In Manchester, we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to supper clubs. Drunken Butcher, Schmalz n Pepper, Wendy’s House, The Spice Club, Arepa! Arepa!… The list goes on and on.
But in Liverpool and Merseyside, the list is much smaller. There’s Madge’s Gaff, run by the lovely Mary who I’ve been lucky enough to interview, and then over in Hoylake there’s Supper Club at The Nook.
For the uninitiated, a supper club can sound a bit, well, odd. You book online for a dinner at a secret location. Then a few days ahead of the meal, you’ll receive an email with the details of where you’re to go, and you go with a bottle of wine or two in hand to someone’s house to meet a bunch of strangers to eat, drink and be merry.
But though it sounds weird, it’s well worth popping your supper club cherry. I’ve met some fantastic people, who’ve become friends, eaten some fabulous food and particularly for those on a budget, it can be a cheaper way of eating out.
At The Nook, Nancy, Jorge (George) and Suzanna are your hosts and whilst Nancy is a born and bred Merseysider, Jorge and Suzanna are Spanish and it’s the combination of their passion, skills, and the local produce in Hoylake itself that go into creating their dining experience.
It’s also easy to forget how close Hoylake is to the coast, and we couldn’t resist a little walk away from our destination to enjoy the sea breeze.
Our fellow guests were a mix of couples and singles, and we were welcomed by our hosts with a range of nibbles and a cocktail – Cava, gin and orange went into a Spanish 75 (rather than a French 75).
Our appetisers were perfect to get our taste buds going – anchovies and fat green olives, as well as dates stuffed with blue cheese and wrapped in bacon – simple tapas style morsels to go with our fizz.
Duly seated, we chatted with our fellow guests, popped corks and opened wine ahead of our first course, a chilled broad bean soup, with crisp pancetta. I was in heaven. I love broad beans and this fresh, sweet, creamy soup, matched with the crisp salty ham was delicious, and unsurprisingly gone in seconds.
Our second course was another classic, the tortilla, but layered in a ‘sandwich’ with fresh tomatoes, peppers and home made mayonnaise. Tortillas have for me been a disappointment in most restaurants I’ve visited. Dry, uninteresting, undercooked potato, overcooked egg.
This was lovely! The filling lightened it, the mayonnaise added creaminess, but the tortilla itself was better than any I’ve tasted before.
The mackerel escabeche too was delicious. The fish is fried until the skin is crisp, before being marinaded in vinegar and spices. It gives what can be a heavy, oily fish, a light sweet and sour flavour and the freshness of the fish was apparent.
Freshly baked bread, made by Nancy that morning arrived ahead of our next course. the pork cheeks.
Slow cooked pork cheeks in red wine, and topped with crispy deep fried potato. The pork was incredibly tender and the merest pressure caused it to surrender, the reduced liquid the perfect foil for bread dunking.
Then the bit I was looking forward to the most. What’s a paella, but not a paella? A fideua.
Brought out to applause, the fideua is a noodle version of a paella. The same incredibly well prepared stocks are added, the same flavours, but the texture is different and in a good way.
I’m more than converted.
You can taste the time and patience that’s gone into the preparation and this with the fresh seafood created something that I’m going to categorically state is worth the visit to Hoylake alone. Again Jorge, again. Please.
All too soon things were coming to an end. Dessert beckoned.
A moist, orange and almond cake, served with a little cream. I made myself take my time, because this was another delicious course, and went beautifully with the dessert wine brought by a fellow guest. I’m going to have to try and recreate this at home.
Over tea, coffee and coffee liqueur, we thanked our hosts for such a wonderful meal. This was some of the best Spanish food we’ve ever eaten.
I suspect, despite the distance, yeah guys, we’ll be back again.
All food and drink consumed at this event was paid for by ourselves.
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