goodthingsmagazine.comOUT & ABOUT27W
ith everything from sky-high
Michelin dining venues in
London to rural gastropubs
under their shared,
Michelin-starred belt, Chris and Jeff Galvin
can do no wrong – especially in their home
county of Essex. Sharking a parking spot
in the Green Man’s ample car park on a
Sunday a ernoon requires multiple circuits;
and, when we finally get inside, there’s scant
space in either the bar or dining room.
Luckily, we have a plan. Or, rather, a
booking – without which we’d be
thoroughly up the proverbial without a
paddle. We’re ushered upstairs to one of
the pub’s four family rooms, all available for
hire for up to a dozen diners. Each room is
themed around a local business, and our
group of nine fits very comfortably in the
one whose decor is inspired by Suffolk
brewer Adnams. On the table, a shiny
copper still serves as a centrepiece, and
vintage prints adorn the walls.
We’re here to ‘Host a Roast’; i.e. enjoy a
full, family-style Sunday dinner served to
our room with unobtrusive charm whilst
we simply get on with the serious business
of having a lovely a ernoon.
And a lovely a ernoon is, indeed, had
by all. The two under-sevens who we’d
predicted would last lile more than 45
minutes before raising merry hell have
done no such thing a er almost three
hours; the wine has flowed in a steadystream, and the three-course feast is both
abundant and excellent.
To start, we divvy up slabs of pork pie
with ale chutney, and salmon and leek tart.
Our centrepiece, a handsome leg of lamb, is
presented first whole then carved; sat
alongside brimming bowls of red cabbage,
killer roast potatoes, and super-sweet
carrots whose dimensions and oversized
serving fork make even the largest of our
party feel positively Lilliputian. Of course,
there is fresh mint sauce and lashings of
gravy to accompany the lot.
Savoury stomachs sated, we announce
that yes please, we are ready to receive
dessert – a pile of white chocolate-stuffed
profiteroles and a pleasingly-tart rhubarb
crumble joined by vanilla ice-cream and
jugs of chocolate sauce and custard.
All is enjoyed; lile is le ; and the whole
experience is unanimously announced as a
winner dinner.Howe Street, Great Waltham, Essex CM3 1BG •01245 408 820 •galvinrestaurants.com
PUT IT TO THE TEST
Galvin Green Man’s Host A Roast
experience is available on Sundays and
prices include room hire. Choose two
starters, a main and two desserts for
your whole group – prices range from
£26.50 per person for wood-roasted
corn-fed Norfolk black chicken to
£34.50 for stuffed saddle of lamb.Dispatches from the dining table
Galvin Green Man
In the family rooms of the Galvin brothers’ Essex gastropub, Zoë Perrett hosts
a top-notch shared Sunday roast – minus any stress, mess, or washing up5 MINUTES WITH
CHRIS & JEFFSuperhero suppliers?
To name a few;
Colchester Oysters,
Marriage’s flour, Great
Garnett pig farm, Clark
& Son butchers, Anglia
Produce, Tiptree jams,
Adnams brewery...If you Host A Roast,
who’s invited?
After family, someone
fun like Peter Kay, a
musician like Keith
Richards, and a couple
of sportspeople like
Usain Bolt and Nicola
Adams. Plus of course
Fred Sirieix, maitre d’
from Galvin at
Windows.Your perfect Host
A Roast menu?
Galvin-cure smoked
salmon followed by
slow-cooked local lamb
shoulder with roast
vegetables and herbs,
with our famous apple
Tarte Tatin for pud.Dining_RoastV2ZPCathyZP.indd 27 01/04/2017 23:05