Turtle Bay Norwich Christmas Menu Review*

As much as I love having a Christmas dinner, sometimes it can get a bit boring seeing the same menu in every restaurant over the festive season. When I found out that Turtle Bay had launched their very own festive menu, I couldn’t wait to try it out. I thought it was great that they were taking bookings for an alternative Caribbean Christmas experience.

I was offered the chance to come in and review the menu so of course I said yes. This would be my third time at Turtle Bay and it gets better and better with each visit. The dishes on the menu have been inspired by the island life and Caribbean sunshine.

The festive platters menu is perfect if you want that chilled out vibe and make your Christmas do more of a social experience and it costs just £9 per head. The platters consist of Turtle Bay’s most popular dishes alongside a delicious range of sides. Team this with a cocktail or two and you are good to go! Turtle Bay now allow you to pre-order drinks packages so your drinks could be ready and waiting as you arrive.

We arrived at 6pm - we like to go at this time not only because the cocktails are 2 for 1, but it means we can go straight from work. We were seated straight away and it was the first time we got to sit inside the well-known campervan area! It was great sitting here, really added to the atmosphere. We were given the All Day Christmas menu which consists at 4 courses for £24 per head. To start, we were offered some sharing dishes, firstly Garlic n Herb Flatbread which was topped with fresh rocket, crushed chilli and garlic butter. It was amazing, it was a lot bigger than I expected and the garlic butter was melted in to perfection. We also had Spicy Pork Rinds, the menu said these were served with a BBQ jerk but we didn’t seem to get this. These were a bit like pork scratchings but easier to eat. They made a nice dish for a little nibble. If you come here as a group, you will also get Trini Chickpeas which are baked spicy chickpeas dusted with thyme. I like that 2 of these dishes are vegetarian and the other 2 cater for coeliacs so it is handy if you have people in your group with various dietary requirements.

After eating our arrival nibbles we went onto starters. James decided to have the Crispy Chilli Squid which he has had previously and loves. He said they were cooked to perfection and piping hot. I decided to try something different and went for the Duck Rolls. I received 3 flatbread rolls filled with slow roasted shredded duck, sweet onion, soy sauce and chilli and it was served alongside an orange chutney. The portion size was ideal and the duck was delicious. It fell apart in my mouth, although they were rather messy to eat! The rolls had a good amount of filling to them so you didn’t feel like you’d missed out on any flavours.

Our main courses then arrived promptly after our starters. The timings were great I found, the staff really kept an eye on you and made sure plates and glasses were cleared away quickly and were always very attentive to us. For main course, James had the Half Jerk Chicken which looked like a pretty decent sized portion. His 24 hour jerk marinated chicken came with coconut rice ‘n’ peas and a Caribbean slaw. The chicken fell away from the bone and the flavours of the rice really complimented the chicken. He was absolutely stuffed after eating this. I went for the Pit Salmon, something I have never tried before and went for the original jerk glaze. The salmon was very flavoursome and had a delicious crispy skin. It was served with a grain salad, sweet onion chutney and green seasoning. The salad was really light so I didn’t feel overly full afterwards and the cooling flavours complimented the spicy marinade on the salmon. All in all it was very tasty.

When it came to choosing a dessert, we were both full! But as it is part of the £24 per head price, we needed to have one! After a bit of a breather, I decided I wanted to try the Sticky Black Treacle Pudding. I saw the words ‘salted caramel’ on the menu and knew this had to be my choice. The only one thing I would say about this is that it isn’t served warm, I think I would have preferred it to be heated up but it was still very good. I also would say if you’re full – maybe choose something a bit lighter as this was a heavy dessert, no fault of my own there! James went for the dark chocolate brownie which was served warm with vanilla ice cream and I am guessing he liked it as he ate every last drop.

When it came to drinks we also stuck to what we knew and I had my favourite cocktail, a Goombay Smash. James had a non-alcoholic Watermelon drink. Overall we had a really good meal and the atmosphere was great. As the night went on it got busier but this didn’t affect the quality of service we received. Head over to the Turtle Bay Facebook or Website for more information and to find out where your closest restaurant is.

Check out the Turtle Bay Christmas Menu and let me know what your choices would be? They also do a lunch menu so it’s worth a look whatever time of day you fancy getting festive!

*I received this meal free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way.

