This visit to Quarter House is looooooong overdue. I missed the opening due to a clash, and after that… I really have no excuse. Especially when I’ve known the chef since he discovered a love for barbecue.
Bad blogger.
But finally this month saw the perfect excuse. Not only 20% off (thank you January), but also the husband and I had the afternoon off to drink beer at Manchester Beer and Cider Festival. So obviously a good layer of food was needed beforehand. What better excuse for barbecue?
Quarter House is based at the Old Rosylee site on Stevenson Square. Gone are the afternoon teas, green fronds and bistro style seating. Instead there’s plenty of wood, an open plan kitchen and the smell of smoke.
But don’t think this is all ribs and brisket. The menu has small plates and burgers, tortillas, tostadas and plenty of veggie options. It’s like barbecue, but a little more eclectic, and little more creative. Not that there’s anything wrong with ribs and brisket (or links and burnt ends for that matter), but what chef Jason has created is a little different.
Because we wanted to try everything (or as much as we could happily enjoy in one sitting anyway), we steered clear of the burgers, and went over to the small plates menu, along with the toastadas, tortillas and (because I can’t resist battered and fried vegetables) the broccoli bomb fritters from the larger plates menu.
The pork belly lollipops (here in their newer menu format) were just delicious. Crisp, fatty, smoky pork, sour apple puree to cut through the fattiness. Then came the short rib and brisket parcels. Nuggets of rich smoky beef, fried in breadcrumbs and served with a little beef fat aioli. Hints of the new menu suggest these both are going to stay with a little tweak.
The broccoli fritters are thickly battered and fried, served with pickled vegetables and a slightly addictive coconut rice that kept my fork going back for more.
I couldn’t resist the ancho halloumi tostada. Crisp base, squeaky cheese, and that distinctive ancho flavour, all served with plenty of fresh vegetables and salsa to help cut through the saltiness of the cheese. We chose the tasty El Pastor pork as a tortilla (just to balance things out), and there was a small debate as to who had the last one of each – the only downside to these is them coming in threes!
On a recommendation, we added the shwarma fries. These, or the Shwarma chicken large plate should be on every meat eaters table. Crispy chicken in a schwarma marinade, double fried, painted with Korean glaze and in our case served on top of a pile of fries and topped with garlic mayonnaise and sliced spring onions.
Did you hear that? My tummy just growled.
Overall, this is a great spot for barbecue that’s not just big smokers and huge hunks of meat. Jason is award winning for a reason. And we definitely won’t be leaving it this long next time – after all, there is a new menu incoming.
