Review: Chopping Block brings French flair to York
I’M showing my age when I recall a time when the trendiest spots to eat out in the UK were bistros and brasseries serving French fare.
Places where you struggled to pronounce bouillabaise (and would shyly ask for the fish soup); where you thought you were brave by choosing the garlic snails (and braver still if you had a go at ordering the dish in French: escargots au beurre d’ail!).
Teeny pots of rich and airy chocolate mousse and the delight of cracking the burnt top of a crème brûlée to spoon the silky sweet custard beneath were the pièce de résistance.
These places were pleasure domes of flavour and exotica. With checked table clothes, rustic glass water jugs, and shelves weighed down with dusty bottles of good wine, they seemed the height of sophistication back in the 80s and 90s.
It almost goes without saying that the culinary scene in this country has undergone a revolution since then – and York has been caught up in the whirlwind.
Hardly a day goes by without a new venue opening in our city. Today you could easily eat a different type of cuisine every day for not just one week, but several. Local restaurants bring us flavours from as far away as Kerala, Korea, Morocco and Mexico, from Spain to Syria, Thailand and Tibet.
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And if you love pizza, pasta and curries, you will be spoilt for choice because York – like most of the UK – is full of restaurants, cafes and pubs where you can tuck in.
But if you fancy something French, then, ooh la la, you might have to take on the guise of Inspector Clouseau, don a magnifying glass, and hunt out a local bistro.
Alternatively, you could just Google ‘French restaurants in York’ and see what comes up.
I did that (so you don’t have to!) and here’s what was served: Rustique Restaurant in Castlegate; Hotel du Vin Bistro in The Mount, and Côte in Petergate. (Worth noting that Rustique is the only local indy among that trio – and one that we really loved when we reviewed it last year).
Dig further and a browse of TripAdvisor delivers another suggestion: the Chopping Block at the Walmgate Ale House.
Michael Hjort, owner of the Walmgate Ale House and Chopping Block restaurant. Image: Dylan Connell
Granted, the name doesn’t sound very French, and unless you know about this little gem (or petite pépite as they might say in Paris) you could easily miss out on one of the best dining experiences in the city.
Tucked away, above an old-styled ale house at the city centre end of Walmgate, the Chopping Block is described on Trip Advisor as a “French gastropub” but don’t let that put you off!
Dig beneath its name and into its back story and you’ll soon see why it deserves your attention. This is the second child (in culinary terms!) of top York chef and city food champion Michael Hjort (director of the popular York Festival of Food and Drink).
Michael’s first restaurant is the well-established Melton’s across town in Scarcroft Road, which has been going strong for 36 years and is listed in the Michelin Guide and which he runs with his wife Lucy.
Readers may recall when the Hjorts first opened in Walmgate in 2001 (in the former Ellerker’s saddle and rope shop). They called it Meltons Too, later doing a refurb and relaunching as the Walmgate Ale House in 2014, along with the Chopping Block restaurant, which sprawls above the ground-floor bar.
So why is it so fab?
This was my third visit to the restaurant in the past 18 months and on each occasion the food hit the spot.
The bar and restaurant are in a 17th century building full of dark beams, wooden floors, and old-world charm.
Ellerker’s – now the Walmgate Ale House and Chopping Block
Staff are welcoming, attentive, and knowledgeable too – able to guide you through the menu, always a plus point.
Another big bonus is the brilliant ‘set menu’ deal the restaurant offers on Friday and Saturday until 4.30pm and all day on Wednesday where two courses cost £26.50 and three courses will only set you back £30.50.
We went last Wednesday after work, taking a chance there would be a table because we hadn’t made a reservation.
Our luck was in – a large party of 15 was heading for the main restaurant area, so our waiter thoughtfully offered us a table in a quieter section, which was just perfect.
Starting with a glass of deliciously dry Prosecco (£9), we scanned the set menu choices (a choice of four starters, three mains and a trio of puds) and quickly settled on tartiflette and sea trout rillette, followed by the chicken and beef choices (Poulet a l’Estragon and “Rosbif” with Provençal Daube Sauce).
Service was swift (we were glad we got our order in before the party of 15!).
Beef main course at The Chopping Block
The fish starter was bound for my dining partner, but I stole a spoonful. The flavours of cool, slightly sweet, shredded trout, and strands of sharp fennel, delivered a fresh and zingy taste of summer.
In contrast, the tiny cauldron of tartiflette, bubbling hot with the delights of melting cheese, gooey potato, sweet onions and salty bacon, spoke of winter and autumn comfort.
We cleaned our plates, our palates prepped and excited for round two.
Again, our food came swiftly.
The Poulet a l’Estragon translated as a tender piece of pan-fried chicken thigh, matched with new potatoes with the hint of a crispy edge, and a vibrant portion of greens, in this case asparagus, green beans and samphire. It was all held together with a creamy white wine and tarragon sauce. Faultless.
The beef was a winner too – slow-roasted but cooked medium, it was tender and full of meaty flavour, enhanced by a sauce of red wine, olives and orange. I loved the secret stash of roasted carrots and parsnip puree underneath. And although the wild garlic pesto on top was a taste sensation, it should have come with a hazard warning: vampires stay clear!
Top praise, however, was reserved for the generous block of dauphinoise potato which was served alongside. This was the best of the best: soft and creamy and the sort of dish you could eat and then die happy.
Tartiflette at The Chopping Block
The menu also catered for vegetarians with options of creamy garlic mushrooms with pickled girolles and homemade bread and French onion soup to start and roast spiced cauliflower florets for a main course. A children’s menu was also available, with mains priced at £7.
The restaurant also runs a popular Sunday lunch menu every week and special menus on the last Friday of the month.
Turning to dessert, if I had one disappointment, it was not to see some French favourites on here. No chocolate mousse or brûlée or crepes. The nearest choice was the cherry and almond frangipan, which came with vanilla ice cream. Served warm, this was generous in size, more like a muffin than an elegant piece of French patisserie. It tasted great, but we would love to have tried it with a French custard instead of the ice-cream.
Frangipan pudding at The Chopping Block
Sticky toffee pudding was our second choice: this came with ice cream and was all you could wish for in a STP: a dense, school-dinner stodgy, yummy sponge with an ultra-sweet and buttery caramel sauce.
For a lighter finish, the final option was an ice cream or sorbet from local company Yorvale.
Full-to-bursting, and happy for it, we descended the stairs and walked home, thanking the Hjorts (and their talented chefs) for keeping the flavours of France so flamboyantly flying in York.
Reviews are independent and all meals paid for by The Press
Fact file
Chopping Block at Walmgate Ale House,
5 Walmgate, York
T: 01904 629222
W: thechoppingblock.co.uk
Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
Verdict:
Food: Fabuloulsy French
Ambience: Rustic charm
Service: Warm and efficient
Value: Set menu is hard to beat – go try it!
Dining and Cooking