I love that I have friends all over the UK for various reasons, but it’s particularly useful when I’m venturing to another city and I need a recommendation for dinner plans. Sometimes it’s hard to find food blogs that tell me what I need to know in terms of restaurants. One of my friends recommended Ate O’Clock as well as a few others last year but I opted for Nineteen. This time I thought I ought to check out somewhere new!
Ate O’Clock his tucked away from the main of the street – look for the clock overhead!
You walk down the beautifully decorated alleyway to the entrance of the cosy restaurant. There was a vocalist/guitarist playing on the evening we visited and it added such a lovely ambiance to the room, which only holds a small number of diners. It also holds several clocks, all set to 8 o’clock!
Starters
Moules Marinières
This has got to be in my top 5 starters, or in fact, dishes in general. I adore it. Ate O’Clock didn’t disappoint – fresh mussels in a creamy garlic and white wine sauce! Delicious.
Truffle infused Brie with Spiced Strawberry Chutney
My love for melted cheese was met with some intrigue! Spiced strawberry chutney y’say? This was fantastic and full of flavour. The sweet yet tangy and punchy chutney was glorious when spread onto the bread and covered in a healthy dose of the molten cheese. Perfect.
Mediterranean Vegetable Tart
My photos for this dish really aren’t great! The restaurant has a lovely low lit atmosphere which makes taking good photographs quite difficult – I don’t use my flash as I’d hate to attract attention to myself. This tart was lovely – flaky pastry topped with an assortment of soft vegetables. It was beautifully fresh and light.
Main Courses
Gressingham Duck Breast, Red Onion Tart served with Dauphinoise Potatoes & Red Wine Gravy
I’m noticing a theme. Or at least a trend: Onion Tarts. Is this a Yorkshire thing? Yorkshire readers please let me know! Both meals I have ordered in York have been served with one of these! As you can see from the photograph the duck was cooked to perfection and was so succulent. The red wine gravy was the perfect addition with it’s lovely warm and rich flavour. The dauphinoise potatoes need no description, they were, as always, heavenly.
Sirloin Steak with Peppercorn Sauce
The thing I was most excited about was the tiny colander of colourful vegetables! How cute? This was my dad’s choice and it was a great decision. The steak was so juicy and full of flavour and cooked medium. Served with chunky chips and a sumptuous peppercorn sauce.
Roasted Pork fillet filled with Smokey Chorizo and Sun-blushed Tomato served on Wild Mushroom Risotto with Apple Compote
The smell from this dish was incredible. The minute it was placed on the table I wanted to devour it. The earthy, garlicky risotto created a bed for the rolls of roasted pork and chorizo. There were so many different flavours here that all crashed together. Smoky, sweet, earthy, piquance – it was just brilliant.
Desserts
Chocolate Truffle Tart
I had to literally fight to try a piece of this. My sister’s dessert was a chocolate truffle tart, served on a berry compote drizzled plate with a brandy snap basket of vanilla ice cream. It was so rich and chocolatey. Luxury.
Limoncello Trifle
I died and went to dessert heaven. Layers of cream, lemon cream, Limoncello and white chocolate. Oh my days, it was spectacular. Very creamy but due to the sweetness and tang of the lemon it was so enjoyable. I could have eaten it twice!
We left Ate O’Clock completely full and completely happy. There is a war in the camp about whether we preferred Nineteen or Ate O’Clock. There is a 50/50 divide so we feel like we should visit them again to settle the debate! It just has to be done!
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Ate O’clock
13A High Ousegate
York
YO1 8RZ
(01904) 644080
@AteOclockLtd
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