pumpkinstrokemarrow

Just back from Tavistock, the place with an Oxfam shop with the biggest selection of classical vinyl that I know of. Sadly, now down to opera and other specialised items. Managed a box of Mozart violin concertos but passed on a large collection of Horowitz recordings, which, as it happened, did not include the Schubert impromptus that I was particularly looking for. I suspect that the shop has now consumed the best part of its inheritance. Should not be looking for any more windfalls.

The visit was notable in various other ways. I start with the fact that both a butcher in Oakhampton and a butcher in Tavistock - the only two that I tried - sold top rib of beef. Something which seems to be more or less unobtainable in Surrey, even from the otherwise useful butcher in Cheam. Both more into selling it boned rather than on the bone, actually catching the chap in Tavistock (either J or S Downing, both of the Pannier Market) at it. But at least I now know what an entire top rib looks like: a giant cutlet to the fore ribs' chop. Now also the proud possessor of a six pound piece of rolled top rib, the first time I have had such a thing since I bought one 36 years ago in Histon, Cambridgeshire, shortly after the consolidation of the Isle of Ely, the Soke of Peterborough, Huntingdonshire and Cambridgeshire into a county taking the name of this last. Too bad for the rest of them. More recently I have had one on the bone from Cheam, very good, but he has been unable to repeat the trick. I shall report on how this new one goes down in due course.

We stayed in what had been built in 1722 as a house for the Duke of Bedford's agent in Tavistock, the Duke at that time owning a good chunk of the town and surrounding land. Converted to a hotel in 1822. We suspect that our bedroom was in what had been built, as part of the first conversion, as a ballroom, with the ballroom having been divided both horizontally and vertically into bedrooms in some subsequent conversion. With the result that our bedroom had ceiling vaulting, vaguely mock Tudor, which was clearly intended for a much bigger and a much taller room. The odd effect being compounded by a bed decorated in four poster fashion with black steel tubes, rather after the fashion of a garden pergola. Maybe one could of made something of it if one were a good deal younger and lighter than we actually are.

All kinds of interesting furnishings in the public areas of the hotel. So lots of grandfather clocks, with and without innards, but none of which appeared to work. Some rather fat, bigger than live size naked infants in brass, locked in an embrace which might give a passing social worker a cause for concern. A splendid contraption for serving roast beef. One of those large domed affairs on claw and ball legs, made of silver plate, EPNS, chrome or something of that sort, that they used to wheel around the Savoy Grill before the nouveau cuisine brigade did away with the roast beef there (not that I ever managed a visit to the place. Something missing from an otherwise reasonably full life. A colleague once managed it as a guest of the trade association of one of his contractors. The United Federation of Licensed Waste Disposal Contractors or some such). The hotel assured us that they did wheel the thing out on state occasions.

The restaurant was rather a grand affair, not too big but heavily plastered in white and two shades of magnolia, which rather gave the effect of sitting inside an inside-out wedding cake or perhaps a giant and very elaborate macaroon. Quite cosy really. The food was very up-to-date, served on the finest shiny white plates of various shapes and sizes, mainly large. For the first time I thought I tasted the point of the sort of cooking that involves small tabs of this and that arranged in a very arty way on a large white plate. A sort of poem in appearance, texture and taste. Maybe chords and harmony. They managed fish very well, considering it was presumably cooked from frozen. Did not do so well with the fillet steaklet. Various interesting soups and sauces involving parsnips. Some very small apples, looking a bit like yellow cherries, very hot and sweet and decorating slices of black pudding. So interesting and well worth having given it a go. (Plus, very reasonable given the two night full board offer we had taken up). But a bit too fancy for me and with far too high a proportion of protein, sugar and fat. I like a bit more padding with my grub and a lot more cabbage. I suspect that a fair proportion of the people at the hotel thought the same as they were going for the more traditional offerings served in the bar.

A reasonable kipper in the morning, although not up to simmerered Waitrose. Decorated with a very natty half lemon, with a thin sliver of peel unpeeled from maybe three quarters of the circumference and tied up in a pretty little knot. Looked well although a little OTT for me as I do not usually take lemon with my fish.

All in all, a good hotel, of the centre of old market town variety. Not too many of them left these days. We shall go there again.

Visit closed with a visit to the baker, which I thought, on appearance, was going to produce something dire. Did not look like your artisanale baker at all, despite claiming to have been on the premises for a very long time. We settled for something called a goose loaf, known to the rest of us as a white floured split tin. As it turned out, it was fine. Served with some smoked ham from the much more fancily got up old-style grocer a little further down the road. Possibly old style to the point where they cooked their own coffee but I am not sure on that point. Good cheese and cooked meats in any event.

This from the library, the BT service having failed me again, uploaded from Word. We shall see if we manage to get the font right. Then we shall have to think about BT: starting to fail too often. But will the grass really be greener on the other side of the fence? Is it really worth having the man come and connect the junction box in the pavement to our house? How much damage to the house and garden will be done in the process? Clearly a great deal to be thought about here.

# posted by Jim @ 7:38 AM