Review - The Wild Garlic, Beaminster, Dorset

Review of: The Wild Garlic Restaurant (04/08/09)

Mat Follas – Owner / Chef

I felt I knew Mat even before I met him at his new restaurant in Beaminster, Dorset having seen him on Macterchef 2009 and other TV spots. Mat is a true devotee of modern communication media – including websites, blogs, Twitter and Facebook (and probably others!) and that has helped in spreading the word about his new venture from the day he won Masterchef 2009 to getting him booked up weeks in advance already. Is it him or the restaurant people are coming to?

With this infamy it was a little difficult to turn up to his restaurant with an open mind, trying to ignore any pre-conceptions and earlier reviews.

We arrived to be warmly greeted by his front of house – someone I had met earlier in the year at the European Inn so that made me feel even more welcome. The ambiance is just right and the décor together with pastel green (a shade of which is seen all over Dorset!), good lighting and subdued music (to be honest it isn’t necessary) made us relax very quickly. The tables are made from ‘green’ oak – the type that will warp, shrink and crack and look really good with age. Chairs are of the Christine Keeler variety (I see Mat as the Christmas centre fold like Ms Keeley, straddling the chair – well, not really!) and although Mrs H thought they looked a little out of place, I thought they were comfortable – I probably have a little more padding where it matters!

Mat is trying to make the restaurant casual and informal and it works like that. That said, I do like a better glass to drink wine from and a better napkin – not bad if those are the only faults I can find there!

The menu is short and supplemented by a few specials on the blackboard. ALL the specials looked good and I should have gone for the lot – but my jeans are already a little snug and I am trying to lose some weight! My shoulders did drop a little when I didn’t see any of this signature dishes on the menu.

Mat came out to serve the starter himself to us. Blimey he’s lost some weight (and I have put some on) – such is life in the stress lane. He is relaxed, polite and genuinely pleased to come out and mix. How refreshing. Mat is after as much feedback as possible – he really wants to succeed and I think if he carries on the way he is doing, he will. ‘We have got some way to go yet’ he admits.

My starter is a pea,winkle and scallop fritter. Conjured up earlier in the day – that’s what I call an adventurous chef. It was a very tasty dish – I was worried it may taste too much of one thing – normally egg! It didn’t and I enjoyed the lot. It was garnished with a fantastic salad – mostly of herbs and flowers – again a delight to look at and eat. Mrs H went for the goats cheese starter – I managed to prise a forkful from her and It was very good. Next we ordered a mussel gratin. I’m not sure if my dish was going to be delayed but out came a pea based dip and rustic crackers. Only then to quickly get my gratin. The dish was different in the fact it had spinach in the gratin and yes, more fabulous salad to the side. Maybe a slightly too sweet a dressing but not so much. A little rest and then it was on to the main courses.

I chose a ribeye steak and MrsH a lamb dish. The lamb dish was served with a minted pea puree, small roated potatoes and mange tout. It was a resounding success. My steak dish turned up and I did feel a little overfaced – my fault really as I sneaked in most of the gratin! The steak looked a little odd for ribeye. I immediately dipped my fork into the smoked mash as it was a new taste for me and good it was. Roasted veg and a princely dollop of tarragon butter on the meat. The meat was rich and succulent, not the most tender piece in the world and a little bit more rare than I would have ordered but the taste was great. When Mat came out to ask me if all was OK, I learnt I was eating water buffalo – that explained it! It is difficult to know whether a few spoonfuls of pan juices with decent stock as a sauce would have improved the dish – I think maybe it would – but I was OK about that. Mrs H opted off the pudding section (and I couldn’t eat 2! So I went for the poached pear with geranium and ice cream. What a delight and a very slight hint of geranium a really good finish. After a little toing and froing, I also managed to get a desert wine to wash it all down.

Mrs H thought the restaurant was fabulous. “I didn’t think it was going to be anywhere that good – what with him not being a proper chef” Mmm, well I see her point.

The atmosphere was great – in fact it was good to see tables talking to one another.

I think it all works. Mat comes across as a decent guy who really wants to see people enjoying his food. A man after my own heart really – well done, we’ll be back.