Drake's
Former Roux Scholarship winner Steve Drake has become a chef-proprietor, with his first restaurant, in Ripley, Surrey, now open. Drake's restaurant is situated in an imposing Georgian building just minutes from the A3 and M25.
"We feel very lucky, as we are in a great location in a building with enormous potential," says Drake, who has bought the freehold of the property with his wife, Serina. The 32-seat restaurant, with a private dining room for up to 10 covers, received a minor makeover before the couple opened in January.
A gardener is now planting a herb bed and getting the outside of the property ready for guests to enjoy aperitifs and coffee on the patio come the summer. Future plans could include turning empty rooms into bedrooms.
But for now, Drake is concentrating on moving his menu up a notch from the food he served at the Michelin-starred Drake's on the Pond in nearby Abinger Hammer, where he was head chef for three years. The Abinger restaurant has now installed Simon Attridge as head chef (Caterer, 25 March, page 40).
"I'm using more technique than before," Drake explains. "For example, the starter of roasted langoustines, braised beef carpaccio and salmon and truffle mousse looks very simple, but involves an awful lot of work."
The beef is marinated for 24 hours in red wine before being dried off, caramelised swiftly in a hot pan and then braised in the oven for four hours. The meat is then rolled in clingfilm and refrigerated before being sliced very thinly. For service, the robustly flavoured beef is flashed under a grill and plated, alongside the roasted langoustines and light salmon mousse, which incorporates a hint of earthiness from the truffles.
The langoustine dish is one of five starters on the restaurant's dinner menu, which costs £30 for two courses and £36 for three. At lunch, Drake - who is supported in the kitchen by two chefs and a kitchen porter - offers a choice of two starters, three main courses and two desserts or cheese. Two courses at lunch cost £16, while three courses are £19, or £22 with cheese instead of dessert.
Drake is currently selling a lot of fish, which is delivered direct from Brixham in Devon by Channel Fisheries. The pan-fried monkfish on a leek fricass‚e with crab ravioli, crushed potato and red wine sauce is selling particularly well among the main courses.
Also popular is the roasted Gressingham duck breast with braised thigh, confit drumstick, wild mushroom mousse, seared foie gras and celeriac purée. Surprisingly, it is outselling even the beef fillet, which so often is the number-one choice for Surrey diners.
Drake has been having fun developing a new dessert for the restaurant - a chocolate and praline ball ice-cream with an orange centre and cocoa syrup. "I've got hold of some new dome-shaped moulds, which I fill with an Italian meringue into which melted chocolate, cocoa powder and semi-whipped cream has been folded. We freeze these, turn out from the moulds and scoop out the centre of the ice-cream. We then fill the centre with some fresh orange juice, which has been cooked with a little sugar until it just reaches the jam stage, but is still runny. Two domes are then sandwiched together, coated in praline and served with a cocoa syrup. I like trying out new techniques, but without becoming too pretentious or gimmicky," explains Drake. n
Drake's Restaurant, The Clock House, High Street, Ripley, Surrey. Tel: 01483 224777. Website: www.drakesrestaurant.co.uk
Whats on the menu
(Two courses £30, three courses £36)
- Assiette of seafood with cauliflower purée and beurre rouge
- Ratte potato marinated and wrapped in spinach with cèpe mushroom casserole
- Terrine of foie gras and confit rabbit, gribiche sauce and toasted brioche
- Roasted turbot, poached fennel, saffron potatoes and bouillabaisse sauce
- Lamb saddle cooked in a coriander and mint crumb, purée potato, braised fillet, carrot cannelloni
- Fennel and aubergine tart with soft poached egg, mashed potato and beurre rouge
- Crème renversée with Granny Smith sorbet and dried apple tuile
- Pineapple roasted with Malibu, coconut ice-cream, macerated sultanas and a coconut biscuit
- Pears poached in wine with cinnamon parfait and roasted pistachio nuts
Chef's cheat
When making a crab ravioli, blanch the pasta parcel for 5-10 seconds in boiling, salted water and refresh immediately in iced water. Just before service, cook the ravioli in water of 70¡C for 4-6 minutes, depending on the size of the parcel. This ensures the pasta is not overcooked and the mousse is just set without becoming rubbery.
