So, I’m not sure whether you noticed… but a few weeks ago, whilst my Instagram stories said I was dining in Salford. I was in fact on a boat, on the Mediterranean. But luckily, after years of working alongside me, hubby was ready to step in and get the verdict on the brand new Grill in the Park menu at the Marriott Worsley Park. Is it worth a second visit? Let’s find out…
Having previously tried the breakfast menu there a while ago, I was excited about the menu at the newly refurbished Grill in the Park. We received a sneak peak of the menu in advance of our meal and oh yes, it looked great. Everything you would expect from a restaurant with the word ‘Grill’ in it’s name. Steaks, burgers, fresh fish – it was all on the menu.
The kitchen had installed a new swanky £16,000 broiler grill and the dishes had been curated by head chef Tom Gardner to include some quality tasting food. The new look dining area was the perfect setting for the evening ahead. Cosy interiors, a mixture of warm and light textures as well as perfect ambient lighting for an evening meal.
Drinks ordered, our host went through the menu in detail, explaining her personal favourites, the chef’s recommendations and offered suggestions when we couldn’t decide. I should add at this point that halal meat is available if pre-ordered a few days in advance. We missed the deadline but that didn’t make a jot of difference as what we had was thoroughly enjoyable…
The table was already laid with bread and dips – a smoked pepper hummus (divine) and bowls of red and green pesto. A great way to start the meal and to whet the appetite. For starters, I had ordered garlic prawns and my guest for the evening, ordered the scallops. What can I say, thankfully I wasn’t faced with a bowl of tiny shrimp drowning in a pool of garlic butter, but instead I was treated to proper prawns (with heads and legs and everything) and grilled to perfection. The sauce was delicious, a generous amount of garlic but not overpowering enough to knock out your neighbour. The scallops were melt-in-your-mouth, Hamza’s verdict went further, “they’re the best scallops I have ever had,” he said. Served on a bed of celeriac puree and alongside a nut, apple and fennel salad – this excellent start made us thoroughly excited for our main course.
We ordered the grilled sea bass, served with a simple nicoise salad and a balsamic glaze and a side portion of sweet potato fries to go with it. One of my main concerns with restaurants who serve fish such as sea-bass, is that you usually get one small, limp fillet (which is usually very expensive) and you end up leaving the restaurant hungry. Grill in the Park however have not skimped on the portion sizes. At all. We received two fairly large fillets on a bed of the salad. The fillets were meaty and cooked beautifully.
We also ordered the buttermilk halloumi burger, with grilled aubergine, flame roasted peppers and spicy tomato relish, served with a portion of skinny fries, naturally. The burger was BIG, and the buttermilk halloumi was delicious. The grilled aubergine provided an almost-meaty texture and the relish and crispy onions rounded each bite off nicely.
There’s always a separate belly for dessert, and tonight was no exception. After perusing the various options we decided to go for the baked cookie dough and the pecan pie. Both with ice-cream; and both were excellent. A night of superlatives for Hamza as he declared the pecan pie to be lush and the best he’d had outside of the States (As good as it was, I’m beginning to wonder if he should get out more? ?). The cookie dough was highly satisfying and moreish – a far cry from the BAAAAAD cookie dough of my childhood served up by an international pizza chain.
The hotel and restaurant are mostly frequented by business clients who are passing through Manchester, however Grill in the Park is a solid restaurant in it’s own right and should make it on to your list of dining choices. This new menu of great quality comfort food, combined with a homely interior setting actually make this a great alternative to going out for a meal in the City.
Plus with the crazy traffic in Manchester owed to construction sites and roadworks, you don’t have to venture any where close to the City to get there.
Go on, take yourselves out of the City for one evening. You won’t regret it, trust me.
*** Thanks to the team at Grill in the Park, Marriott Worsley Park for inviting us to sample the new menu. All opinions here are Mo’s – but we have very similar tastes so I totally trust him! And I look forward to sampling the food for myself in the near future. All photos are ours and have not been edited. And thank you to the boys for taking on the hard task of reviewing (Sorry about the jokes H, I couldn’t help but add put my tuppence in ***
