The Chocolate Box

Victoria

Take one beautiful listed building in a picturesque Cheshire village, add an experienced and visionary restaurateur, stir through a sprinkling or two of spice and you have the perfect recipe for a successful Indian fine dining destination. Teresa Thomason tries out Prestbury’s newly-opened The Saffron Room. Pulling up outside the charming 18th Century building one dismal Friday night, lights twinkling through leaded windows beckon us invitingly inside. What immediately hits our party of three as we enter The Saffron Room, with its warm colour-scheme of aubergine, chocolate brown and taupe, is just how uplifting, fresh and contemporary the interior is. Belying its quaint exterior, this contrast between the traditional and the new really works here. And it certainly doesn’t stop at the décor. Owner Sanaan Ahamed has taken the same approach with The Saffron Room’s menu, skillfully combining the traditional with modern influences. Dishes you’d expect to find on an Indian menu are here - Biriyanis, Tandooris, Masala, Baltis and Korma – but there are also some very interesting fusion dishes that really do tempt the palate. A genuine fan of the marriage of cultures and tastes that come with this genre of food, this addition of the fusion selection was for me a pleasant and welcome surprise. There’s nothing predictable about the drinks menu either. A collaboration with luxury brand Moet Hennesy’s mixologist has allowed The Saffron Room to offer an enticing selection of cocktails ranging from the classic to the contemporary. And the wine list too has been put together with a forward thinking approach. While there’s a great selection of reds and whites from very affordable through to high-end, we were also happy to see there’s five organic wines available for those already converted to the natural option. Time then to pick our way through the extensive array of food and wine – but with such a mouthwatering selection we really were spoilt for choice. Help was quickly on hand though as the attentive team explained the construction of various dishes and made their suggestions in accordance with our stated preferences. For this evening it was to be for my husband, 12-year-old son Joe and me duck, fish and nothing too hot or rich please. And for wine, though we tend to be red drinkers, after asking for advice we were steered towards a white, which proved to be the perfect accompaniment. While we took in the ambience, noting that the 70-cover restaurant had very quickly filled up with diners, we munched on papadams (with dips) that my husband immediately awarded with the accolade of “Best and Lightest” he’d ever tasted. With a New Year’s resolve to watch what I eat, we’d ordered just two between us. A big mistake, should we order more? A third papadam was not to be however. The starters arrived promptly. My husband had opted for The Saffron Room Barbeque Special – a medley of four different and flavoursome meats. I, being in a seafood mood, had chosen the King Prawn Garlic, while Joe chose the Bengoli Fish opting for the safer Mild option. All of us were very happy with our choices - but having been assured by the waiter that it really was ok to share, we unanimously crowned Joe’s fish dish, generous in portion size and served with an utterly delicious sweet, hot, coriander, herb and green chilli sauce, Star of the Starters. Next - after just the right amount of rest time – came the mains. The rather intriguingly described “Chef’s secret recipe” Tandoori Chicken Jaipur made a very grand entrance at my husband’s place – and wowed us all with an explosion of taste. The Signature Blue Water Duck dish, with a mystery marinade of “very special ingredients” – and not an ounce of fat to be found in the finely sliced duck - was for Joe, while I had opted for the Crème de la Cinnamon Seabass. Never able to resist seabass on any menu I’d overlooked the fact that this dish came with cream, something I’d generally prefer not to have. But I needn’t have worried, my meal was cooked beautifully and the taste was light and fresh. The Saffron Room offers all you expect to see in an Indian restaurant, so finding your favourite dish won’t be hard, but the additional ‘designer’ dishes on the menu mean that for those who like to try new tastes and extend their horizons a little, there’s plenty to tempt them here. It’s a long time since we last ate out an Indian restaurant. If our first experience of the Saffron Room’s anything to go by it won’t be long before we’re there again. Next time we’ll take along a few friends and add a few cocktail specials to the evening. Here’s to our next visit.

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The Chocolate Box

General Enquiry

Restaurants Nearby

Bacchus Restaurant

Lilac at The Chestergate

Bulls Head