"You Choose" — Purnell's

Venue: Purnell's, 55 Cornwall Street, B3 2DH; website
Choice: Roast halibut (£90 for 11-courses; lunch is from £39) Chooser: Us

With all these impressive younger kidz on the B'ham kitchen block — we see you Harborne Kitchen, Hampton Manor, Folium and The Wilderness — it's been years rather than months since we had the full Purnell's experience. And from whizz bang new plates, to twists on Glynn's classics, may we never leave it so long again. Cheese and pineapple sticks have become a creamy, velvety start that will make you grin hard. We have no idea who first thought beef carpaccio should get to know octopus, bresola, beef hash and a chivey crème fraîche, but by golly-gosh-gandy we're overjoyed that they did. And the shining light in this happy collect? The roasted Scottish halibut with Jerusalem artichokes, vanilla and an in-CRED-ible chicken and red wine sauce (extra jug provided as standard!) beat Glynn's famous monkfish masala without the requirement for a photo finish — the balance of flavours was outrageously good, letting the perfectly cooked piece of fish play lead. And before you wonder if Glynn's got something on us, there were a couple of less than 10/10s — Roquefort matched with lamb was a little bit lost on us, and the beetroot tartlet — though completely beautiful — lacked the vim of the other dishes. But so much more important than loving every single bite, was rediscovering a kitchen that still shows huge ambition, and a restaurant, that under the hands of manager Sonal Clare, is undoubtedly leading the way in service in Brum. Look forward to seeing you again soon guys. Menus