Our Sapphire Anniversary

We visited Verveine in Milford on Sea for an anniversary lunch.  A little gem with an unusual setup.  It has a small frontage and when you walk in from the street you are confronted by a fish shop, complete with fish slab, which you pass through to get to the restaurant.  Staff are there to shepherd you round the corner, where there is an open kitchen area which obviously takes great care in getting the food right, to a small room holding maybe ten tables.   We chose the six course menu, which at £37 is very reasonable for the quality of food on offer.  The menu is entirely fish based apart from desserts!

An aperitif was served in a porcelain half egg shell to challenge the mind.  It is not what it seems.

Normally you might get a bread basket for the table but here we started with THE most delicious, light, crispy waffle. 

 On to the starters. Sweet cured herring with burnt apple and pickled red cabbage.

 Hot smoked salmon with blood orange and pickled fennel.

 Main courses.        Sea Bass with gunpowder spice decorated with pumpkin seed cress (which is  growing in our garden and we had no idea what it is.  Obviously from our garden  composter and the Halloween Pumpkin seeds).

 Brixham Cod with Cauliflower ras al Hanout, smoked walnut and blood orange.

Our charming French waiter gave a wonderful description of each dish.  The crockery was also incredible, beautifully crafted and evocative dishes and plates that made every serving a different and stunning interactive experience.

On to the desserts....... another highlight for me - sherbet fountain.  I loved them growing up and this dish was so good it made me giggle with delight.  Unique liquorice ice cream with fuzzy white sherbet.

Then a panna cotta delight.

Hope to come back for another meal soon.  A super talented chef - a super dining experience.  All served up in wonderfully unpretentious surroundings.

And a breezy walk home to a delicious cake made by Gemma for us.