I love Sundays. Mostly mine are spent training (in the morning) then the afternoon is spent lazily. Catching up on stuff I missed through the week, catching up with friends, or treating ourselves to a Sunday roast. And possibly post roast snooze.
When it comes to the roast, we’ve not indulged for a while – so it was about time we did so. And of course, given the Manchester Marathon was in full swing (and it inevitably blocks any ideas of travel), it had to be local. The Hive.
We’re already fans, that’s a given. During several lockdown Sundays it was our saviour – something to look forward too, and of course zero cooking. A bonus when you’re in each other’s pockets as there’s nowhere to go.
But this time it was a Sunday lunch in person.
The welcome as always was fabulous. Warm, attentive, but not intrusive. We had a great view of the race outside too – the bonus of being on Chester Road.
Drinks wise, we were invited to sample their new shots, Taste the Rainbow. Yep, Skittles infused into vodka – one of each colour, plus one that was a blend of all of them. Memories of teen house parties bubbled in my head.
After that, we settled on beer. Whilst there aren’t any local beers on tap, there are plenty you’ll recognise, including our choice, Brooklyn.
Roasts wise, there’s plenty to choose from – beef, chicken, pork, and lamb, plus veggie and vegan options. Whilst I’m always tempted to go veggie, this time it was classics for us. Lamb for him, pork for me. Oh and no extra cauliflower cheese this time (we were saving room for pudding!).
What I love about these roasts, is they’re not only delicious (they are) but there’s no skimping either. Everything is on there. Crisp roast potatoes, all the veggies in the world – roast parsnip, carrot and swede mash, mashed potato (extra carbs), greens, green beans, cauliflower cheese, red cabbage. Add a good sized Yorkshire pudding, and a generous serving of gravy (you can always order more, but we’ve never needed to), and you’re a very happy diner.
Slices of lamb are thin and tender. The belly pork too, melt in the mouth meat, crispy edged fat. Lush.
Plates cleaned, there was still a little room, so we had to order dessert. Especially when we heard that with the changing of the seasons, came the change in the menu. The sticky toffee pudding with Guinness ice cream was back.
Worth it. Every bite. Rich sauce, satisfying sponge, creamy but bitter – bitter enough to cut through the richness of the toffee. Heaven.
Yes, we love it there. Yes it’s effectively our local. Yes we’ll be back. And I’ll try not to make it so long before we do.