Giraffe World Kitchen Norwich Review*

As you all know by now, I do love my food and I love trying out new places. I was recently invited to try out Giraffe World Kitchen in Norwich which has recently been re branded. I couldn’t wait to see the new look, I hadn’t been to Giraffe for a long time so a visit was long overdue. For those who are local, Giraffe World Kitchen is right outside Chapelfield Shopping Centre, located near to the other eateries. We arrived at 7pm for dinner and were greeted by two smiling members of staff. I took James with me to help with any photos and it made a good excuse for a date night as well.

As soon as I walked in I noticed the changes in décor. The restaurant is really bright and colourful and I love the pops of yellow that they have all over the walls. It was bright and had a fresh feeling to it. The tables were laid out nicely. We were seated in a booth and I quite liked that we felt a bit tucked away from the rest of the restaurant. You could also sit outside if you wanted to. The atmosphere was great, music was playing and people were chatting. I thought it had a really nice vibe. The staff were really friendly and couldn’t do enough for you. As soon as my drink was getting low, the waitress came over and offered me another one which was great.

Speaking of drinks, I had a couple of Mocktails called ‘Wavebreakers’ which was a blend of pineapple and coconut and oh my, they were amazing. I think when I took my first sip I said “this tastes like summer in a cup” and that is the only way I can really describe it. So fruity and refreshing, I want to recreate these at home! James had Franklin & Sons sparkling Apple & Rhubarb drink which he really liked too, it had a hint of cinnamon which he said gave a nice kick to it.

There were a few different starters to choose from including World Tapas so that you could taste your way around the world by sharing a few small plates. There were also a range of super starters. We decided to go for 3 tapas starters which cost £14.95 which we then shared between us. First up we had the shredded chicken tacos which came topped with guacamole, sour creme, and chipotle. They had a lovely kick to them and were very filling. Secondly we chose the salt and pepper squid which came with a delicious sweet chilli jam. The final starter we had (and my personal favourite!) was the karaage chicken. This chicken was served with a honey and soy dip and was really tasty. The starters were a good size, there was also the option to have five for  £24.95 but I think this would have been a bit too much since we were having three courses.

I had trouble choosing a main course as there were so many delicious tempting options, I just didn’t know where to begin! With dishes from around the world you could go for Enchiladas, Burgers, Vietnamese Steamboat or even a Texan BBQ Brisket. I decided in the end to try out the Turkish Pide topped with grilled chicken, baby spinach, feta and roasted red pepper and chilli on a spiced tomato base with charred Turkish peppers. This dish was amazing and the toppings were well spread across the dish and were plentiful. James went for the Vietnamese Steamboat which consisted of honey and soy glazed sea bream sprinkled with sesame seeds, in a broth of bok choy, red chillies, sugar snaps and cherry tomatoes. From a traditional Dzao recipe. He said it had a nice array of vegetables to it and felt like a pretty healthy option. He said the Sea Bream was cooked to perfection.

We couldn’t leave without trying dessert. The waitress recommended the Hot Chocolate Brownie and the Eton Mess so we decided to go with them. The Hot Chocolate Brownie was served with a dollop of vanilla ice cream and some hot chocolate sauce. It was absolutely amazing. When it came out, I thought it was a bit small however you didn’t need any more as it was so rich and delicious. My only complaint is that as it was served on a plate it was hard to scrape every last morsel off, whereas in a bowl I may have been able to get every drop of sauce, but maybe that is just me being greedy. James had the Eton Mess Sundae. He struggled to finish it all as it was a decent sized portion and he thought it was a little bit sickly after a while. This didn’t bother me as it meant I could ‘help’ him finish it. It was very sweet. The meringues were crunchy and delicious, it could have done with a bit of ice cream to take away the sweet flavour of the cream and sauce but between us we polished it off.

Overall we had a really enjoyable meal at Giraffe World Kitchen. The staff were great, food was amazing and there was a lovely atmosphere. What would you have picked from the menu?

*I received this meal free of charge in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not influenced in any way.

Turtle Bay Norwich - New Menu Review*

It’s been a while since I last went to Turtle Bay in Norwich so when I heard that they had launched a new menu I instantly knew that I wanted to try it out. When Turtle Bay opened we had just moved house so it has been a busy few months of having no money, hence why we hadn’t returned since! This is the first big menu enhancement that the restaurant has undertaken since it came to Norwich and includes 15 new dishes, 7 new drinks and some new gluten free, veggie and vegan options. I was kindly invited to head down for a review and was allowed to bring someone with me. James and I hadn’t had a nice meal out together for a long time due to all of the house renovations so I thought I’d bring him along and turn it into a little date night for the both of us. We were greeted by Tom who very kindly took us over to our table and we started off by ordering some cocktails which I will talk about in more detail below.

