The Goods Shed - Canterbury

So, Autumn is upon us proper. The last vestiges of Summers shimmering waves of heat have retreated for yet another year, replaced by the cold, damp, rotting leaf and bonfire smell of this, my favourite time of year.

There's nothing like awaking early on an October weekend to glimpse the leaden grey skies replaced overnight with a cobalt blue, the sun spearing a gap in the curtains with a tantalising shaft of light, dust lazily dancing within....it triggers a voice inside my head that barks like a drillmaster "Wake up!" Coffee, shower and get out into the British dawn nice and early, somewhere in the countryside, perhaps to the coast or maybe to one of the beautiful, historic cities and towns that dot the landscape. Places like York, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Winchester, Stratford-upon-Avon, Bath. Wandering around historic cobbled streets, surrounded by medieval half-timbered warped buildings or roads lined with regal Georgian architecture, well I can think of nothing I'd rather be doing on a sunny autumnal day off.

But of course, being me, before I've left the house to tread the cobbles, or wander the countryside I need to work out where I'll be eating lunch, nothing left to chance. The ideal will be an ancient pub with a roaring log fire serving traditional, seasonal British food, well prepared.
Sadly, easier said than done. Don't get me wrong, these places are out there, but more often than not, located nowhere near where you want them to be.

Sunday saw me in Canterbury, Kent wandering the historic cobbled streets and lanes, gawping at the incredible Cathedral and as the morning turned to afternoon, thinking about lunch.
I couldn't find the ideal in Canterbury, despite the profusion of historic half-timbered buildings and ancient inns - it's apparently too much to ask to find a reputable one that proffered decent grub, but my research had turned up something else.... A former Railway Goods Shed, now a farmers market/restaurant located just outside the old city walls. With cracking reviews from critics such as Jay Rayner, no less (albeit back in 2005), it seemed like an ideal choice.

As your eyes adjust to the light, entering the comparative darkness of the former Goods Shed, you immediately notice tables loaded with fresh local Kent produce...the same produce in fact that the restaurant creates it's menu from daily. Apparently 95% of the restaurants ingredients are sourced from the daily farmers market which is located barely meters away from the kitchens. There's a small fishmongers, a decent sized butchers, a stall selling bread, even a small stall selling cheese. It's about as local and fresh as ingredients are going to get, and is a fantastic idea. It would be great to see the concept replicated elsewhere.

The Restaurant is located in a open gallery which runs down one side of the shed, overlooking the market. It's simple but pleasant looking, bare wood tables, a small bar located in the middle and large original arched windows offering views of the dubious pleasures supplied by Canterbury West train station.

Studying the chalked menu board behind the bar, my initial thought was "Great simple, British dishes and local produce" my second thought was "Quite expensive - hope it's worth it!"

Well, you'll be pleased to learn that it was worth it, just. There were elements of the meal that let it down slightly, considering the prices being asked, but overall I enjoyed what I ate.

We were brought thick slices of excellent rustic bread served on a wooden board with butter. It was good stuff, as far as bread goes.

My starter of Ham Hock Terrine with 'Paul's Piccalilli' was quite possibly one of the prettiest starters I've seen this year, a thick jellied slice of terrine layered throughout , with fresh green herbs, separating the soft flakes of ham hock and studded with peppercorns, perched on warm toasted bread with a subtly flavoured, obviously homemade piccalilli. Beautiful stuff, it all worked so well together, and served on old mismatched china, was really nice to look at, being almost a shame to dig in.

My main of Confit duck with muscat wine and chorizo arrived, and was almost equal in the looks department to my starter, again served on old mismatched china. Two confit duck legs, spiked with chorizo balanced on a mound of buttery mash which itself sat on a bed of spinach and a chunk of some kind of squash. The Duck was perfectly cooked, falling from the bone at the merest touch of the fork, great stuff. Incredibly tasty but filling, this was a huge portion of food, I barely finished it.

The GF's main (no starter for her - that's why she's svelte, and I'm running headlong towards being fat.) was Filleted skate, with brown shrimps, and brown butter. I tried some and it was lovely, subtle yet meaty. For some reason she wasn't so keen, stating that the skate wasn't hot enough. I'm not so sure to be honest, a flat piece of fish like skate will lose heat rapidly - the piece I sampled was fine. So, a divergence of opinions on that dish.

Desserts, I toyed with the highly unusual step for me of not ordering any, I was so full. The GF suggested we share one...(not likely!) But, steeling my resolve I pushed on determined to see this to the end, and immediately went for Treacle tart with brown bread ice cream.
This arrived with candied orange zest on the side, (nice simple idea which I'm going to steal for use at home). and a slightly broken looking appearance at the front. Presentation issue aside, it was lovely and light, partnered with a slick of cointreau, cinnamon and star anise syrup and the ice-cream (which If I'm honest didn't taste much of brown bread to me) it was a nice way to end the meal.

The GF's Apple flan with custard seems to have suffered from the same serving problem, also arriving with the front broken. Her considered opinion, it was "OK, a bit dry" She didn't seem too keen.

So, a few hits, a few misses. My starter and main were truly excellent, the GF wasn't so enthusiastic about hers. The dessert's, although in my case, nice, were marred by a bit of cack handed presentation. The service, friendly, efficient and prompt was let down a bit by the waitress not knowing what the vegetable platter consisted of and seriously underselling it. But for all that, the concept of eating dishes made with locally sourced food, with the ingredients to purchase yourself a mere step away is an intriguing one. I think that overall, I'd happily eat here again but at around £7-50 for a starter, £16-£20 for a main, and £6-50 for a dessert, I'd expect a bit more attention to the small details.

The Goods Shed

Station Road West
Canterbury
Kent
CT2 8AN

Telephone: 01227 459 153

http://www.thegoodsshed.net/