I’ve been to Bar Opus and Cafe Opus on a multitude of occasions but this was my first ever visit to the big brother, Opus itself, a stalwart of the Birmingham food scene for over a decade. Ran by Ann Tonks, Irene Allan, with exec chef Ben Ternent conducting the kitchen.

I was actually surprised how spacious the restaurant was. Looking from the road, it seems a nice cosy space but the restaurant continues like a Narnian wardrobe taking you further back.  Proceeding by the wine wall, bar area and private dining rooms and into the kitchen sits the wonderful chef’s table.

 

To highlight their focus on sustainability and fresh seasonal and, most importantly British cuisine, they have launched a special Friday evening menu over spring and summer.

From 6pm each Friday evening, a special market inspired menu is available for £25 p.p. including home baked bread, a starter and main or main and dessert and a half bottle of house red or rose.

Prior to our taster of the menu, we had a talk from Ben about how Opus plans their menu, sourcing the best suppliers (Aubrey Allen for example) and making sure their food is sustainable, as locally sourced as practical, and seasonal. Opus is very proud of their 3 star rating from the Sustainable Restaurant Association and is Birmingham’s most sustainable restaurant.

The kitchen was surprisingly quiet, for those of us who’ve watched films like “Burnt” and “Chef”, expecting much shouting and banging. Instead, the kitchen exudes serenity and calm with a feeling things were very much under control. Our visit over, we sat down and sampled some of the amazing homemade bread and I plumped for a glass of red:

 

Onto the menu:

I chose to try a starter and main. For starters, the goats cheese, tomato and radish salad:

The dish represented spring on a plate. The goats cheese provided a good hit of cheesy richness and the salad (with edible flowers) was wonderful and light, awakening the tastebuds with zing and bite.

Next door David Massey of#Brumhour / Dave the Buffet Slayer was chowing down on the tomato soup. From the sounds of it, the tomato soup was equally as impressive as the salad.

For the main, I picked was the Suffolk Pork Cutlet:

The pork cutlet was cooked to perfection, and it was nice to see a cutlet rather than a fillet. The mustard mash was equally as nice, providing a nice heat to the creamy mash. The other mains were equally as impressive.

Finally was the dessert, which I looked on with small envy as I was already stuffed!

The winner of the desserts was the peanut and caramel delice. It was beautifully presented, and I heard many groans of enjoyment from those who had chosen to go for the pudding end of the spectrum.

For those looking for a great meal and to relax after a busy week in the office, I couldn’t think of a better place to enjoy a bit of British excellence in a varied and reasonable menu.  They’ve also got some fun events coming up too!

 

Disclaimer: For this event, I was a guest of Opus and Clive Reeves PR who provided all food and drinks; this provides no bias to the post. This blog is my own personal opinion and strives to provide an independent view, promoting, enjoying and reviewing the range of exciting food and venues in and around Birmingham.

 

When: 13/05/2016

Where: Opus at Cornwall Street, 54 Cornwall Street, Birmingham, B3 2DE

Who:  Opus at Cornwall Street, Opus Group