Buckley's Restaurant in Warrington is a hidden gem

Well look no further than Buckley’s based at Warrington and Vale Royal College on Long Lane.

The restaurant provides the college’s hospitality and catering students with the chance to develop their skills to a professional level.

And the general public can enjoy their creations every lunchtime and each Wednesday evening during term time.

Last week, two of the college’s most successful alumni returned for a celebration evening, cooking up a superb five-course meal for a packed room of diners.

Russell Wood and Jack Vance now work professionally having completed their studies within the department last year.

During their time at the college, they won countless awards and were part of the silver-medal wining team at last year’s Welsh Culinary Championships.

Jack, from Padgate, is now a chef at the Farmers Arms in Fearnhead while Russell, a former St Gregory’s RC High School student, is a chef at the renowned Manchester House restaurant in Manchester, formerly run by Lymm chef Aiden Byrne.

The pair worked for two to three months creating the menu, teaming up with current students to produce the food on the night.

And what a treat it was for diners.

The menu promised fresh, seasonal food, showcasing the best ingredients produced close to home in a relaxed environment.

Pork belly

First up was a piece of pork belly with a crispy skin, onion gel, dark green apple sauce and crispy sage leaf.

It was tremendous with every ingredient on the plate packing a flavour punch.

Mackerel salad

Next was a mackerel salad, with a beautiful piece of fresh fish alongside a tomato, radish and cucumber salad served with a dill sauce.

The main was described as chicken, mash and carrot but this was no humble chicken dinner.

The crispy piece of chicken skin was salty and cracked perfectly while the ‘jus’ was a gravy bursting with chicken flavour and richness.

The fresh chicken dish

The dessert was simply stated as strawberry, black pepper and green basil.

But it was actually a delicate cheesecake with bursts of flavour from dices of set green basil gel, dabs of fresh strawberry ice cream and a black pepper wafer.

The strawberry cheesecake inspired dessert

The trio of homemade sweets served with coffee of a mint chocolate disc, orange marshmallow and while chocolate macarons were also splendid and a great way to end the meal.

The trio

Each course displayed an array of techniques, textures and ingredients, cleverly delivered by a team passionate about what they were doing.

Russell and Jack came out to meet diners after the meal finished, with clearly some very proud family members there to greet them.

Jack explained his passion for food and the lengths and time both he and Russell had put into creating the menu.

The pair are real credits to the college, their tutors and the town and are set for even bigger things in their careers.

•  To make a reservation or for more information call 494378 or email buckleys@wvr.ac.uk.