The Neptune
Old Hunstanton, Norfolk
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Behind its unshowy red-brick frontage, this former coaching inn on the main coast road has an equally unshowy, if tastefully attired, split-level little dining room. Only when the food arrives is it apparent that the Neptune is a classy operation indeed – with all the trappings of haute cuisine. Husband-and-wife team Kevin and Jacki Mangeolles have run things since 2007 (he in the kitchen, she front-of-house), when they converted the building into a restaurant with rooms. Today, a simple meal-opener of whisper-light cheese and raisin biscuits with Sicilian olives shows you are in highly capable hands. An amuse-bouche of grilled mackerel (beautifully charred on top) with pickled sliced shallot confirmed this at inspection even before the starters. Decide between a set dinner (three choices at each course) or a nine-course tasting menu. Terse descriptions serve to increase the delight when ‘deep-fried plaice fillet, lobster broth’ arrives: a succulent portion of fish, cooked to split-second perfection, clothed in the lightest breadcrumbed coating, and placed on a deeply flavourful broth with generous chunks of lobster. Even a mundane-sounding chicken terrine is lifted to rare excellence here, both in flavour and texture. So too, a main course of Herdwick lamb (superb tender, pink meat) with hispi cabbage, mushrooms and violetta potatoes (almost yam-like in texture), the dish boosted by punchy rocket pesto. Exemplary meat and gravy were also highlights of a veal main course: loin, served with butternut squash purée, cavolo nero, celeriac and champ. After a not-altogether-necessary pre-dessert of tonka-bean panna cotta with chocolate topping, the pick of the puds was a rich dark-chocolate marquise – its base crunchy, its accompaniments a creamy peanut-butter ice cream and juicy poached cherries. Again, perfectly judged combinations, excellent ingredients and a lightness of touch were the watchwords. Jacki Mangeolles has her hand firmly on the Neptune’s tiller, delivering highly attentive service and chatting to customers. Her wine list (tilted towards Old World producers) is everything you'd expect from a restaurant of this class.
