Sarah Jayne Hall visits Volta in West Didsbury

“Get in – we are eating bread from Levenshulme”…….

These were the words I uttered when the sour dough bread was placed in front of me at Volta. I loved that some items on the menu were from the North West, and the fact that they tasted amazing, well I was in my element!

My husband and I opted for several small plates so we could experience a range of flavours and dishes. This allowed me to understand Volta. They live and breathe food, they love it and they are good at it. They want it to be right, and that it was.

Volta showed me their passion for mouth-watering food, top notch cocktails and outstanding customer service, and the fact that they are located on a fab street in trendy West Didsbury is a brilliant bonus.

From the moment I walked in I could sense a good vibe. The people looked smiley and were having lots of fun. The staff were interacting really well with the customers and I felt instantly welcomed, like I was part of the community.

I picked everything from the specials board, I figured that special must mean special! Lamb meatballs with tomato ragu and a fried quails egg, wild St Georges mushrooms on sour dough toast and a whole lemon and herb poussin with watercress salad. To accompany these treats we selected Chorizo with piquillo peppers, crispy baby squid with aioli and the English board which offered wild mushroom and truffle salami, Cumbrian air dried ham and black chorizo.

For me the stand out dish was the chorizo and peppers. It was so flavoursome and the sauce was perfect for mopping up with some of the sour dough bread. The crispy baby squid was melt in the mouth, the poussin was marinated and cooked beautifully and the mushrooms on sour dough toast was so moreish. The lamb meatballs were succulent and the quails egg on top provided a nice touch visually. Meatballs can often be dry so it was great to taste and enjoy this dish without wishing I had more sauce.

Everything was delicious and presented attractively. I like the fact that the dishes here are served when they are ready. I like this style of service, it means everything is served at its best. It feels like you are indulging over and over again. Every time the waitress approached our table I found myself smiling, it was exciting to know another plate was heading our way! I found it cute that the food was served on random plates, wooden boards and mismatched crockery – it looked fabulous on the table. I felt like I was indulging and really spoiling myself.

Dessert is my favourite thing and the puddings at Volta didn’t disappoint. I had the blood orange jelly and vanilla ice cream. The jelly was yummy and you could tell that the ice cream was homemade. Volta’s ice cream was creamy and smooth which complimented the blood orange jelly well.

My husband had the milk chocolate pot with almond praline rocher. Unfortunately due to allergies I was unable to try this dessert, but from the moment it was served to finishing it my husband was silent and this never happens so from that I know it was perfectly scrumptious!

This place is stylish and focuses on what really matters. With a wide choice of drinks, food and friendly staff I think you’d be silly not to try it.

Volta

167 Burton Road

West Didsbury

Manchester

M20 2LN

Tel: 0161 448 8887

Email: info@voltafoodanddrink.co.uk

Twitter: @voltamanchester