When THE DINING ROOM opened its doors in October 2007 it offered Ipswich a new kind of dining experience - imaginative food prepared with the same skill and attention to detail that could be expected in a top London restaurant but at Suffolk prices.
Chef and co-owner Ben Taylor had already cooked in London with the inimitable Rowley Leigh at Kensington Place and the highly experienced Miguel Pedro was determined to offer a new standard of service to their customers.
At the dining room we try to be inventive and original while at the same time respecting the classics and not putting our customers off with ill thought out, over complicated dishes. How can one improve upon a perfectly executed lemon tart with homemade, tangy, cassis ice cream, or a classic Italian ragu of lamb, slowly braised with tomatoes, herbs and garlic for 8 hours, and served with homemade, pasta?We offer a wide range of dishes, from the decadently naughty (creamy white onion velouté with wild mushrooms and truffle oil or rich Fish Pie with Parmesan, Gruyere and Suffolk smoked cheese) to light, healthy summer dishes (seared organic salmon with ginger, shallots and soy or char-grilled tuna with Jersey Royal potatoes, Suffolk asparagus and pea cress).
We try to use farm assured meat whenever possible, locally sourced from our Ipswich butcher (A.C.Cracknell of Norwich road) who sources beef and lamb from: Ketleys farm in Essex, John Dunt in Copdock, Chicken from Sutton Hoo, duck from Gressingham in Debach and free range pork from Blythbugh.
While fish and seafood is harder to come by in Suffolk (although we use Brancaster mussels, Colchester oysters, Cromer crab and local sea fish whenever available) we try to keep our purchasing within the British isles as much as possible, cutting down on the ‘carbon footprint’ of our produce, and trying to be conscious of the environmental impact of our food (freedom farmed sea trout, organic salmon, native lobster and scallops).
We have the same ethos when it comes to our fruit and vegetables, always choosing local produce over its Dutch or even further a field counterparts (our asparagus, onions, main crop potatoes, herbs, salads, and ground vegetables are all East Anglia farmed). Our eggs are of course free range and Suffolk in origin.
To complement our imaginative food there is the wine list, assembled using the expert knowledge of local suppliers Everich of Framingham.
We pair old world with new in a bid to compliment all the dishes individually and as a whole. With old classics such as Chateauneuf Du Pape, Domaine Pierre Andre 2000
and Chablis 1er Cru, Domaine Laroche 2005 to innovative and interesting new world examples such as Pinot Noir, Firesteed 2005, Oregon, USA and Chenin Blanc, Mulderbosch 2006, Stellenbosch, South Africa. We also keep a range of liquors, aperitifs and digestives along with Champagnes and sparkling wine to suit all budgets.
We run full a la carte menu both at lunch and dinner and also offer a £10 2 course or £15 3 course set lunch, alongside a lunch time ‘taster’ menu which features, dishes from the main menus in ‘tapas’ sized portions (perfect for light lunching or children)
We try to meet all the dietry needs of our customers, often designing a whole menu around a customers specific needs.
We take great pride in the presentation of our food, restaurant and staff, and we firmly believe in showing our guests the best possible time.
Ben Taylor, Chef/Patron