Blackfoot is a place for people who love pig. Or to be more precise, pork. As a child I loved sausages, my university days were spent guzzling bacon butties, and now, in my civilised twenties I can’t go a week without my chorizo fix. All the varieties in between are often found in my fridge too. There is something luxurious yet homely about pork and creating a neighbourhood restaurant dedicated to it seems to me like a brilliant idea.
The eatery opened in 2013, previously it was a much-loved traditional eels and mash place called Clarks. Many of the building’s original features have remained intact and give the main room a lovely retro feel. I visited with a group of friends on a Thursday evening. We had called a few days earlier to book a table, and been made to feel rather fortunate for managing to secure one. We squashed into a very tight booth, and sipped the lukewarm house white whilst catching up.
Between us we tried an assortment of meaty dishes, luckily my friends are not vegetarians but there is one dish (Mega-nut burger) for those avoiding meat. Whipped Lardo on sourdough toast was a devilishly tasty start, especially paired with the finest fennel salami. Main courses were mighty and magnificent. I loved the Spare-Rib Steak, an extremely tender piece of pork marinaded in fennel seeds, garlic and cayenne, well paired with the Blackfoot pepper sauce. Another popular choice on our table was the richly flavoured Long Smoke, the whole belly smoked in applewood chip with a Sichuan pepper, black treacle and star anise crust, cooked low and slow for six hours, carved and served with pecan coleslaw and pickles. Taking it to the next level is the Love me Tender, a rack of ribs ‘just the way Elvis would have wanted’, they were slathered in a wincingly sweet Southern BBQ sauce but were wonderfully easy to pull off the bone. There is always something very satisfying about picking apart ribs and finding the fleshy goodness.
Desserts don’t let up on the calories – if you are going to try one to share, go for Peanut butter and bacon semi-freddo which is a tasty mix of sweet, salty and nutty. I also liked the homemade chocolate eclair, which arrived dripping in melted dark chocolate and stuffed full of freshly whipped vanilla cream. Lemon sorbet with pink fizz is a good option if you feel like something light and palate cleansing.
Blackfoot is reasonably priced and ideal for a fun night out with friends, particularly good for greedy little piggies like me.
More information here: blackfootrestaurant.co.uk