In my relentless pursuit of getting out of cooking on weekends, last Sunday my wife and I popped along to Sarehole Mill. A few miles from Birmingham city centre it’s a beautiful little spot hidden amongst houses. Also, Flying Teapot Events have been running a street food, folk, ale and craft fair there every other week since April.

We were out and about for a few visits to family and felt a light repast may help enliven the journey midway through.

It was a nice breezy day and the crowds were certainly flocking to soak up the sun, street food and booze. There was a small but varied amount of traders with food from Pietanic, Vegan Grindhouse and Esmies Kitchen. Drink was capably supplied by Two Towers Brewery, Halfpenny Green Vineyards & The Little Gin Bar, (the Sarehole Mill cafe providing soft drinks and coffee too).

First thing to quench was my thirst, my wife thoughtfully offered to drive so I was free to visit Two Towers for a light ale.

*Disclaimer*

Before I go any further, I must mention I have visited Two Towers on numerous occasions, one of them being my stag do, so it’s no surprise I really, REALLY, like their beers.

There were three beers on tap (unfortunately I was too busy getting ready for a beer to take pictures): Electric Ale, Chamberlain Pale Ale and Jewellery Porter. Regular readers will know my predilection for Pale Ale so a Chamberlain slipped down nicely. It was cool, crisp and as good as it usually is.

If you’re on the look out for beer proudly brewed in Brum, I’d recommend them in a heartbeat. The Brewery tours with Mark  are always a great fun thing to do if you’re looking for a different experience, and they have a regular Friday night event at the brewery in Mott Street.

Now onto the food. We’d both eaten at Esmie’s previously (amazing btw) so we fancied something different.

I plumped for Pietanic. Pietanic is a stalwart of the Birmingham food scene, regularly appearing at Digbeth Dining Club and Brum Yum Yum.

They even had a little record player plying some Fleetwood Mac. Rumours? No all true.

There were three burgers on offer: a bacon cheeseburger pie, a fiery bean pie and a chicken & mushroom pie, all served with mash and gravy. The bacon cheeseburger pie sounded like it would suit the beer, so I decided to give it a whirl.

The pie was well served in a box and wooden fork

My wife went to go and queue for Vegan Grindhouse whilst I went off to devour my pie.

The combination was odd to begin with but I soon learnt to appreciate it. A lovely and light pastry with rich beef, cheese, pickle and a hint of mustard. It paired well with the mash potatoes and didn’t last long; my wife was still in the queue for Vegan Grindhouse by the time I had finished.

The menu is inspired by the oeuvre of Tarantino, Rodriguez and a touch of Breaking Bad  with offerings such as Los Pollos Hermanos (a “chicken” burger), El Mariachi Dog (no points for guessing there) and a Big Kahuna Burger. My wife went for the Little Kahuna burger and I asked her to get a side of nachos as I was still a little peckish. There was a little bit of a wait for the burger to be cooked but the weather was nice enough not to make it a chore.

We went and got a seat to listen to the folk music and tuck in. The wife reports her “beef” burger was smoky and had a strong umami quality. The vegan bacon was nice and looked a little like a pastrami slice but was salty. Unfortunately, she is a snob when it comes to buns and now is a confirmed member of the Brioche master race, with sourdough as a runner up. As it’s vegan street food, there’s nothing wrong with a sesame seed bun occasionally though,

I’m happy to report the nachos were delicious!  The salsa was great; the sour ‘cream’ was, well, creamy with nice spicy jalapenos and the sharp red onion elevated the humble tortilla chip. I didn’t miss the traditional cheese. The wife even got to sample a few before I polished them off!

If you’re bored of the traditional Sunday roast at a carvery, street food in a little bit of eden hidden in suburbia is worthy contender.

We had more visits to make so with a quick adieu we were off.

I even managed to do the whole review without a Lord of the Rings reference, though I may have been Tolkien too much… …damn.

When: 21/06/2015

Where: Sarehole Mill, Birmingham

Who:  Flying Teapot Events, Pietanic, Vegan Grindhouse Esmies Kitchen, Two Towers Brewery, Halfpenny Green Vineyards & The Little Gin Bar,