The award-winning Cumbrian pub will incorporate fermented foods and the controversial Non-Native Invasive Ingredients in its second-ever dinner series for autumn and winter.
THE BLACK BULL in Sedbergh, Cumbria, are creating three one-off tasting menus with a fourth dinner to be announced shortly cooked in tandem with a very special guest chef.
Each of the three menus will be distinctly different and focuses on an aspect of cooking that chef-owner Nina Matsunaga holds dear, resulting in a series of unique five-course tasting menus.
The first will take place on Wednesday 23 October with an exclusive five-course Japanese-inspired tasting menu to highlight the diverse cookery found in Japanese cuisine, with a particular focus on taste, texture and balance which are the fundamental ingredients in Nina’s cooking. This menu will as with all of her food focus on seasonality and locality to deliver a multi-sensory dining experience.
The second five-course tasting menu will be served up on Wednesday 27 November This menu will be entirely focused on Non-Native Invasive Ingredients, including crayfish, jellyfish, and venison.
“I have especially selected ingredients that are frequently seen as being harmful to our environment and are responsible for reducing the habitats and populations of our native species,” said Nina.
The controversial ingredients will be key elements in the five-course tasting menu designed to challenge perceptions.
“By using them rather than wasting them, we can raise awareness and play a small part in helping to reduce their impact on our environment,” she said.
The third five-course tasting menu will take place on Thursday 23 January, focusing on Fermented Foods.
There are as many as 5000 fermented foods consumed worldwide for thousands of years.
The foods include cheese, yoghurt and sourdough bread to more specialised ingredients such as kimchi and miso from Asia, sauerkraut and creme fraiche from Europe, shanklish and doogh from the Middle East, poi and atole agrio from the Americas and garri and togwa from Africa.
The Black Bull was recently awarded three accolades in the AA Awards. It retained its second AA Red Rosette for Culinary Excellence for the second year in a row, added the AA five-star Inn Award, moving up from four stars previously, won the AA Breakfast Award and was awarded with the Notable Wine List Award for its extensive wine list consisting of natural, sustainable and organic wines.
“We’re delighted that we’ve maintained our Two AA Rosettes for Culinary Excellence. Adding the AA five-star Inn Award, an AA Breakfast Award, and the fact that the AA has also chosen to recognise the strength and depth of our wine list with a Notable Wine List Award too is the icing on the cake,” said James Ratcliffe, Black Bull co-owner.
The AA Hotel Services’ Hotel & Restaurant inspector described the gastro pub as “an ever-refining dining product, which now features a tasting option, giving a chance to lift quality and consistency.
“At dinner, there was a good sense of luxury ingredients handled with care and an adherence to principles of sustainability. The wine lists read very well indeed and covers a huge amount of ground offering a superb depth and choice. The breakfast menus are concise with the focus rightly on quality.”
Each five-course tasting menu is priced at £60.00 per person.
There’s limited availability for each evening with places for up to 40 guests.
Matched drink pairings will also be available each night.
For the Japanese dinner, there are multiple sittings with tables available at 6.00pm, 7.15pm, and 8.00pm
Dinner on the following dates: 27 November, 23 January, and 18 February, starts promptly at 7.00pm.
The fourth and final dinner will be served on Tuesday 18 February as Nina steps into the Black Bull’s kitchen to collaborate with a very special guest chef to be announced shortly.
To book a place call 015396 20264 or email bookings@theblackbullsedbergh.co.uk
