REVIEW | Gusto, Deansgate

GUSTO is a chain of suburban restaurants across the North West and further afield. Headed up by Gordo’s pal Sue Crimes, the stunning MD of the group, it consists of a menu that has been crafted over a decade to deliver food that succeeds with families at lunch and early dinner, business peeps and mates having a long boozy dinner.

It is, however, pretty seductive when it comes to the experience

The menu is ‘Mediterranean’ with starters including crispy calamari, mussels and asparagus to name a few. There's pizzas and pasta we’ve all known down the years alongside some more sophisticated main courses. Cheese and meat platters have arrived, whilst one of the chefs, Sebastian Palkowski, has been competing at the House of Peroni, with a dish of pan fried halibut with basil butter, smoked garlic and aubergine purée; it’s on the menu at £23.95.

Gordo has a distant memory of going to visit Sue before Christmas whilst she was in the middle of a tasting with multiple Gusto chefs showing off dishes. Gordo is pretty sure he got to taste that halibut, and it was pretty impressive. Though he can’t be certain, as that was about one in the afternoon and he eventually got home at four in the morning the following day, having been thrown out of Black Dog Ballroom. Frankly, Gordo could have been eating Unicorn steak sometime during proceedings and he wouldn’t have the foggiest.

The restaurant in question is the Gusto just off Deansgate, opposite the entrance to Spinningfields. The place has been around for a long time, initially being turned into a restaurant by the famous two Michelin star chef Paul Heathcote. In fact, it was Gordo’s pal Winker Watson who financed it, almost twenty years ago.

Gusto: 'as a room it puts many to shame'

Anyway, it was and still is an odd place today to helicopter in a suburban brand. You could be forgiven for wondering what point of difference it brings to the current and newly arrived crop, especially with Hawksmoor covering the high-end expense accounts across the road. Getting people to cross Deansgate is a big ask.

It is, however, pretty seductive when it comes to the experience. Up a short flight of stairs, into a smart reception area that reminds Gordo of a few London gaffs. Walking through, the tables on the left are cloaked in linen, whilst there’s a well-stocked island bar in the middle of the room (this is a Living Ventures baby, so the cocktail pedigree is first rate). To the right there are several booths, opposite an area of tables paying homage to an open kitchen, then opposite the white linen tables another set of windows and similar comfortable round tables, again with linen. Lots of green speckled with gold gives a nod to the 1920s. Taking in the whole substantial yet comfortable room Gordo was impressed. It’s really very bang on; as a room it puts many to shame.

But what of the food? This city centre site seems a little ignored by the rest of the suburban brand. This doesn’t bode well normally. It’s like they've realise their mistake and are awaiting a sale.

This was the second time The Fat One has eaten here. It wasn't quite right the first time, but he didn’t want to report as he was someone's guest. It’s bad form to review on anothers money.

This time Gordo was in a rush, he simply needed a quick lunch, and was walking past. Let's give it another go, he thought.

The welcome was good, one of the hostesses walking Fatty through made him chuckle. Gordo asked for a table by the far windows. The first surprise was that it was busy. And busy in a restaurant that sits in this spot without preening and promoting itself says a lot about the food.

Well-timed mussels

On first inspection, the steamed mussels (£8.95) seemed a mean portion in a shallow bowl. Turned out it wasn't, and what’s more, they were timed well. The rest of the ingredients, simply white wine, cream and garlic were great. They were doing what countries in the Middle East should be doing; celebrating their differences, holding hands and jumping into the swimming pool together. Grilled ciabatta bread, a little crispy, did the business of mopping up superbly.

Pan fried chicken breast with wild mushrooms, tarragon cream and a herb polenta is a dish Gordo often orders when doing a review, because it’s normally crap. A good challenge for the kitchen then.

The chicken was cooked to the French point, still moist with a tiny blush, something that always makes Gordo’s heart sing. Skin was brown and crisp, wonderfully seasoned. The English are usually terrible at this. The tarragon cream was judged expertly, and that devils own work, polenta, for the first time in years, was a useful invite to the party. The wild mushrooms could have been a tad more wild to be fair, but the whole really worked and turned the Fat One’s head. And what cracking value at £14.95.

Pan fried chicken breast with wild mushrooms, tarragon cream and a herb polenta

 

Spaghetti carbonara worked well

Spaghetti carbonara (£6.25, small portion) was the English version with cream, but worked well, based on a good foundation of carefully ‘sweated’ onions, balanced garlic and good pancetta. The pasta was cooked slightly over the fashionable ‘al dente’ point that all the southern critics tend to go on with themselves about. Trust Gordo dear readers, that’s a load of bollocks. This pasta isn’t.

The house salad (£3.95) was workmanlike, doing a grand job of keeping Gordo regular later in the day (and you were doing so well... Ed.). Plenty of sharp, thinly sliced crisp fresh onions, another tick.

Puddings were an average tiramisu, entitled Gusto Tiramisu (£6.50), which lacked character and looked like it had arrived earlier in the day on a lorry from a central kitchen. Come on guys, if you need a decent recipe for this one, ask The Fat Man (If Gordo has paid you a shocking disservice about the central kitchen then we'd keep quiet about this pud - at least you can save face that way).

Lemon sorbet (£4.50) was a palette pleasing brain freezer, clearing Gordo’s nasal passages with gusto. Wherever this was produced it got a pastry chef out of trouble. Though Gordo would like his espresso brewed with some personality.

Tiramisu lacked character

This cleared Fatty's nasal passages

By the end of the meal a couple of Front of House staff, who Gordo knows from other gaffs, had come over to say hello. They are real pros. It became clear to Fatty that the guys here know they aren’t fashionable; they’re on the wrong side of the tracks and aren’t ever going to get a visit from the Solita-loving reviewers for any other reason than a crowd-pleasing slating.

And because of all that, along with the marketing radio silence from head office, this team have rolled up their sleeves and are proudly working their arses off to compete with the big, shiny new arrivals across the street.

For that, Gordo takes his hat off to you. He’ll be back.

@GordoManchester

Rating 15/20

Food: 7/10  (mussels 7, chicken 8, carbonara 7, salad 6, tiramsu 5, sorbet 7)

Ambience: 4/5

Service: 4/5