THE SHED RESTAURANT

Created by brothers Oliver and Richard Gladwin, The Shed is an extension of their rural lifestyle back in Nutbourne, West Sussex.

The menu changes daily, with produce sourced from their youngest brother Gregory, based as a farmer back in Nutbourne, as well as other local suppliers.

Their style of cooking focuses on nose-to-tail cooking so that nothing is wasted, which is essential to The Shed kitchen.

The interior is charming and quirky, as we walked past the Tractor Bonnet Bar, through to the restaurant area. We didn't have a reservation, but just about managed to get a table, as we perched ourselves onto our cushioned three-legged stools round our barrel table, eyes hungrily scanning the menu before us.

Despite my initial plan to not drink that evening, I gave in and ordered The Shed Daily Loosener: Damson In Distress, made with steeped damson chase vodka, pear and lemon.

| Bread Basket: The Shed Malt Star Sourdough Bread |

We ordered a couple of mouthfuls to nibble on whilst waiting for the main dishes to be served. The pork scratching was nice and crisp and went well with the sweet apple jam. The crab bombs had a nice, golden crunchy shell, and you could definitely taste the spiciness from the chilli.

| Pork Scratching, Apple Jam |

| Brown Crab Bomb, Chilli, Lime |

The menu, like many places, is based on small sharing plates, and was divided into 'Slow' and 'Fast' categories. We ordered one vegetable dish, which had an interesting combination of flavours and textures. The stout cured mackerel was one of my favourite dishes, the richness of the mackerel enhanced by the deep flavours of the stout, balanced with the sweetness from the pumpkin and cranberry jam.
The braised pork hash looked interesting, topped with a brightly coloured, gooey egg yolk. I did however find the dish to be bland compared to the other dishes.

| Salsify, Pear, Walnut, Red Endive, Chanterelles |

| Stout Cured Mackerel, Pumpkin, Kale, Cranberry Jam |

| Braised Pork Hash, Egg, Black Cabbage, Garlic |

The Nutbourne lamb was nice and tender, with a lovely shade of pink, served on a creamy bed of barley and malt. I am not usually a fan of hearts, as I do sometimes find them a bit too chewy, but I was interested to try out the recommended grilled beef heart. I have to admit that I quite enjoyed it, the texture was much more pleasant than I was expecting, and I liked the additional crunch from the artichoke crisps.

| Nutbourne Lamb, Squash, Barley, Malt, Oak Moss |

| Grilled Beef Heart, Celeriac, Artichoke, Almonds, Lovage Pesto |

And finally, as of no surprise with me, we tried all three desserts from the menu...

I do love a good Vienetta, something that I haven't had for a while, and I really did enjoy The Shed version with the crunchy layers of chocolate and sweet caramel in between. The honeycomb crunchy was sweet and simple, which reminded me of those Crunchy bars that I used to munch on when I was younger. 

The whiskey cream was probably the most 'grown-up' dessert amongst them - soft and smooth like a panna cotta, with contrasting textures from the crunchy oats, complemented by the fresh flavours of the rhubarb and sweetness from the honey. A delightful combination of flavours.

| The Shed Magnum Vienetta Parfait |

| Honeycomb Crunchy, Chocolate, Mascarpone, Tarragon Sugar |

| Set Whiskey Cream, Oats, Honey, Rhubarb |

I really enjoyed my evening there, and I can't believe that it has taken me so long to visit even though it is quite close to where I work. Friendly and welcoming service, and great food in a casual setting - I would definitely recommend a visit.
I also look forward to visiting their second restaurant, Rabbit in Chelsea, which I am sure will be just as good.

The Cheekster, signing out x

THE LITTLE YELLOW DOOR

The Little Yellow Door is based on a "Flatshare" concept, with 5 flatmates opening their living room to the public, for great dinner and house parties. 
The pop-up which launched about three months ago has been quite a hit in the London scene, run by the team behind TLYD whose past projects include ROXX club, Press Play immersive film nights and The Wandering Chef supper clubs.

Apart from being on the wrong side of the road (typical me), the place was surprisingly quite easy to find. Somehow in my mind I was expecting to be walking down some dark hidden alley, but it was conveniently located just along the main road.

I arrived outside the yellow door a few minutes before the doors were about to open at 6.30pm, and met some other bloggers who were just as curious as me as to what awaited us behind that yellow door. When it was time, we were greeted by the doorman and we made our way up the steep and (slightly rickety) narrow stairs.

There was a small reception desk at the top of the stairs, where we dropped off our coats, before being handed a piece of LEGO which was our drink token.

