There are some restaurants that you have such a perfect experience at that you dare not revisit in case it does not live up to that memory. Restaurant Sat Bains is one of those – a restaurant I had visited nearly 4 years ago for my birthday and had one of those most interesting, thought-provoking meals. I can still remember each and every single dish of that meal which is a testament to how memorable my experience was. This would be my 3rd visit here, having visited once when they held a solitary star. For the complete, experience, we would also be staying in one of the hotel rooms, which are all individually furnished and unique. Nothing beats rolling into bed after a lengthy meal.
We had some difficulty booking as the restaurant only takes bookings a few months in advance. We were not disappointed - it was well worth the wait. The restaurant is quite small and intimate, but very comfortable. Service is excellent, the waiters attentive and knowledgeable but not intrusive. Our 10 Course menu was amazing with excellent attention to detail. We even got to meet Sat in the Kitchens, Thanks to all who made our visit special. We will definitely be making a return visit next time we are in the UK.
Nestling beneath a concrete underpass, just beyond the tobacco factory, around the bend from a large electricity pylon, on the banks of the river Trent, lies two Michelin starred Restaurant Sat Bains. It’s taken me a while to post anything about Sat Bains. Mainly because unusually, I find myself relatively inarticulate when describing how exciting I find eating at his restaurant. As a foodie holic, noting memorable dining experiences since 8 years old (seriously), I’m rarely lost for words about food. One word summarises the experience: joy. What follows borders on evangelical enthusing, but I don’t care. Here are a few of the reasons for my joy at the experience of visiting his restaurant, leaving me enthusing like Tigger.
I started writing this on route to Chicago many thousands of feet up in the air a couple of weeks back, and it is pure tardiness and a need to get this story just right that has been delaying me posting the story of that night and the event. It has taken me a couple of weeks to finally put fingers to keyboard and get the post finished. They do say that good things come to those that wait, and just as we waited patiently for some little tasters and morsels from Chef Bains on that evening, I hope that you will forgive the wait for this tale? A food event at an EON electricity showroom was not something that I was anticipating happening in my lifetime, and an EON food event with a double Michelin starred chef was even more unlikely, but that was where I found myself recently sitting in the EON Open House at 33 Lister Gate on the front row staring up at Sat Bains . Right there before my very eyes he was cooking away with one of his young chefs Liam Nichols who had adopted a red EON shirt
I did have a great time at Sat Bains despite the circumstances. I can’t thank the staff enough for how well they looked after us. I will definitely be going back when we’re both healthy.
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Part 2:
The Crossover - a dish to ease the transition between savoury and sweet, it was an absolute mind bending belter. A 'jammy dodger' made from tomato, and a sherbet dip made from carrot covered in a sweet, sticky sauce and the sherbet being fully spoonable once the carrot had gone.
Lenton Lane - world class. An interpretation of the classic Rocky road (and Lenton Lane definitely is a rocky road - my suspension will never be the same), it was the most intensely rich, flavoursome and chocolatey dessert I've ever had. The honeycomb was incredible, the aero light and the chocolate snow added last minute is inspired. A picture of a dish as well.
Perilla - man oh man, another one I didn't expect a huge amount from when it was presented, but a proper little box of tricks it was. The cold, possibly semifreddo coconut cream was unbelievably tasty, and distracted me from the cherry hiding underneath. The cherry took me by surprise, a very pleasant surprise! It was the perfect foil to the rich Lenton Lane that came before it.
Conclusion - another absolute mind melter, it's candy floss, but hiding within us a solid, sweet block of, what tastes a lot like Thai green curry. It's all very weird but absolutely delicious. There's every chance the pastry chef is a wizard.
Also a shout to the black treacle bread!
This is an experience that will stay with me forever. I'd built this up in my head so much before going, and it absolutely exceeded all expectations. You won't find a better restaurant in the UK in my opinion - Sat and the team, you are absolute legends!
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A 2 star Michelin restaurant in Nottingham? Rooms, steps away from their restaurant? Oh no, would I be able to book dinner & a room with only a week's notice? The stars aligned and YES, I had a reservation (restaurant is open only 4 nights/week).
Its tucked away on back roads near the River Trent. We arrived early and took a stroll for a couple hours around the river. Upon our return, we were immediately led to a perfectly cozy, quaint room. Outdoor patio seating, indoor seating area, cold water, fantastic tea & coffee, with fresh milk in the room were waiting along with a hot shower and plush towels. We were so comfortable, we were disappointed that we had to rush off for meetings.