The menu has been inspired by the feedback from guests but still stems from the Caribbean culture that Turtle Bay is all about. The dishes continue to celebrate Turtle Bay’s signature flavours with some fresh new twists and offer more choice for those with allergies and dietary requirements. I noticed there was also some healthier options on the menu. The classic dishes such as the famous Jerk Chicken and Curried goat that I tried on my first visit to Turtle Bay are still on the menu which I was pleased to see. We were served by Evelyn, who was very friendly and happy and always available if we needed more drinks.

For starters, I decided to go for the Sweetcorn Fritters which I had tried when I last came. I was given a little basket with 4 fritters in which was just the right amount. They were crispy and delicious and not greasy at all. I really enjoyed them. James went for the Crispy chilli Squid which he really enjoyed too. He said they had a great kick to them.

For mains, we were spoiled for choice. A new burger menu has been added which I was instantly drawn to. I love burgers and couldn’t wait to try one out with a Caribbean twist to it. The menu features a Jammin’ Lamb Burger alongside a Two Way Chicken Burger, Mushroom and Goats Cheese burger as well as the favourite Jerk ‘n’ Pulled Pork Bun. The burgers are pit grilled and come with a Caribbean slaw and either spiced fries or salad and when I come back I am definitely going to try one of these out.

Other new menu items include Bajan Beef Cheeks which is six hour slow cooked beef cheeks marinated in a Caribbean spice, okra, potato, garlic, ginger, star anise, cinnamon, coriander and toasted coconut. This dish was recommended by Tom when we arrived and said it was really good if you are a meat eater! It comes served with steamed rice and a roti flatbread. James went for this for his main and he said it was really nice and tender. He said it was spicy but not so much that you couldn’t appreciate the flavours. Slow Braised Beef Rib also makes a new appearance on the menu and comes served with sweet potato fries and a watermelon salad. I was very intrigued by the sound of this dish! I love watermelon and wondered how well it would go with beef so I thought I would give it a try. My generous portion arrived and I couldn’t believe how tasty it was. I had a choice of 3 jerk glazes so went for the pineapple glaze which was fruity and not too hot. The meat fell off the bone and there was hardly any fat on my ribs. It was absolutely delicious. The sweet potato fries were amazing and the watermelon went surprisingly well with this dish.

Not forgetting there is now a range of new vegan and vegetarian dishes too including the Spiced Chickpea Ital Wrap, Vital Veggie Beach Platter and the Spinach, Aubergine & Sweet Potato Curry. Okra Ladies’ Fingers consist of spiced panko coated okra fingers with mango mole, fresh lime and coriander mayo and  are a new side order from the Caribbean – vegan friendly, and you won’t find them in any other restaurants in Norwich! The new Beach Salad range provides a lighter, fresher superfood option for a quick healthy bite. The salads come as three bases and you can add a choice of toppings such as avocado, mango, chicken or even squid to really make it your own. 

It’s not just the food menu that has some new additions, the Caribbean cocktail list has also been livened up. Some old favourite’s have made a return due to popular demand such as Goombay Smash and Roots Culture which join the new arrivals Rum Negroni and Rum Margarita. Speaking of cocktails, it is now possible to book a ‘Cocktail table’ at Turtle Bay and enjoy drinks and snacks anywhere in the restaurant and bar. Don’t forget Happy Hour, available until 7pm and from 9:30pm Sunday to Thursday and until 7pm and from 10pm Friday to Saturday where you can take advantage of 2-for-1. It would have been rude for me not to try one of the new cocktails so I went for the Roots Culture and the Goombay Smash, both rum based and both absolutely delicious. As designated driver, James went for a watermelon crush which he really enjoyed. Turtle Bay also continue to be the venue of choice for those not drinking with their fabulous range of Caribbean Softs. New mocktails include Elderflower Cooler and Pineappleade. 

For desserts, we both went for something we had previously tried a small piece of at the press event. James went for the Dark Chocolate Brownie which he must have enjoyed as he didn’t even let me try a piece! I went for the Banana and Toffee Cheesecake. Both dishes were fantastic and really finished the meal off. We were then offered the rum menu or a choice of teas and coffees but both of us were completely stuffed!

