Two Cats Kitchen is
sited in the middle of the Jewellery Quarter in a building that’s been used as
a restaurant for a number of years, perhaps not the easiest venue to find, but
well worth the effort. We've been to many different restaurants in this building; most successful was Didier Philipot's Toq d'Or which brought cuisine nouvelle to Birmingham (The city probably wasn't ready for this but at the time it was the best restaurant around). The last incarnation Big Nanny's Kitchen was, I thought, terrible. Can't say I'm sorry it's gone.
This was our first visit and won’t be our last.
Our welcome was pleasant and service quick and efficient. Water was delivered
to the table without the need to ask. We had the tasting menu explained to us
and almost immediately received the first of seven courses, a cold beetroot
soup with herbs (actually much more complex than that, and wonderful) plus warm
sourdough bread (in a paper bag) and smoked butter.
The six courses that followed were of splendid
quality, well presented and nicely served: our only significant criticism was
that the plates were difficult to scrape completely clean. I was particularly
impressed with the second dessert ‘sea buckthorn meringue pie’, as previous
experiences with this berry haven’t been good: the notion of making it into a
curd was inspired.
My favourite course was arctic Char with
samphire, shitake mushrooms, crab and egg yolk, but everything was so good it
was really choosing amongst equals.
Wine list isn’t extensive, but the Romanian house
wines are good.
Overall, great cooking, food and service. A
splendid experience showcasing ingredients and traditions from a part of Europe
that’s still not well known in the UK. Book now while you can get a seat!
(Incidentally, one review on Trip Advisor complained that the quaity of the cutlery was poor - it isn't and anyone who thinks like that has, in my opinion, seriously missed the point!)
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