Review on Purnell's
Glyn Purnell made his name and gained a Michelin star as king of the kitchen at Jessica's in the leafy suburbs of Edgbaston. Following its demise, he struck out on his own and the result is Purnell's - a hot new arrival housed in a one-time furniture showroom close to the city's financial heartland. The Victorian red-brick building has been given something of a 'art gallery' feel thanks to heated black-slate tiles, a skylight and gantry with studio lighting.
Purnell is one of those chefs who revels in risk taking and an 'anything goes' approach to modern cuisine: expect a roller-coaster ride of exciting and unexpected contrasts, wacky ideas and a few culinary jokes along the way (his take on kedgeree involves poached egg yolk, smoked haddock milk foam, cornflakes and curry oil). Goats' cheese royale and pineapple on sticks with pineapple syrup and watercress sounds like '70s party kitsch, while monkfish roasted in fennel pollen with lemon porridge, avocado, herring caviar and sour apple is straight out of the contemporary lexicon.
Oriental flavours point up dishes like salmon cured in Indian spices with wasabi, sakura cress and Japanese mushrooms or brill cooked in coconut milk with an assemblage of red lentils, carrots cooked in cumin and toffee with baby spinach. Desserts throw down the challenge with - perhaps - dark chocolate mousse accompanied by creamed rosewater rice pudding, mango 'leather' and sugared rose petals.
Purnell's is also featured in: Michelin Guide, Good Food Guide
Rate this RestaurantCuisine
Modern British
Chef
Glynn Purnell and Luke Butcher
Restaurant Opening Times
Lunch: 12.00 - 1.30pm Tue-Sat
Dinner: 7.00pm - 9.00pm Tue-Fri (6.30 - 9.30pm Sat)
Accepted credit cards
Visa, Master Card, American Express