There are also some new sharing platters on the menu to really get a feel for the laid back ‘liming’ culture of the Caribbean. Overall we had an amazing meal at Turtle Bay. So much that we are going to book to go back soon and really make a night of it. After your meal you can move to another table and continue the night with some cocktails! I love the laid back atmosphere in the restaurant, service was amazing and everything we ate and drank was absolutely fantastic. Thank you to Turtle Bay, especially Tom and Evelyn for having us and making it a really great night.

You can find Turtle Bay on Facebook, I visited the Norwich branch.

Turtle Bay Norwich
8 Swan Ln,
Norwich NR2 1HZ

*I received this meal free of charge for the purpose of review. All opinions are my own.

Harriets Cafe Tearooms Norwich - Revisited

You may have seen my previous review on Harriets Tearooms where unfortunately I did not receive the best service. I must say the customer service team that I spoke to via Twitter after my experience were very helpful and kindly send me two more vouchers for afternoon tea, this time for the Special edition. This time I took my mum along with me and I can certainly say the experience was a whole lot better.

We both went for the standard Harriets Tea blend with our Afternoon Tea which was lovely. There is unlimited refills on the tea and we had a second pot brought over to us when we finished our first. The service seemed to be really great this time and we were seated and served very quickly.

The Special Afternoon tea usually costs £19.95 per person. The bottom tier came topped with delicious fresh sandwiches in cream cheese & cucumber, smoked salmon and Suffolk ham. These were really lovely and the bread was soft and light. My mum didn’t like the smoked salmon so I ate her share too – no complaints from me!

The second tier consisted of scones and you could choose from cheese, fruit or plain. We decided to go for one cheese and one plain each. The cheese scones were served with butter and a really tasty tomato chutney. The plain scones were served with Cornish clotted cream and strawberry jam and tasted lovely and fresh this time. It was nice to have one savoury and one sweet option, it really balanced the platter out.

Finally the top tier was filled with decedent looking cakes. My favourite was the chocolate and caramel cake, topped with a rolo. The macaroons were lovely as were the small pastry treats. No mould in sight! This was probably my favourite tier of the three and the cakes were exciting and beautifully made.

Overall I had a much better experience the second time around and will definitely return to Harriets Tearooms. I put the first experience down to a one off. Will you be visiting Harriets?

Harriets Cafe Tearooms Norwich - Review

For my birthday this year I very kindly received some afternoon tea vouchers for Harriet’s Café Tearooms which is on London Street in Norwich. As a massive lover of Afternoon tea I couldn’t wait to try somewhere new. The vouchers I received were for Traditional Afternoon tea which is perfect for a nice treat.

We arrived at 12oclock for a lunchtime treat and I couldn’t wait to be seated. It wasn’t very busy when we arrived and were seated almost instantly. My voucher was presented in the style of a ration book and was the perfect gift to open on my birthday. Included in the Traditional Afternoon tea was a lovely pot of Harriet’s special or Tearoom blend fresh leaf tea. There was free refills on this so we had a couple of pots of tea throughout our afternoon tea session.

The bottom tier of our plate was topped with egg mayonnaise and ham sandwich quarters. These sandwiches were really nice but I just wish there was more of them, I am not sure if you can request more or not. There was also a little pot of salad garnish which was fresh and you could then use and eat as you wished.

The middle tier contained two scones with the choice of  cheese, plain or fruit. We both opted for fruit and these were served with clotted cream and jam in individual little pots. The scones were nice, not outstanding but a scone is a scone. The jam and clotted cream tasted lovely however my friend said one of her scones was a little dry and tasted a bit off.

The top tier of the cake stand contained an assortment of mini sponge cakes including fruit cake, carrot cake, coffee cake, chocolate and lemon drizzle. Unfortunately we noticed that one of our pieces of cake had mould growing on the side! When we called a member of staff over to query it and tell them there was mould she replied with “I don’t think so” but then took the top plate away. The plate then returned and I’m convinced they just sliced the mouldy end off instead of replacing it but it was hard to say. The icing still looked a bit ‘fluffy’ and I’ll be honest it did put me off slightly. The fruit cake was dry but the other cakes tasted alright. We came out feeling  full which is the main thing.