Stepping through the main entrance actually felt like stepping into someone else's front room. There were a couple of long dining tables with checkered tablecloths set out on the right, whilst towards the left was the bar where our drinks awaited us. The whole room was dimly lit, with The Big Lebowski playing in the background, projected onto the wall. Plasma TV screens are after all so yesterday, right?
 With a rather eclectic blend of decor, the room was filled with a collection of furniture, artwork and random pieces that wouldn't or shouldn't normally be placed together in the same room, yet it sort of worked. Unless of course you had some form of OCD, then this might be an issue...
A bit of like stepping into Wonderland - I've always wanted to feel what it would be like to be in Alice's shoes. Although not quite literally, as I do have pretty big feet...

At the bar, we each received welcome drink in exchange for our LEGO piece - The Libertine (Earl Grey-infused Gin, Lemon, Gomme, Egg White) served in a teacup with a Jammy Dodger on the side. This was definitely my kind of tea party. Kind of like a going through a weird transition from teenage-hood to adulthood, although some of us may have been past that stage a while ago... *secretly tries to conceal my actual age*

I sat on my comfy stool, and attempted to sip on my 'tea' like a lady as I nibbled away on my Jammy Dodger, secretly wondering if I could steal another Jammy Dodger from someone else's plate...

I do sometimes feel very much like a 12-year-old inside, or at least that's what my Health MOT thought of my Metabolic Age. I have it printed in black and white - can't argue with facts now, can we?

 (Re-)embracing my childhood, and doing things in reverse - because that's how I roll...

I also tried some watermelon/cucumber cooler concoction that was sweet and refreshing.

If you're as much of a fan as me of John Travolta, then you should make a visit to the toilet, where you will find some interesting pictures of him plastered on the wall.
Ah the days that I used to ogle at him when he played the hot leather-clad Danny in Grease...
Before he started piling on the pounds.

When everyone had arrived, we proceeded to be seated at the dining table, hungrily awaiting the feast that was to be served that evening.
Dinner is always hosted by their newest flatmate, who in this instance was Luigi, an Italian from Napoli, who had specially prepared a four course Italian feast for us.

A basket of rye crisps was passed around the table, and not long after, our sharing plates of starters arrived...
I was particularly a fan of the smoked beef carpaccio and the arancini balls.

| Antipasti |

- Burrata with Mint Pesto, Cured Tomatoes, Smoked Aubergine, Confit Onions and Rye Crisps -

- Prosciutto, Lardo, Peach, Basil & Almonds -

- Smoked Beef Carpaccio with Mustard Dressing, Crispy Capers and Salted Ricotta -

- Arancini of Mushroom and Asparagus with Truffle and Porcini Mayonnaise -

The first course was a huge dish of duck ragu tagliatelle, which was one of my favourites. I don't eat pasta that often these days, but I couldn't help myself from having a few helpings whilst trying not to look like a glutton. The bowl, or in this case, large mugs, was after all quite small, which justifies an extra helping or two...maybe even three.
I also later realized, after being told by the chef, that there was actually a lot of offal used in the dish. I don't usually eat offal, but it was cooked really well with the tagliatelle, which was so delicious that I didn't even notice!
The belly porchetta that came after was equally as indulgent - tender slices of belly porchetta with crunchy crackling.

| Primi |

- Egg Tagliatelle with Spiced Duck Ragu -

| Secondi |

- Belly Porchetta with Caponata, Pickled Baby Vegetables, Sultanas, Capers, and Pine Nuts -

We had three mini desserts each, all really tasty and was thankfully not too heavy as we were all pretty full by then. This was followed by Coffee & Cigarettes - an espresso martini with an actual cigarette and a box of matches on the side!

I obviously don't smoke, but I thought that it was pretty cool.

| Dolci |

- Sicilian Cannelloni with Pistachios -

- Pine Nut Caramel Tart with Marsala Raisins -

- Chocolate and Tiramisu Panna Cotta -

| Caffe |

- Coffee & Cigarettes (Grand Brulot, Espresso Coffee, Tobacco Gomme) -

There was also a quirky sort of room at the far end, the 'Tree House', which was a really cosy space with comfy pillows, sports memorabilia and stacks of boardgames for entertainment.

Back at the bar, we all had our cameras ready as the 'Towering Inferno' was set on fire - an impressive show, but definitely not something to try at home!

A really fun and interesting evening, and it was lovely to meet other fellow bloggers - definitely a place worth checking out.

The venue is also available for private hire, accomodating for dinners, canapé and drinks receptions, and other corporate events. 
Apparently regular visitors to The Little Yellow Door will also receive a key to the door so they can come and leave as they wish, with some extra perks on the side...
Click on the links below for more information, and get yourself booked in to experience it for yourself.

The Little Yellow Door

68, Notting Hill Gate, London W11 3HT

www.thelittleyellowdoor.co.uk

www.facebook.com/thelittleyellowdoor

instagram.com/The_little_yellow_door 

The Cheekster, signing out x