birmingham’s jekyll and hyde pub is a vintage-lover’s paradise. with its quirky victorianesque decor, and its alice-in-wonderland-themed courtyard, this venue is certainly not short on character.
upstairs, the gin parlour is stocked with fifty varieties of the drink. well-known brands including hendricks and boston sapphire share the shelves with more obscure bottles, many flavoured with ingredients like saffron, damson and sloe berries.
the setting
the gin parlour’s period features build a mood of old world elegance, while quirky 1950s pictures and candles housed in old gin bottles add amusing twists. a gramophone, a giant champagne coupe and trilling jazz songs send you back to prohibition-era america. the great gatsby might spring to mind.
the talk
a friendly and knowledgable talk guides diners through a potted history of gin, from its origins in the anglo-dutch wars, to its pairing with tonic as a (useless) guard against malaria in british india, to its revival in the 1980s as a ‘trendy’ drink.
sample menu
appetiser
duck liver & juniper parfait £5 ½
apple & calvados puree, quince jelly, pea shoots, toasted rye bread
treacle cured salmon £5 ½
hendricks cucumber salsa, potato & chive pancake, lemon crème fraiche
pistachio crumbed goats cheese croquettes £5
honey goats cheese cream, chicory salad, spiced pear dressing
dinner
juniper & star anise braised blade of beef £14
haymans sloe gin jus, horseradish mash, trio of carrot
pan fried sea bream £11
crushed jersey royal potatoes, samphire, salsa verde
wild garlic & parsley gnocchi £8
panko crusted salsify, goats cheese cream sauce, (v)
dessert
rose scented panna cotta £5
hendricks soaked strawberries, sweet cucumber, strawberry tuille
ginger cake £5
saffron gin rhubarb compote, white chocolate ice cream
herefordshire cheese board £6
williams chase pear & apple jelly, wye valley butty bach ale chutney