New year, new decade, new beginnings. Many of us make resolutions looking to be more adventurous, try new things and push ourselves.
But then again, what’s the point? Sometimes, there is no need to experiment. Sometimes, things are fine as they are. Sometimes, the old ways are the best.
If you disagree, visit Hibou Blanc – which is French for "white owl" in case you’re wondering – on Newcastle ’s High Bridge Street. It might have opened last year but customers could be forgiven for not knowing whether they are in 2020 or 1920! Let me say quickly, that it’s old-fashioned but not in a bad or dated way. Instead, it’s elegant, classy and inviting, somewhere you could go for a leisurely drink or a swanky meal.
The huge bar takes up the middle of the main room but there’s plenty of space and seating in a grand room packed with period features. The restaurant is located in a separate area, near the hustle and bustle but with a degree of privacy.
Co-owned by the proprietors of Uno’s on the Quayside and with the kitchen run by head chef Neil Jefferson, formerly of Jesmond Dene House, the food menu doesn’t look to reinvent the wheel – everything on it is classic fare featuring quality ingredients.
The starters
For those feeling rather flush, there are oysters, caviar and queen scallops all on the menu but fear not, there is a good selection of other starters, many of which use local seafood.
One of my companions had a bowl of mussels (£8.95) that was pretty sizeable, while the seafood itself was cooked perfectly and succulent, with a sumptuous white wine sauce to go along with it.
The ham hock and smoked chicken terrine (£8.95) was as meaty as you can imagine, with crumbled nuts adding a bit of texture and crunch. Accompanied by celeriac remoulade and apple, it was a good size and nothing was wasted.
I managed to get the best of both worlds with king scallop, pork belly, celeriac and lime caramel (£12.50). A maelstrom of different flavours and textures, the soft scallops and lime caramel added sweetness, the pork belly – complete with delicious, crunchy crackling – was juicy and fell apart, while the celeriac added a bit of crunch. You won’t find many more enjoyable starters than this.
The mains
The choice is seafood, fish, steak or chicken. There’s a cheese souffle for vegetarians but that’s essentially it, just done a few different ways.
If you think that’s a criticism, you are mistaken. It’s top-quality produce just done really well. Why make it complicated?
Exhibit A: a lean, mean and gloriously tender 8oz fillet steak (£34.95) with a (not so) healthy dollop of Café de Paris butter, some well-cooked green beans, and a bowl full of chips that were both crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle. The 10oz rib-eye (£29.95) came with the same accompaniments and earned similar plaudits.
That being said, if you’re a fan of sauce with your steak, you’re out of luck – they weren’t any listed on the menu and the two eaters in question both mulled why a vegetable option instead of chips wasn’t available (sides were £3.95 each).
I tried out the lobster linguine, which came with chilli, tarragon and lobster sauce (£21.95). Delicate, sweet and light, the lobster was soft without being chewy and the pasta was nicely cooked. There wasn’t a great deal of chilli but that really wasn’t an issue, instead allowing the lobster to take centre stage.
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The desserts
Given that there are just four dessert offerings on the menu, Hibou Blanc are sticking with the quality-over-quantity approach – but this time it did feel somewhat disappointing, so we only had two desserts.
The clementine cheesecake (£7.50) was the taste of winter encapsulated in a few sweet, tangy, creamy bites, though the accompanying sorbet was bland and underwhelming and while the base was meant to taste of gingerbread, that flavour didn’t really come through.
The custard tart (£6.95), with a bit of nutmeg and complete with vanilla ice cream, was good but there wasn’t really much to say about it. None of the courses at Hibou Blanc are going to be cheap by any means. That’s fine when the food is as good as it was for the first two courses but this one was unable to meet those lofty standards.
The verdict
We were slightly perplexed as to why, when there weren’t many other diners around, we sat directly next to another group but the staff were attentive nonetheless.
With two very nice glasses of red wine and a beer totalling £16.10, the bill came to £147.80. Automatically tacked on – always a personal bugbear – was a 10% service charge, so the final total came to £162.58.
While that’s a lot of money, the quality of the first two courses and the setting were very impressive. It’s hard to believe that in such close proximity to the "lively" Bigg Market is this place. It’s formal, it’s stylish and it certainly adds something to Newcastle city centre. It's a new decade but no need to break new ground. The old ways really are still the best.
Factfile
Hibou Blanc, 13 High Bridge, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1EN
Telephone: 0191 261 8000
Website: hiboublanc.co.uk
Opening hours: 12pm-11pm Sunday to Thursday, 12pm-12am Friday and Saturday
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