Overall I had an alright experience at Harriets but I am not going to rush back, the whole mouldy cake experience did put me off slightly. The staff did apologise at the end and said they had thrown that particular batch of cakes away but it should have been spotted before it was served to us. It was a shame really. Harriets have kindly offered to reiumburse me for the meal. The people sat next to us had some delicious hot food so I would consider going back and having something else so I will happily do another review.

 
Have you ever been for afternoon tea in Norwich?

Turtle Bay Press Event*

One of the things I love most about blogging is getting to try delicious new foods and drinks to come up with content for my readers. When I get invited to try food for free, it makes it even better and I love giving an honest review to you all. When I was invited to the press event for Turtle Bay, a new restaurant opening on Swan Lane in Norwich, I couldn’t wait to try it out before it officially opened to the public. I brought James along with me as a helping hand with the photography and also as chief taxi-man. I couldn’t go home without trying a cocktail or two of course! 

We arrived at 7pm and were greeted with a delicious rum punch, James was driving so he opted for an apple juice but they also had plenty of mocktails on the menu for him to choose from too. We were given the chance to have a wander around the restaurant and take some photos. The décor is absolutely amazing, the centre display of a camber van split in half and made into a seating area is like nothing I have ever seen before. The vibe and atmosphere was great, the music was chilled and not too loud. The lighting was dimmed with fairy lights and neon signs dotted about. We were served some fried garlic chickpeas and sweet potato fries, both delicious!

I met up with Hannah and her partner and we chose to all sit together on a table of four, it was nice to catch up. We opted to have another cocktail, the Jumbled Julep which consisted of white rum & passoa, fresh strawberries, mint & apple. It was lovely. Cocktails are 2-for-1 between 10am-7pm, then 10pm-close. Turtle Bay is open until 1am on Friday and Saturday nights where they close off the restaurant area and keep the bar area open. I would love to come back here one evening for cocktails, especially during happy hour!

When we were seated we were promptly served our starter, a Beach Food Platter which costs £12.95 and is great for sharing. Originally they put one board on our table of four, whereas tables of two were getting one board to share! Thankfully Hannah’s partner said something to the waiter and we got another one! I am glad he had the courage to ask. The platter consisted of spicy jerk chicken wings, pepper roti, sweet corn fritter and garlic and herb flatbreads. My favourite thing on the board was the sweet corn fritter, it was absolutely delicious. The platter was a really nice way to introduce us to the types of food Turtle Bay has on offer.

We were then served a selection of mains, firstly the curried goat served with rice and peas. The marinated goat was cooked in curry spices, scotch bonnet, sweet potatoes, citrus and ginger. This was also served with Caribbean dumplings which were really tasty. I have never tried goat before and I actually really liked it. The curry wasn’t too spicy and was really full of flavour. The meat melted in my mouth. This dish costs only £9.70.

We were then served a plate of Jerk Chicken with Caribbean slaw. The chicken is marinated for 24 hours then grilled with orange chutney and coconut shavings. The jerk chicken had a kick to it and the orange chutney really complimented the spiciness of the marinade and cooled your mouth down. The slaw was delicious, not too creamy and not too sour it was the perfect accompaniment to the dish.

For pudding we were served a selection of mini samplers of what Turtle Bay has on offer on the menu. My favourite was the banana and toffee cheesecake. This triple layered cheesecake was absolutely delicious, I wish there was more of it! We then tried the Zesty Lemon and Lime Tart which was drizzled with a passion fruit sauce, this was indeed very zesty and refreshing. We then tried a piece of chocolate brownie which was nice, but tasted like your standard brownie. I really enjoyed the Caymanas Rum Cake which was smothered in a rum caramel sauce which had an amazing punch to it. Lastly we got to try the Rum & Raisin Bread Pudding. I don’t usually like bread pudding but this one is slow baked with dark rum, cinnamon raisins and brown sugar and was also covered in a strong rum flavoured sauce. It was an absolute delight.

Overall I really enjoyed my sample meal at Turtle Bay in Norwich. I cannot wait for it to officially open as I have only been able to try the tip of the menu and there are so many more delicious sounding items on the menu that I can’t wait to try out. If you like your Caribbean food and cocktails then this is the place to go. Centrally located, it’s the perfect place to try out and I urge you to head there as soon as you can! Thank you to all of the Turtle Bay team for hosting this lovely night, I felt honoured to be invited along.

*I received this meal free of charge as part of the press event.