We returned for our 9pm dinner reservation. We arrived 15 minutes early for a cocktail. And then we were led to the table for our culinary adventure to begin. I have been to 2 star Michelin restaurant, Melisse and 3 star Michelin restaurant Per Se and each restaurant offers a unique experience. Sat Bains was elegant, yet casual and the only one to offer a room that was commensurate with the dining experience. Thus, its been our favorite experience.
We opted for the 7 course tasting menu and added Duck Egg and Wine Pairings. The 7 courses included Scallop, Deer, Royal Kidney, Grouse, Chocolate and Blackcurrant. The wine pairings were a global experience, as well, with wines from Germany, Australia, Hungary, Uruguay, Argentina, New Zealand and California. Its always a challenge with an evening like this to not "tap out." We barely made it through, but loved the ability to schlepp to the comfort of our room.
But it doesn't end there! In the morning, an incredible breakfast is provided in the atrium. Fresh orange juice, the BEST yogurt I had ever eaten, etc. After breakfast, I just wanted to go back to sleep, but alas, back to work.
Finally, ALL staff was friendly, accommodating and we would love to return. An extraordinary experience.
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The GPS had a difficult time finding this small, Nottingham Forest restaurant with rooms near a highway and industrial estate with huge Boots and Imperial Tobacco complexes. A very odd location.
As we drive into the car park, we were watching chefs shucking freshly arrived scallops.
We had a 40 minute walk along the riverside to the left and large fields to the right...and the industrial monstrosities in the background. Along the walk, we saw one of the restaurant's chefs and a person visiting to learn how to cook picking veggies for our lunch. Literally, just on the riverside. No doubt helps with margin as their cost was zero!
Upon entering the restaurant, we were taken to a small, delightful courtyard where two domesticated rabbits (Biscuit and Junior) were holding court and nibbling on the plants. Adorable!
We were escorted to The Chef's Table, which is a small room with a door opened to the kitchen. Excellent!
Sat Bains is Indian. "Too many chefs, only one Indian. Sat Bains".
Tasting Menu :
Postal Code NG7 2SA is the name of the amuse bouche. It is Horse radish ice cream with a fresh green puree made of the herbs growing outside the restaurant.
Scallop white with ponzu sauce and vanilla mayo and nuts/seeds. Scallops arrived this morning. Excellent flavors and textures allow the scallop to shine. Oh My Yummy God ("OMYG")...WOW!...... Read more
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My ski friend summed it up perfectly by saying : 'There is no wasted mouthful at this restaurant.'
The reunion of my ski gang at Alton Towers this weekend gave me the perfect chance to introduce them to the 2 Michelin star wizardry of Sat Bains' cooking
As we were a party of 6, they offered us the Kitchen Table experience, which was new to me. On arrival, I was surprised to find that we were immediately led out of the main building, past some rabbit hutches (we were assured they were pets, not part of the dinner menu!) and into the cool development kitchen at the back of the property
We were introduced to Canadian Dan, who would be our chef for the evening and he helped us feel at home immediately. The kitchen has some great kitchen technology on show as it's a working kitchen (Henkelman vacuum packer, anyone?) and the 6 seats are arranged at the counter with a great view of everything going on in the kitchen. As you can guess, this was heaven for me and Dan was very happy to indulge all my food geek questions
Dining in the Kitchen Table means that you get a £99 8 course menu (the other dining areas get either a 7 or 10 course menu). There are optional courses of Sat's 62 degree egg which shot him to fame on the Great British Menu TV program and cheese. The sommelier was great at advising on wine choices and despite not being in the main dining area, we were well looked after in all aspects of service
The menu is meant as a surprise, so there was nothing to guide us except Dan announcing each dish as it was served and of course, my prying eyes trying to guess!
Amuse bouche 1 - horsseradish ice cream sandwich, lovage tuile
A lovely amalgamation of disparate flavours which worked well together
Amuse bouche 2 - wild garlic soup with horseradish chawanmushi
The chefs go foraging and the foraged ingredients, like the wild garlic are all found within 100m of the restaurant. Lovely soup but the set custard could have done with a little more horseradish flavour
Some yummy treacle bread and sourdough was served with Lincolnshire poacher butter and their own butter made at the restaurant, both with 3% salt. Let's just say we asked for and received extra treacle bread!
