Emma Tully of Emma Eats Essex, a food blogger devouring the best of the Essex foodie scene, shares her top 10 romantic restaurants to impress your date this Valentine's Day
Square 1 Restaurant, Great Dunmow
Arguably my favourite restaurant experience of 2021, Square 1 Restaurant in Great Dunmow recently came into the spotlight when Head Chef Alex Webb won the 2020 series of Masterchef: The Professionals. Run by chef-owners Spencer and Ritchie, Square 1 offers a relaxed but formal dining experience. Choose from the à la carte menu or indulge in the tasting menu for £75 per person. The menu changes regularly; previous highlights include hake cooked low and slow, achieving a light texture to the fish, paired with masala curry sauce, tangy pickled vegetables and crunchy Bombay mix. My favourite dish was salmon pastrami, cured in treacle, served with dill emulsion, cream, buckwheat, radish and a side of treacle bread. Service at Square 1 is impeccable, with a knowledgeable front-of-house team ready to serve your favourite wine or cocktails. The chef presents some of the dishes directly to your table, which is a great personal touch and sure to wow your Valentine this year.
Channels Bar & Brasserie, Chelmsford
My partner and I have chosen Channels as our wedding venue. We’ll be tying the knot next year, and as foodies, it was hugely important to us to pick somewhere that does good grub! Channels Bar and Brasserie is probably the restaurant we’ve dined in most since moving to the area. Chefs Dan and Ben have brought many exciting new dishes to the table, including 72-hour bacon with peanut sauce, chilli pickled watermelon, broad beans and garlic. Another star dish is the miso blackened cod, which came with bok choy, leek, shitake broth, pickled ginger, soba noodles and lotus root. Channels often host live music events, including Jazzy Sundays, so keep your eyes peeled for special events taking place around Valentine’s Day.
Flitch of Bacon, Little Dunmow
For the ultimate romantic gourmet experience, why not book a dinner and stay at Little Dunmow’s Flitch of Bacon? Housed in a traditional local pub, they offer seasonally changing menus showcasing foraged foods, local meats and sustainable seafood. Pop in for lunch over Valentine’s weekend or book a table on Monday February 14, when they open especially for Valentine’s diners. There will be a five-course tasting menu on offer with snacks, Nyetimber bubbly and optional extras. Its namesake dish, miso glazed flitch of bacon and roast hand-dived scallop, is as mouth-watering as it sounds, served with ranch dressing and fermented corn. Another menu highlight from a recent visit is the sticky toffee pudding, where all dish components are brought to the table on a tray and constructed in front of you. Sweet, sticky and ready for you to devour!
Galvin Green Man, Great Waltham
Head to Great Waltham and you’ll encounter an award-winning restaurant and pub by Michelin-starred Galvin brothers, the Galvin Green Man. The restaurant interior is light, bright and open, with panoramic views over beautiful Essex countryside. The drinks list celebrates local breweries and the best wines in England and Europe. You’ll find pub classics such as beef burgers and beer-battered cod, as well as dishes featuring locally sourced and seasonal ingredients such as Blackwells Farm ribeye and Great Waltham partridge and pheasant ballotine. I’ve always been won over by the starters, having sampled the most delicious sea trout tartare with fromage blanc, bonito flake, pea shoots and crispy ‘scraps’. I was blown away by the spring pea velouté with glazed Welsh rarebit.
Crouch Ridge Estate, Althorne
What could be more romantic than a trip to a local vineyard? Stroll up and down the vines before sipping on a flute of Premier Reserve Blanc de Blancs. I’m told the Brut is an ideal aperitif and accompaniment to seafood or canapés, which is perfect considering the on-site Wine Barn offers a cellar menu to complement Crouch Ridge sparkling and still wines. If you’re an oyster fan, you’ll be pleased to hear they’re often on the menu here. When we visited, they were served with blood orange and fennel – an excellent combination of salt and sour. I’d recommend ordering the paella arancini, fried paella balls with chorizo mayo. The sautéed chorizo in red wine and shallot is also delicious.
