PEARLY COW AT NO.42. It was lucky my date was hot.

I've been quiet of late. The disposable cash drought pandemic has spread across the country like wildfire, no-one is safe.

Today is a special day for us, it needs to be a special reason to justify going out nowadays doesn't it? 

Well actually it was a couple of weeks ago, nether the less this gave me an opportunity to sharpen my pencil and write this little review of the Pearly Cow which is the restaurant within the recently renovated No.42 in Margate which is an exciting addition to the boutique chain of hotels by Guesthouse. 

I have written a piece about their opening and their menu before... That review is here but basically it was a blustering warning of pricing yourself out of a seaside town when the busy trading months are numbered in single digit weeks. So today was my opportunity to see how close I was to the mark, oh and treat the wife for our special occasion. I know it is expensive but today money is no barrier.. let's go...

It is a Sunday, mid afternoon on a relatively chilly April day. There isn't many people around the town, it is still outside of the season afterall. I bet local businesses are praying for this winter to end and a better summer than we had last year!

It is my first time inside this building, I am excited to see what it's packing.. it's got the bants but until you do the reveal you can never really tell what's in its.. stop it..

It's not that big.... I expected more.

It's what you do with it that counts..

A warm greeting upon entry and verification of our booking and we quickly find ourselves at our table. To the left as you face the sea is a servery with a couple of cooks that appear to be plating up, but the counter obscures the view. There is no visible cooking going on here so adds little to provide the theatre of an open kitchen.

Where's all the flames then?

(Image credit: Toby Mitchell/GuestHouse Hotels)

It is decorated beautifully and when the weather allows the space opens to a beautiful balcony with simply the best views across Margate's golden sands and of course those sunsets which Turners paintings made so famous. 

It feels a little canteeny, maybe it is because the balcony is not open and everything is a little squished, we were seated by the window which was nice and light but I felt like I was shoulder to shoulder with the table next to us. It didn't feel intimate. Maybe the tables all pushed together in the centre of the room for a large group kinda ruined the ambience.. it's not a massive deal though but added here to set the mood of the room on my visit.

That isn't a criticism but a note worthy point that the table was clearly a few families with small kids too, so take it as an indicator of how there remains a demand for high quality dining in a family friendly setting.. they were noisy though, and that didn't bother me, but when you come for a performance at the theatre you expect a level of respect for it.. you have paid good money afterall.

So let's get down to business. 

Being a Sunday there is one menu which is based around the Sunday lunch. Simply choose a main and then add a starter, pudding or both!

£32 for 2 courses, £38 for 3 courses. There is no option to have just the main. Price is always a contentious subject when it comes to the traditional Sunday lunch. There are places within walking distance of here which you will not be able to get a table unless you booked in advance. There is a reason for that.. amazing quality.. great price. There are a few places pushing above £20 for a humble roast and that's when you better be something special. 

So at £32 for 2 courses the price isn't beyond the realms of acceptability especially when one of the starter options is their signature "Pearly Cow" steak tartare plate which is £16 on the Monday to Saturday menu so this appears to be a great value menu assuming it is the same size portion.

We wanted to play safe but enjoy the experience so opted for a starter and main and see how we were feeling before we decided on the dessert.

They appear to have adopted the casual attire approach for the staff, nothing uniform at all.. jeans and trainers or whatever is comfortable.. but they had an tiny identity badge which was a motif for the brand, but we had to ask to find out what it was.. which seemed kind of pointless. So does it matter what people wear? That depends on you really.. if you come to an expensive restaurant for the full service, would you expect those people waiting on you to look the part? Or is that just old fashioned thinking? You decide.. I'm cool with it.

For me it was an easy choice, steak tartare to start followed by the beef. My wife opted for the tempura prawns to start and beef, oh and she went for the jugular with a bottle of Chapel Down sparkling rosé which at £60 plus quid is quite an investment into the experience.. and thoroughly worth it too I might add.

I've never had steak tartare. It's one of those dishes which exists in the same breath as caviar, and here they have combined them so what isn't to love? It isn't for the faint hearted though, it is raw meat, diced with a tiny offering of the caviar crowning it. That's basically it.. so what is the appeal? I simply had to try it and think I was more excited about this over everything else! 

And then there it was.. mooing at me.

I'm not shy of any food to be honest and so I set about picking at the edges and it was surprisingly good! I transformed into one of those people who take great delight in putting the smallest morcel onto the tip of a fork and watch it on its journey from plate to mouth and do a lingering pause as the flavour is absorbed.. a gastronomic experience indeed.. mustard notes, creamy.. lip smackingly good.

It is delicious.

