If you have had the pleasure of enjoying a Sunday Roast at the King Street Tavern, you will know just how good they are, award winning in fact. Being so popular, it can be tricky to get booked in and if you want a roast as a spontaneous thing, it can be hard to rock up somewhere and grab what you are looking for without booking in advance.
Step forward the new Sunday menu by Bear Bones Co (the team from the KST) at Staggeringly Good Brewery. You can’t book a table, you just turn up and enjoy all the food on offer. A huge Scandi type outside kitchen has been created to cater for the crowds that love beer and the food to go with it. When I heard that the Bear Bones crew were taking up a permanent residence down at the Fratton site, I was excited. The style of food really compliments all that the Staggeringly team offer on the drinks side.
I was invited last Sunday to try out the test Kitchen for when the Sunday Roasts start this Sunday the 29th September. You can expect a fantastic plate of food on enamel plates and lot’s of seating onsite.
Chatting to the co owner of the King Street Tavern, Sean Marshall, he said, “We have really enjoyed having our residency down at the brewery. The new kitchen is all set up and we are ready to serve the public some seriously good food. Lot’s of people can and do cook a Sunday roast at home on the hob and in a conventional oven and do a fantastic job but the challenge for us is to cook a roast on an open fire and smoker. That is exciting for us as chefs as It means every serving can be slightly different and makes us look to find new ways of working with food and feel the challenge!”
The food is as good as the King Street Tavern Sunday best! Head chef Dan is behind the launch of the new menu and has been making the best Sunday roasts for the last few years. When I asked him what is the best thing on a roast plate apart from the meat, he said, “Roasties every time. Whenever you go and have a Sunday lunch somewhere it is always the roasties that people talk about.”
What I love about this new outside kitchen is the Scandinavian style of it and the fact it has an open grate fire with smokers. There can be options to play around when cooking. I had a roast that had a variety of meats on my plate. With generous offerings of brisket, chicken and pork and proper crackling along with huge Yorkshire puddings. The roasties were the ultimate thing along with oven roasted carrots cooked to perfection and a cabbage and bacon type medley. I loved the cauliflower cheese in little pots and the gravy was so tasty with all the juices of the meat used to make it.
I actually couldn’t decide which was the shining star on my plate and I am not sure you will be able to either. Make sure to pop down from midday on Sunday and try the Sunday roast for yourself.
Open from midday every Sunday with no booking required. Just follow the path around and you will see the new kitchen to the left where you can go up and order your lunch. For more info on Bear Bones Co follow their socials.
