DINE IN A PLACE OF HISTORY

As a child I can recall passing the building in Lendal known as The Judges Lodging with my mother on our regular weekly trips into York. I was fascinated by the building and have been ever since.

As I grew older I wanted to know more about its history and my mother who loved delving into local history explained its origins to me.

The site of the Judges Lodging was first mentioned in a charter dated between 1145 and 1148 and moving forward in 1711 the building that is now known as Judges Lodging was built and made into a private residence for Dr Wintringham, a physician at the York County Hospital.

Over the ensuing years many extensions were added and in 1806 it was bought as the official Judges residence in York, for use when they were attending the quarterly sessions at the Assize courts and it remained so until 1979 when it was bought for use as a hotel.

This Grade1 building, now owned by Daniel Thwaites, has undergone extensive renovations over the years but these have been done sensitively without spoiling the historic ethos of the building that is now a five-star hotel

Ever since then The Judges Lodging has been a fascinating place for me and a regular pitstop for morning coffee, a cheeky cocktail on my way to the station after an assignment or a spot of retail therapy in the city with my friends so it was the obvious choice for a long awaited catchup lunch with my close friend and foodie Sue.

As a restaurant reviewer it is a rarity to find a place where everything is perfect in every way – but these ‘two ladies who love to lunch’ found ultimate perfection at The Judges Lodging.

The menu, the food, the service, the general ambience and even the position of our table was perfection personified – even the sun came out and played its part in our experience.

The meet and greet service at The Judges Lodging is second to non on arrival we were shown to our table in the courtyard with its large sun umbrella and comfortable rattan chairs.

The courtyard is a wonderful place to sit and watch the world go by – whether you are having breakfast, morning coffee, a meal or a snack or just a drink – and when the sun goes down and dusk falls the area is lit by twinkling fairy lights hanging from the trees that border the courtyard.

A new fun feature of The Courtyard is the Drinks Truck from which drinks from classic cocktails to all the usual drinks are dispensed.

While we perused the menu we decided to indulge ourselves with a classic cocktail. Negroni is my all time favourite and I loved their version – Negroni Sevilla made with Tanqueray de Seville Gin, Campari and Martini Rosso – it was lighter than your normal Negroni which can be a tad too heavy for day-time drinking but was just as delicious.

Sue decided on the Cosmopolitan with Smirnoff Vodka, Cranberry and Lime Juice. It had a lovely lemon tang that counteracted the sweetness of the cranberry juice.

We were more than impressed by the menu created by Head Chef Lorant Szjoka who has been at The Judges Lodging for the past four months.

“I am a hands on chef and have a brilliant team and I created the menu in consultation with them”

Lorant hails from Hungary and has been cooking since he was 10 years old. “My grandmother taught me how to cook and told me I was born to be a chef” he adds.

“Some of the recipes I use are my grandmothers and I have tailored them especially for the people of York”.

For starter Sue chose the Humous. It was a very generous portion which was spicy and smooth. It came with fresh crispy crudites including celery carrots, cucumber and a piece of flatbread.

I chose the Tempura King Prawns which again was a large portion of succulent, tender prawns in lovely crispy batter. The blackened romesco sauce was absolutely delicious and so unusual and tasty. Chef shared with me some of his secret ingredients including red chilli, lemon zest, red pepper, tomato, cinnamon, almonds, garlic and lemon juice that give it such a wonderful taste.

For main Sue chose Potato gnocchi with a Provencal sauce, ratatouille and crispy basil – this was based on one of Lorant’s grandmother’s recipes. The presentation was excellent and garnished with crispy basil. The Provencal sauce was flavoursome and complimented the dish so well. The ratatouille was colourful with red, green and yellow peppers.

My choice of Stuffed Chicken wrapped in prosciutto did not disappoint. The chicken was stuffed with spinach and had a leek butter sauce and leek compote. The chicken was moist and flavoursome but the leek sauce – just the right amount on my plate I must add – plus the compote made it ultra tasty.

The stuffed chicken came with a potato rosti which I loved and was one of the best cooked I have ever had – crispy on top yet smooth inside and the crispy kale gave colour and a new take on this vegetable.

It was a while before we decided on our dessert as we wanted to explore the cellar bar with its vaulted ceiling – ideal to be cool in the heat or to escape to in the colder weather.

Its got little breakout area which are comfortable and give you chance to catch up on a pieces of history by reading some of the old posters about the notorious trial of Dick Turpin.

After talking to Lorant I was persuaded to try his grandmother’s recipe for Lemon and Lime Posset. It was refreshing with orange jelly, orange segments and was served with a shortbread.

Sue’s choice of Strawberry Cheesecake was a work of art. It was very light and very refreshing ideal for a summer’s day. It came with a raspberry sorbet, strawberry and mint compote.

After such a long chilled afternoon it was hard to make a move and go for our train – we could have literally sat there forever after savouring such a wonderful lunch experience.