The Black Bull, Sedbergh, Cumbria, is gearing up to host its second-ever dinner series, as chef-owner Nina Matsunaga and her team take to the Black Bull’s stoves to create three one-off tasting menus with a fourth dinner to be announced shortly cooked in tandem with a very special guest chef.
Each of the three menus in this dinner series is distinctly different and focuses on an aspect of cooking that Nina holds dear, resulting in a series of unique five-course tasting menus.
The first of which gets underway on Wednesday 23rd October with an exclusive five-course Japanese-inspired tasting menu specifically designed by Nina to highlight the diverse cookery found in Japanese cuisine, with a particular focus on taste, texture and balance which are the fundamental ingredients in Nina’s cooking. This unique menu will as with all of her food focus on seasonality and locality to deliver a multi-sensory dining experience.
The second five-course tasting menu will be served up on Wednesday 27th November This menu will be entirely focused on Non-Native Invasive Ingredients, including crayfish, jellyfish, and venison. Nina has specially selected ingredients that are frequently seen as being harmful to our environment and responsible for reducing the habitats and populations of our native species. As she sets about crafting her menu for the evening she will carefully modify these ingredients to turn them into key elements within a tantalising five-course tasting menu designed to challenge perceptions around these controversial ingredients, by using them rather than wasting them and at the same time raise awareness and play a small part in helping to reduce their impact on our environment.
The third five-course tasting menu will take place on Thursday 23rd January, focusing on Fermented Foods, something that is a central tenet of cuisines the world over. Something many people may not know is that fermented foods have been consumed worldwide for thousands of years, with many finding their way into kitchens, restaurants and markets around the globe. From more familiar foods such as cheese, yoghurt and sourdough bread to more specialised ingredients such as kimchi and miso from Asia, sauerkraut and crème fraiche from Europe, shanklish and doogh from the Middle East, poi and atole agrio from the Americas, and garri and togwa from Africa to name a few, with as many as 5000 types of fermented foods being eaten globally it’s a vast subject and Nina will be exploring it with this particular menu.
Each five-course tasting menu is priced at £60.00 per person
There’s limited availability for each evening with places for up to 40 guests.
Matched drink pairings will also be available each night.
For the Japanese dinner, there are multiple sittings with tables available at 6.00pm, 7.15pm, and 8.00pm
Dinner on the following dates: 27th November, 23rd January, and 18th February, starts promptly at 7.00pm.
The fourth and final dinner will be served on Tuesday 18th February as Nina steps into the Black Bull’s kitchen to collaborate with a very special guest chef whose reputation precedes her. Born in Senegal, raised in The Gambia, of Lebanese heritage and incredibly well-travelled this chef is a whirlwind of talent and skill in the kitchen and has transformed a quiet rural inn into one of the most well-known gastropubs in the country, but more about that in a little while when we announce the exciting plans for the evening ahead in the coming weeks.
To book a place call 015396 20264 or email [email protected]
www.theblackbullsedbergh.co.uk
Images supplied
