FOOD & DRINK

Brookmans is refreshed and ready for the summer

A perennial summer favourite, Brookmans, in the heart of Brookmans Park, has a new seasonal menu and new management with real local pedigree. Heading up the team is Mitch Brummitt, who comes from a Hertfordshire family with a long and successful track record in hospitality, having run a group of bars and restaurants across London and the Home Counties. Most recently, Mitch ran his own pub, The Farmer’s Boy in Brickendon, just outside Hertford. Joining Mitch at Brookmans is head chef Tom Brown, also Hertfordshire born and bred. Tom has joined having spent time at both the highly rated The Farmhouse at Redcoats, near Hitchin and Manor of Groves in High Wych. Everything Tom cooks is made with the best quality ingredients he can find from ethical producers, with the current menu featuring Cornish lamb, English asparagus, new potatoes and British cheeses chosen for the season. British coppa and Devonshire crab also feature alongside daily market fish and a good selection of meat-free and free-from dishes.

There are lighter options such as beetroot tartare with free range butternut yolk and pea salad; hand-picked Devonshire crab with cured salmon, apple and cucumber; plus garlic and paprika king prawns with Isle of Wight tomatoes and toasted sourdough. Lunches include free-range chicken schnitzel with garlic and parsley butter, rocket, Parmesan and fries.

For dinner, try the pan-fried seabass with butter beans, sun-dried tomato, romaine and salsa verde; or South Indian squash and chickpea curry with toasted cashews, basmati rice and chapati. Heartier options include the classic fish pie packed with king prawns, hake, loch trout and smoked haddock, or the pub’s Aubrey Allen burgers.

There’s a breakfast menu to start the day, with green eggs –poached eggs and basil pesto, prosciutto and rocket on toasted sourdough from the Bread Factory – as well as chilli-fried free-range egg and halloumi on a brioche roll with baby spinach and Bloody Mary ketchup. Tom is serious about Sunday roasts too, and each week prepares at least three choices as well as a range of daily specials using seasonal produce.

And this is a great month to visit. Between Monday 12th and Sunday 18th June, Brookmans will be celebrating local ingredients during its Best of Hertfordshire event, with a quintessentially British menu inspired by Hertfordshire farmers and producers.

Brookmans Bradmore Green, Brookmans Park AL9 7QW 01707 664144 brookmanspub.com

The Grandison in Bramfield set to reopen under new management

The Grandison, the popular free house and casual dining pub in Bramfield just outside Hertford, closed under its previous lessees at the end of May and will be reopening on Friday 9th June from 5pm under new management. The pub is a real summer favourite, with extensive outdoor space overlooking the local country- side. After its launch evening, it will be open Tuesday to Sunday from noon to 11pm. For more information watch out for next month’s issue of Axis or keep an eye on its new website, grandisonpub.com, which should be live in the first week of June. The Grandison is in Bury Lane, Bramfield SG14 2QL.