Dinner at the Northall: Mains
For the main I had the hake with mussels, beans and velouté sauce. The fish was perfectly cooked: soft and flaky without losing its structure, and the crispy skin was marvellous. I would have liked more mussels as they added a more pungent note of the sea to the dish, but with the deep flavour of the beans and the light fishiness of the sauce it was a gorgeous combination.
I am usually in the fortunate position of being that guy who always ends up with the most delicious dish through the will of the gastronomic gods. However, the gods were smiling on Madsen that night because while my hake was scrummy, his pork belly was incredible.
Aside from that inedible protrusion of rock hard crackling, this dish was a delight. Pork belly is always devilishly good with just the right balance of fat and meat below crispy crackling but this was so good I involuntarily made an embarrassing noise. Sweet and salty pork melted in the mouth and the crunch of the crispy fat on top was sheer heaven. The cabbage was fresh and crunchy, adding just a hint of bitterness, and the mushrooms intensified the rich flavour of the meat. I could go on and on about this, so I’ll stop there before I go overboard. YUM.