Lincolnista the guide to Lincoln, UK.

Reform Restaurant Lincolnista Review

Saturday, 15th October 2011 Written by: The Editor

The Castle Hotel already boasts 18 beautiful rooms and a 5 star rated apartment but will their newly revamped restaurant be the jewel in their crown or a thorn in their side?

The Reform Restaurant at The Castle Hotel is gaining reputation for fantastic food cooked to perfection, this is one restaurant Lincolnista couldn’t wait to review, however who better to explain the concept behind the restaurant than awarding winning Head Chef Mark Cheseldine -

“I have created entirely new menus for Reform, focusing on a modern European theme. Every dish on the menu features fresh, seasonal ingredients, with local produce used wherever it meets my standards. My hand-picked team consists of top chefs from around the region, and together, we aim to deliver a consistent, excellent standard of food in both the restaurant and bar area.  Our aim is to become a destination restaurant for the people of Lincoln and the county as a whole, as well a fantastic place for hotel guests to eat. We pride ourselves on excellent customer service and creating an ambience that complements the food we create.”  For more on Mark visit http://www.castlehotel.net/dining/the_chef/

First impressions of the dining room were a little lacklustre, it was warm and welcoming but the decor was simple, plain and uninspiring.  You were left with no illusions, you were here to experience the food and not the interior design.  Initially the service was prompt with the service team knowledgeable on the food and were quick to recommend an alternative when one of the specials from the autumnal a la carte menu had sold out.

The menu was exciting but with only a small range of choices, if you’re not keen on being a little adventurous with food then you might wish to see the menu before booking.  But being able to try such delicacies as pig cheeks is a real treat to find in Lincoln.

The food itself lived up to the hype, the average main course cost was around £17 which for the ingredients, flavours and presentation really did represent good value.  There was a great selection of wine available to compliment the food but even the house wines were more than drinkable!

However where Reform did let themselves down was the speed of the service, at over 2.5 hours to be served 3 courses was just too long and whilst the dining room was busy it certainly wasn’t full.  Plus with no apologies for the wait it would appear that it wasn’t a one off occurrence.  It was during the wait between courses that you realise just how important the atmosphere of a restaurant is and at Reform there is a desperate need for something more from the room than just a place to eat.

Overall the reputation for the food is well deserved.  It truly is an impressive menu and you can see the passion that the Head Chef has for pushing away from bland and average fayre.  It is a restaurant that I personally would look forward to visiting again and one that I’d certainly recommend to friends.

Undoubtedly there is still some room for improvement but the potential for this restaurant to be one of the finest in Lincoln is certainly there.

To book a table call Reform on 01522 538801 or for more information visit http://www.castlehotel.net