Olio on the Green, Writtle
Family-run Italian restaurant Olio on the Green is an Essex favourite. During my last visit, Essex royalty Gemma Collins sat at a table opposite, and based on my earwigging, she’d tried many of the dishes on the menu and highly recommended them! The menu has plenty of choice, including a list of specials from burrata to various fresh seafood dishes and T-bone steak. The softshell baby crab starter is a winner for seafood fans; it’s deep-fried in tempura batter perfect for dipping in sweet chilli sauce. The fish stew is also a menu highlight, packed full of king prawns, salmon, scallops, calamari and mussels. Cooked in a tomato and chilli sauce, it came with a portion of bread to mop up the juices. If you’re feeling extra romantic, why not share the linguine allo scoglio (pasta with fresh crab, king prawns, chilli and lemon) for a real Lady and the Tramp Valentine’s moment!
The Farm Cafe by Black Pig, Heybridge
Is there anything sexier than burgers and lobster? I think not. Head to The Farm Cafe in Heybridge on Valentine’s weekend for your Saturday night burger and lobster fix. Trust me when I say this is Essex’s best burger. I’m talking grass-fed beef patties, smoked streaky bacon, cheddar cheese, caramelised onions, lettuce, pickled gherkin, confit garlic and herb mayo... my mouth is watering whilst I write this! The Farm Cafe is run by Black Pig Catering, whose Michelin-trained chefs cook up burgers from a food truck parked outside the cafe. Lobster is grilled in champagne butter and glazed with saffron and garlic mayo. You’ll find Peroni on draft and Whispering Angel by the bottle. The only caveat to this meal is that it’s a little messy and is served on disposable tableware, so if you’re looking for a more relaxed festival-style V-day experience, look no further.
The Lion Inn, Boreham
This popular gastropub is a local favourite and with good reason. The bar offers local beers, an extensive wine list and cocktails such as martinis and mojitos. Once seated in the cosy dining room, the menu offers a range of pub classics done to a high standard alongside various specials such as fresh catch of the day. The Gloucestershire Old Spot pork was tender and rich and came with excellent mash potato and crackling. The desserts are worth sticking around for, too – try the lemon meringue pie with giant fluffy meringue and the crème brûlée with a perfect crispy top. I can testify that the chocolate martini is a brilliant end to your meal too.
Urban Fresh, Ramsden Heath
This new restaurant is big and bold and brings something new to the Essex food scene. South America influences the food – and leaning on the ‘urban’ scene from the restaurant’s name, you’ll find graffiti walls in the modern dining room. The food is worth the trip alone and they don’t hold back on flavour. Starters include a Valentine’s favourite: scallops, served with black pudding and chorizo. These plump, fleshy mouthfuls are sweet and perfectly complemented by the heat of the chorizo. The restaurant’s speciality is steak, and with sirloin and ribeye weighing in at 350g, you are getting around 50 per cent more than at most restaurants. Grilled to your liking and served with a choice of sides, this is worth skipping the chains and trying somewhere new. If you have space for dessert, then I recommend trying the dulce de leche cheesecake. Big enough for two to share, this is the best way to round off a special meal.
The New London, Chelmsford
Chelmsford residents looking for a fine-dining experience, look no further than The New London. The super-stylish bar and dining room will be enough to impress your date this Valentine’s. The menu changes every eight weeks; starters, mains and desserts are available à la carte, and they have good plant-based options. My favourite dish at The New London has to be the pan-fried chalk steam trout with samphire bhaji, buttered spinach and crab mayonnaise. Last autumn, they served a smashing pumpkin and pecan pie with date purée and crème fraîche ice cream. The New London has a brilliant selection of cocktails on offer; I highly recommend a Pornstar Martini while you peruse the wine list.
Emma Tully is a food blogger from Chelmsford who reviews local and indie restaurants in the county. Follow her travels on Instagram @emmaeatsessex
