with braised octopus with a morcilla and chick pea stew. It was mesmerising. The octopus was tender while the rich, filling flavours of the stew provided perfect ballast.
My partner’s sticky lamb neck with dukkah spice and butterbean mash was a taste of north Africa. The mix of sesame seeds, sea salt, black pepper and more elevated the humble ingredients to another level.
In many ways, it encapsulates what Usher does so well. Opting for lower cost, more flavoursome cuts and bringing additional flavour and value, it was a quintessentially Elite dish.
The mains were stunning.
A confit duck leg was served with caramelised cauliflower purée, which was full of complimentary sweet and earthy flavours. Pickled king oyster mushroom and straw potatoes added flavour and texture.
A classic braised featherblade of beef was served with creamed potato, rather than the usual parmesan chips, alongside a glazed carrot and red wine sauce.
We bought two sides, purple carrots served with smoked garlic honey, chilli and puffed rice, in addition to tenderstem broccoli with roast garlic and almond sauce, red grape, pickled shallot and dill dressing.
The balance between sweet and salty, acid and savoury was a delight.
Desserts were filling and moreish.
A caramelised white chocolate mousse was served with a brilliantly sharp toffee apple compote and a crunchy almond garnish.
A banana cake, meanwhile, was moist and light alongside a sticky, buttery butterscotch sauce, candied pecans and indulgent clotted cream.
Customer service was first rate.
Emails were clear and transparent and though the courier got lost on his way, a simple phone call put things back on track and our food arrived in good condition and on time.
Well done all round. Tastier than the rest, more clearly marked and easier to heat and assemble, it provided bags of value for a reasonable price.
As the infection rate remains higher than anyone might like, we’re going to have to get used to staying in more over a long, drawn out winter.
Elite Bistros at home brightens dark winter days and brings a little joy where it might not otherwise be found. Brilliantly conceived, fantastically executed, providing immense value and bringing modern British classics to homes everyone, it’s a cut above.
Sample menu
Starters
Potted mackerel – pickled cucumber with mustard seed and dill, sourdough crisps £13
Tenderstem broccoli with roast garlic and almond sauce, red grape, pickled shallot and dill dressing £5
Sticky lamb neck, dukkah spice, butterbean mash £9
Main
Roast butternut squash with salsa macha, red onion and lime relish, whipped sesame tofu £10
Sumac roasted cauliflower, butterbean mash, salted lemon, green chilli dressing, almond £10
Aubrey Allen’s 35 day-aged sirloin steak – glazed carrot, cauliflower cheese, red wine sauce, for two, £50
Side
Cauliflower cheese £5
Purple carrots with smoked garlic, honey, chilli and puffed rice £3
Desserts
Banana Loaf, butterscotch sauce, candied pecans and clotted cream £5
Caramelised white chocolate mousse, toffee apple compote, almond ‘crack’ £5
Contact
Email eliteathome2020@gmail.com
