543. 670 Grams.

 

It had been a while since I had last dined at Kray Tredwell’s impressive 670 Grams because, to be frank, I am not a lover of Digbeth and I find I have to summon up a special extra amount of energy to drag myself there. I was thinking that I really must get on and make a reservation at 670 Grams when out of the blue came an invitation from an acquaintance to join him there and of course I accepted immediately. A visit to 670 Grams was not to be missed.

  I arrived early and so took a walk around Alfred Works, a large and eclectic street food hall with multitudinous stalls and industrial pipes and ducts everywhere, opened not that long ago and belonging to a group which originated in Sheffield where I once worked and after retiring continued to visit from time to time. Its name is derived from that of Alfred Bird, the Custard King, the food hall being sited in the Custard Factory where once Bird’s workers produced the yellow powder and it is colourful, the music is cheery and the volume well judged, and those eating there - I hesitate to call them diners - are diverse in nationality but not in age, with all of them noshing on a wide range of fast food cuisines served, it seemed, in generous portions and all of it generally unappealing to a sensitive soul and a sensitive stomach but clearly all very agreeable to those there present, the total age of which barely added up to my own particular number of years. Still, there is room on this earth for all God’s creatures whether they like to dine fast or like to dine fine. Oh! To be young again. Or not, as the case may be.

  And so to the main event.

  We were seated in a lounge downstairs to drink aperitifs and consume canapés. The decor had been marvellously updated with Basquet-style art adding colour to the sparking white walls. It looked very clean and exciting and yet also relaxing. I had a lovely little cocktail which had the flavours of piña colada but not the look of it. The snacks were tasty - a cheese custard under sweet onion flavoured crunchy bits and a delicious soupçon of trout with chutney and coriander made even more interesting by the utensil it was served on. All very Kray Tredwell.

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  A 14 course tasting menu was underway. It was accurately judged to thrill the taste buds and fill the stomach without feeling excess. It really was very, very good. Not one morsel let down the meal, Every morsel was a true delight. There was ponzu jelly with wasabi and tuna, served in a lovely glass bowl with a golden spoon. What fun!

  Then Kray Tredwell’s Birmingham soup, originally sired by Matthew Boulton in 1796 to feed the masses and in the era of Modern British haute cuisine, rendered in fine dining style by Glynn Purnell as an unctious daube island in a fine beef broth and later still, by Brad Carter in his eponymous restaurant in Moseley. Tredwell’s Birmingham soup was poured over a mesmerisingly tasty piece of wagyu beef with “left over” herbs and a disgustingly joyous and sticky milk loaf served with an extravagantly presented butter, all of which which left me and my dining companion panting with pleasure as did the side plate of thin slices of hogget. A momentous dish. 

  Next came thin slices of scallop with Granny Smith apple and a pleasing buttermilk sauce and peas, to be followed by an acutely tasty chicken broth.

  There then came a pleasing agnolotto in a Thai green curry with a peanut satay to give a pleasing crunchy texture and much joy. Then Jersey Royals came on to the scene with crispy kombu. Lovely.

  The main, if there is such a beast in a multi-dish meal, was fabulous. The darling hogget, which was raised near Hereford, was a creature of the true flavour of sheep and the effect on my tastebuds was enhanced by the traditional and very sensible flavour of mint. This came with a spring cabbage parcel of hogget belly and the whole was a very fine dish, served as it was with a beignet-like bread, ideal for mopping up the accompanying sauce.

  Next came a lovely helping of jasmine rice ice cream with elderberry jelly and, as our tastebuds began to wind down, there was a seasonal presentation of strawberries and as a mignardise, a dinky little madeleine.

  A very fine meal. I returned two weeks later to enjoy myself again and once more dine from this magnificent menu and can report that the presentation and substance of Tredwell’s food is consistent. It’s hard to understand why Michelin would not award 670 Grams a star based on these meals. The same is also true of Folium.

Rating:- 🌞🌞🌞.