GUYS, the Penarth Times is giving you the heads-up here – want to impress your partner on Valentines? In fact, do you want to blow them away with your mastery of culinary taste and perfect understanding of the balance of flavours!? Well then, book in at the Mint and Mustard!
One of Penarth’s best Indian restaurants, Mint and Mustard is once again putting on their tailored six-course Valentine's Day set menu.
This really is a once-in-a-year chance to try some incredible cuisine inspired by Nepalese and Indian influences.
The set-menu is only on from February 14 to 18 (to anyone who needs a gentle reminder, Valentines is on February 14).
Mint and Mustard’s Valentine's offer is tailored specifically for the occasion so if you are a fan, this is your only chance to get some of these superb dishes – and trust me, they are superb as Penarth Times got a special preview of what is on offer (perks of the job…).
The theme this year is spreading the love and the experience starts with three starter dishes of meat (chicken), fish (salmon) and vegetarian (palak-e-husn – a spinach patty).
For the starters, the chicken was succulent and moist, but it was a choice between the salmon and the spinach patty for the starter show-stopper.
The salmon was perfectly cooked, flaky moist and light, and the spinach patty was unusual, surprising and delicious with melted cheese flowing through the smooth spinach complemented by a taste of pine nuts.
The next course was fish, an incredible light and subtle sea bass steamed in a banana leaf. The flavours of this were not overpowering and it was again moist and delicious.
We are all professional food critics and professional food critics need a palette cleanser before moving to the next course (obvs…), so we were given a beautiful blood orange sorbet.
Then it's on to the main – we warn you, don’t eat before coming to M&M’s Valentine's set menu. While it is meant to be a “taster menu”, being Mint and Mustard, they’re going to feed you.
Four mains came (yes four!) served with a portion of rice and naan bread.
The mains were lamb, chicken, asparagus and snowpeas poriyal (sauteed vegetables), and (the show stopper) M&M’s prawn curry (mouthwatering).
Despite everything I have written so far (my fingers are numb at this point in writing…), I’m still not done! For dessert – rose crème brulee and, my personal favourite, tempura fried homemade coconut ice cream – coconut ice cream encased in a crispy tempura giving a hot and cold experience in your mouth that just works!
Mint and Mustard's six course Valentine's menu runs from February 14 to 18, £59.90 per head and £24.90 on top for the wine pairing.
The restaurant is taking bookings now so get online at mintandmustard.net or give the restaurant a call – trust us when we say, if you can, you don’t want to miss this.
Our verdict: After sampling the luscious fare, there could be a lot of love spread over the Valentines period…
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