Andrew Kay heads to Glyndebourne for fabulous music & very fine dining

A bite at the opera

I’ve been going to Glyndebourne since I was in my early 20s. Back then it was to dress rehearsals as I had a friend in wardrobe (not the closet). These days I go with my Latest hat on, to enjoy the music and report. It’s a tough ask, mainly because there a too few superlatives available across their season to pepper my reviews with appropriate glory.
Back in my 20s I would pack sandwiches and hang out in the staff bar, a glamorous thing in itself. These days I go with friends and we splash out and dine in one of the three restaurants.







On Saturday it was Ariadne auf Naxos, gloriously rich fare that deserved an equally delicious interval feast. We were not to be disappointed.

Middle & Over Wallop is our top choice and for this season the menu in their top restaurant has been overseen by none other than the legendary Albert Roux. I guess if you’re Glyndebourne seeking a food mentor with class it would have to be a Roux.

Dinner in Middle & Over Wallop is an amazing affair, sparkling and glamorous and run with near military precision. Well it would have to be to make sure we are all back in our seats for the second half. But can that kind of dining be done with so regimented a process? The answer is yes, yes, yes.

Our meal started in style, both Mr R’s chose the prawns and asparagus. It was a witty dish, with the prawns served in a Glyndebourne branded sardine can. On the side a dainty finger of dark bread was topped with shaved vegetables and the prawns and asparagus were dressed with a creamy truffle vinaigrette. I looked on with envy as Mr R ordered everyone to mop up the sauce with their roll. Sadly, prawns are off the menu for me right now. Mrs C chose the rabbit terrine in a pastry case which she liked but found rather large for her dainty, ladylike tongue. I had chosen the chilled cream of sorrel soup with organic salmon drizzled with Vermouth. It was not a dish I would leap at normally but how great that circumstance drove me to it as I loved it – a light and refreshing soup with that great citrus kick that sorrel delivers, and at the heart a mighty round of excellent salmon.

Mrs C and I both chose the roast Cumbria fillet of beef larded with pancetta, caramelised shallot purée and beef jus. The beef was stunningly tender and flavoursome, unusual for a usually mild fillet I thought. The fat chip shaped fondant potato was tasty and the roast shallot purèe was so delicious that I could have consumed a bowl of that alone. Mr R chose roast breast of guinea fowl with sweet peas, braised lettuce, baby onions and lardons, a classic combination that put a very big grin on his face. The guinea fowl was moist and tender, a result that requires precise cooking that must be hard when catering on this scale.

Mr R 2 had the fillet of sea trout with asparagus, broad beans, Chanterelle mushroom and Sauterne wine sauce. He’s a veggie of sorts by which I mean he is a fussy eater. Anyway, he loved the dish and almost had to be restrained from licking the plate.

Three of us chose the bitter chocolate tart with griotte cherries. Cherries are high on my good to eat diet right now so it was an obvious choice for me and Mrs C is a chocolate addict, only using very high grade but secreting it around her home in odd places for emergencies. Anyway we loved it, it was dangerously dark and came with little fruit grenades of boozy cherry. Mr R chose the Opera gateau, a classic work of French patisserie that came with coffee ice-cream and a mocha sauce. I looked on with envy even though my tart was delicious.

We drank a good bottle of white sancerre and finished with coffee and the bill was… well, let us say that it was exactly what one would expect to pay for fine dining and possibly less that one might expect for Albert Roux. He was there by the way, greeting us as we went in, but sadly gone when we left. I wanted to shake him by the hand and thank him for a rather grand dinner.

We returned to our seats and watched the shivering picnickers return from their unseasonally chill al fresco repasts.
For more information about dining at Glyndebourne visit www.diningatglyndebourne.com
For tickets visit glyndebourne.com

What’s your favourite opera? andrew@thelatest.co.uk