RESTAURANT openings are rare in Richmond so when Richmond Grill and Brasserie came in July it caused a bit of a stir.

Although better off than Northallerton, Richmond is not greatly blessed with wonderful places to eat.

Of course, there are the many pubs and cafes, the usual selection of internationals (Tandoori Night is the pick in my book), Rustique for French bistro-style fare, La Piazza 2 for Italian, Seasons at the Station, the Frenchgate Hotel and er ...

that’s it.

The starved folk of Northallerton may weep at such epicurean munificence but for a town of its size and attractiveness, Richmond is not exactly over-endowed.

The word is that the very best food in the town is served at select private dinner parties, which may well be true, but it is not very helpful if you and me don’t get invited.

In fact the very best meal I experienced in Richmond was at a sort of private dinner party. It was in Millgate House Hotel which is a topnotch multi-award-winning B&B and, obliging as owners Austin Lynch and Tim Culkin are, you can’t walk in off the street at 7pm on a Wednesday evening and demand a three-course meal.

If you book in advance and are accompanied by 15 friends you can – but the D&S expenses budget doesn’t stretch that far.

More’s the pity.

So, the arrival of the RG&B, as it sometimes styles itself, was much welcomed in the town. Owners Brook and Claire Watson are first-time restaurateurs so we thought it fair to give the place a decent interval to settle down.

And the feedback we had heard so far had been encouraging, although some have suggested it is pricey.

Centrally located in Trinity Square, the benefits of that are negated somewhat by its situation above a dry cleaners.

Access is via a less than salubrious steep staircase, but this is Georgian Richmond so not a lot can be done about that.

The climb is worth the effort for a good job has been done converting it into a very pleasant, if not easily categorised, space. It is light, airy (lots of windows overlooking the square), classily muted colour-wise and quite formal.

It looks like the place for serious eating and drinking.

There is a serious chef. Ross Hadley has spent 25 years in international kitchens and closer to home at the Frenchgate Hotel. His menu is an interesting blend of continental brasserie classics and ideas from further afield. There are plenty of char-grilled steak options and seafood.

We were a threesome (student son Cameron on a flying visit from Edinburgh) and opted for starters, mains but no desserts.

All six dishes we managed were highly satisfactory and all three starters were substantial.

The highlights were Cameron’s ultra-smooth and traditional chicken liver parfait with poached Agen prunes and freshly baked bread (£7.50).

Sylvia’s Caesar salad (£7.95) was notable for its smoky char-grilled chicken and cracking dressing.

My Whitby crabmeat (£6.50) with curried mayonnaise was perhaps a tad too chilled for optimum flavour but it was nicely refreshing with the salad garnish which, like Sylvia’s Caesar, was beautifully arranged and dressed. It came with four pieces of chargrilled toast.

The mains kept up the standard.

My Moroccan spiced rump of lamb (£15.95) was served with Mediterranean vegetable coucous, harissa crème fraiche and coriander.

It was a highly fragrant, aromatic, rich and chillified (in parts) combination.

Darlington and Stockton Times:
The interior of the Richmond Grill & Brasserie, in Richmond

The lamb had taken on a suitably exotic character from its spice marinade but it was still discernibly lamb.

Sylvia raved about the patatas bravas (you’ll know by now about her unquenchable enthusiasm for all things spud) which came with her well-roasted cod (£15.50). Like my harissa crème fraiche, the aioli provided a welcome cooling freshness to the spicy potatoes.

Cameron finished his very rich roasted root vegetable goats’ cheese and walnut crumble (£11.50) – a feat which our chatty, efficient, flying-solo waitress said she had never witnessed before.

Don’t they have starving students in Richmond?

We opted for a couple of side dishes (£2.25) – luscious coleslaw and some “seasonal greens” which turned out to be slightly unseasonal but perfectly OK mange-tout.

Our bill of £97.85 included two large glasses of Rioja (£9.60), two of Prosecco (£7.60) a sparkling water (£1.50) plus three coffees (£7.50).

Ratings:

Food Quality: 9/10

Service: 8/10

Surroundings: 8/10

Value: 7/10