From St Pancras to Birmingham

Saturday, May 10th , 2025

 

Victor Garvey at the Midland Grand is the somewhat long name for the new restaurant to take over the historic dining room in the hotel next to St Pancras station. This is much more ambitious food than the two previous restaurants on this site, and based on this visit, it should do very well indeed.

Asha’s in Birmingham is an upmarket Indian restaurant that is actually part of a small group and owned by a Bollywood singer. The décor is smart and the place itself is very large, but the food is surprisingly good here e.g. chilli prawns were top-notch. More reviews from my Birmingham trip next week.

Separately, I briefly visited Vilnius in Lithuania to speak at the Baltic Gastro Summit, an event organised by the Bocuse d’Or organisation. This was a well-attended event, with Michelin having recently published a guide to Lithuania. Sadly, I didn't get a chance to explore Vilnius, though it seemed like a nice city, with a pretty old town and friendly people.