My instincts tell me it is raw and somehow that is wrong but the taste don't lie. The Mrs though wasn't able to get past the issue of raw meat and her face was akin to a baby sucking her charred lemon.

The wife had the tempura prawns and I felt I dodged a bullet because that plate was the most pathetic attempt at a luxury dish.. This is £12 on the weekly menu, five very ordinary tempura prawns laying on the plate with a blob of sauce and half a charred lemon on the side. She offered me one to try but I declined.. I didn't want her to go hungry.

The concept of cooking over flame and served on ice. That is Pearly cows signature. Like I said the open kitchen is a mere servery.. food must be prepared elsewhere by umpa lumpas. But I want to see fire! Where is the concept apart from a few words on the website and a suggestion on the plate? Bah!

At this point my wife had to use the rest room and asked the waitress for directions. The waitress kindly did so and said that our mains were almost ready and that was that.

As soon as my wife was out of sight the meals were laid down on the table. This irritated me.

Taking that moment I admired the plate of food.. a deconstructed plate with a couple of thick slices of sirloin with a delightfully pink hue and blackened crust, this is exactly what I wanted to see. A large Yorkshire pudding, the crown on a bed of shredded cabbage,  three potatoes each and a small selection of vegetables artfully placed separately on the table. It isn't a gut buster and nor did I expect one but it was as pretty as a picture. I couldn't wait to taste the decadent gravy and get stuck in.. but I had to wait until my hot date had returned.

I wouldn't normally feature the time of a visit to the loo in a review but this is now a problem which in my opinion should never have happened.. my wife's bladder movements are not in question but rather why would food be served when the person recieving it is not there, especially in a place like this? 

The servery which is only a few meters away is not rushed or unable to see the issue. A couple of heat lamps burn down on the servery counter without anything beneath to keep warm. Maybe I should have raised my hand for attention..or snapped my fingers if that is even allowed anymore but no, I waited.. the waitresses and floor manager were floating around apparently content that they were on top of what was a fairly busy floor.

Did they realise the issue and offer to keep the food warm? Nope.

My wife returned and so finally I could experience what we came for. My disappointment was impossible to hide.

I eagerly put the 3 small spuds as per the portion size (extras are available for purchase) on my plate and with an effortless cut with the knife I marvelled at a beautiful piece of beef which I liberated straight to my mouth. 

It was cold. Stone cold in fact and I'm not exaggerating either.. 

Even the gravy did nothing to change that as it was also barely registering a positive number on the thermometer. I don't recall a reassuring steam of hot food when it arrived so whatever temperature it left the pass was dramatically lost in the passing of a few minutes.

Now I had an issue as it is arguably a problem caused by our own making.. but was it? 

Okay, so in most other places the food comes when it is ready, but when the bar is set so high in a place like this then surely the customer experience is the most important thing? 

Why did they not keep the food warm until it was the  opportune time? 

I can't get past it. But given I am not a complainer and this is arguably our fault then I continue. 

So there was much to admire about the food. Each element was its own star. I could admire the thought and attention which had gone into making each bit the best it could be.

The potatoes, I've never had potatoes like them. Crispy in the most literal way. They cracked like a toffee apple and were delightfully fluffy inside. 

The Yorkshire pudding was large and dominated, also crispy and fluffy with a distinctive egg yolky yellow structure which made it extremely luxurious which isn't something I thought I could ever say about a humble Yorkie. The vegetables were more of a garnish if I'm honest but I didn't expect the plate to be overflowing like you would if you were trying to get a bit of everything at a Toby Carvery..

It was just all cold. 

My internal voice consumed my thinking.. why did they serve the food? Why? I resented each cold mouthful.

Would I have felt better about it if it was hot? 

Yes, obviously, but the next question is, would it have been worth it? Yes but there is a big BUT.

I actually wouldn't come back if I was looking for a stunning roast dinner. It was too considered, restrained. Granted what was on the plate was outstanding, but individual items were sparse and no extra surprises. There wasn't any thing that made me think that they were pushing the gastronomic experience.. simply doing the very basics well.

For this price it is quite frankly disappointing. Ah but then again it is £32 for 2 courses and I did enjoy the starter but it was also easily swallowed in a oner if you was so inclined.

If I took off the £16 for the starter would I pay £16 for the roast, yes.. absolutely.. but I would never pay the £16 for the beef tartare starter again. So with that principle I wouldn't return quickly to spend £32 on a nice meal when a more satisfying Sunday lunch can be found for almost 2 thirds less of the price within spitting distance.

So there it is, how to dispatch of £150 for a disappointingly cold meal for 2 (including service) in under an hour to then leave with my wife who was waxing lyrical about the wine... The food was already forgotten.