1. Seared scallop. scallop tartare, compressed watermelon, samphire, caviar
Lovely to see how to cook scallops perfectly though I loved the scallop tartare more, which was dressed in homemade soured cream
2. Duck liver muesli
Such a simple name for my favourite dish on this menu. Basically, the main component are cold pebbles of liquefied foie gras, which have been solidified by dropping them into liquid nitrogen. The most amazing rich intense flavour emerges as they melt on your tongue and match the crunchy toasted oats, cranberrynad other sweet components in the dish
3. Salmon, oyster froth/broth, pickled cucumber, plum sauce, puffed wild rice
The salmon had been brined for 10 minutes and then sous vided for 10 minutes at 42 degrees, coming out almost like sashimi but with more flavour. Again, perfectly matched with the other ingredients for flavour, texture and temperature
4. Shallot, thyme, thyme granite
Seriously, how can you get a baked shallot to be so sweet and have so much flavour? Then, the thyme granite lifts it and makes it light. Genius
5. Roasted roe deer, venison tartare, mushroom ketchup, seared mushroom, pine mayonnaise
Roe, a deer, a female deer. Sorry, couldn't resist!. Back to the food - in this dish, they paired the deer with stuff like pine which they would eat. Again, the tartare was my favourite component with great gamey flavour. The flavours were enhanced by some pine heated up in a mini pan to give the aroma of pine! I spied some purple powder on the plate and asked Dan what it was - juniper berry powder. The attention to detail is mind-boggling
6. Lolly stick of beetroot ice cream , white chocolate & freeze dried raspberries
Great palate cleanser
7. 'Tiramisu'
A base of white chocolate which had been aerated in a Pacojet topped with other deconstructed components of the Italian dessert classic. Very clever, great fun and yummy
8. 'Strawberries & cream'
Another delightfully judged dish with sweet and acid flavours of strawberry mixing with comforting unctuous creaminess underneath
I think what Sat excels at is to add the surprise dimension of temperature to that of flavour balance and texture. Every mouthful is a delight and I have to re-quote my friend that there is no wasted mouthful at this restaurant!
Thanks to Daniel Patterson and Coi, I have now been exposed to the great cooking of Sat Bains. Like his counterpart in SF, the seaonality and local focus of ingredients yields magic when combined with his creative combinations and technique.
-Oxtail in mushroom ketchup, served with a sous-vide duck egg and shaved porcinis. Apparently the ketchup is of 1700s historical recipes brought back by Heston Blumenthal . LIke a Worcestershire sauce, it melded with the beef and egg, paired with Radikon 'Oslavje' from Friuli.
-Brassicas, radishes, flowers, charred onion ash, and smoked Hollandaise. A signature off of his tasting menu, it was surprising that this was served after the protein but then the smoked elements with the ash maybe strong enough to mask the complexity of the former mushroom ketchup.
I think I'd make a UK trip for the Olympics next year as an excuse to come and try more of his fare.
The service, ambience and rooms are very very good. However, the food, whilst beautifully presented, did not hit all the high points for my palate. Some really excellent dishes, "from the embers" was outstanding along with the "wagyu peppercorns". But for me, the beautiful smoked eel was totally overpowered by the truffle sauce and both of us found the salmon wrapped in seaweed left an odd taste in the mouth.
It was lovely to retire outside into the beautiful wooden hut after the meal and indulge in lovely chocolate and coffee.
Breakfast the following morning was superb.
You have to admire the work and techniques involved in presenting a unique foodie experience.
October James Photography
+5
Absolutely first class from start to finish. We have never had a tasting menu before where each and every course was so memorably delicious. Just as impressive were the wonderful staff. From the moment Jorge greeted us, to Tamas expertly explaining each dish and Innes expertly running the restaurant, everyone was extremely friendly, professional and a real credit to the restaurant. We shall be retuning very soon.
Lunch.
On an industrial estate just outside Nottingham under pylons and a flyover.
But don't let that put you off.
A little local we know that we've been going to for the last 25 years.
When we arrived, the staff were all smiles and jovial.
We were seated at the kitchen bench.
This is a favourite spot as you can watch all the action for an epic 15 courses.
The food is sublime, and every dish is a taste sensation from this 2 Michelin Star restaurant.
Thank you to all the lovely staff for the excellent service.
Highly recommended.
wow...WoW... WOW! Hubby & I came to celebrate his birthday. Booked the Winter triptych package (10 courses & B&B) was it worth it ABSOLUTELY! From start to end our experience at Sat Bains establishment excelled our expectations. I knew it would be great but it was an exceptional & unique experience. Yes it is pricey, but worth every penny, amazing food experiece, fabulous interior & great exploring the grounds. Most important was every staff member went above & beyond to welcome & ensure you had an amazing time. Very knowledgable in their service provided. Also added bonus getting to meet Sat Bains in person who came out to wish my hubby Happy Birthday, thank you team Bains for ensuring we had a wonderful time. Special thanks to reception staff, Harry, Thomas & Jake. Also another the tall gent serving with fab hair. Thank you xXx Mark & Jag xXx
An amazing meal, easy to see why they have two Michelin Stars!
We sat at the Kitchen Bench, it was so interesting seeing behind the scenes. Lily and Jake were very friendly and answered all our questions while doing their work.
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