New reign at The Queens Head

The Queens Head Bar and Restaurant is embarking on an exciting era, following the announcement of a new management team.

Situated in the village of Kirkby la Thorpe, off the A17 near Sleaford, the venue is continuing in its quest to provide customers with a 5-star dining experience, offering a diverse menu selection to suit every palate.

The front of house team is led by general manager Kevin Bligh, supported by restaurant supervisor Caprice Hagan. Both have a wealth of experience in the food and hospitality industry.
Kevin, initially a chef by trade, has worked abroad and in the UK covering all elements of the hospitality industry.

‘’I am looking to expand on the flexibility of the venue we have here and am working with our team to offer our customers the best experience, whether you’re calling in for a quick drink, dining with us in the bar or restaurant, or hosting an event,’’ said Kevin.

Caprice, who has also travelled internationally, is an experienced hostess and qualified sommelier who will be running the restaurant and sharing her knowledge while also training staff to meet the levels expected in an aspiring AA and Michelin establishment.

Head chef – Barry Liversidge
At the helm of the kitchen team is head chef Barry Liversidge, whose impressive career spans more than 25 years. He has worked with a newly recruited kitchen team to develop a wide range of flavoursome dishes across the new à la carte and bar menus, which continue to incorporate fresh local produce.

Barry said: “While myself and the team are proud to deliver the selection from the new menus, we will also be working on developing new dishes to allow us to utilise the ingredients and produce available from our local suppliers. This means we can incorporate daily and weekly specials and modify the menus as necessary.

“We will update the menus seasonally and will always endeavour to include a selection of vegetarian and vegan options, and because we create our dishes in-house, from scratch, we can easily accommodate and cater for those with allergies.’’

À la carte menu choices
Barry and the team have devised a delightful à la carte menu which offers a generous choice of six dishes per course, available at both lunchtime and in the evening.

We dined in the restaurant area which is tastefully decorated and has a traditional, relaxed feel with a cosy log burner.

Whilst perusing the menu, we feasted on warm sourdough bread, served with chef made Marmite butter, which divided opinion between my daughter and I, on the ‘Love it or Hate it’ debate. (An alternative of traditional butter was supplied on request.)

Attentive waiting staff were prompt in the delivery of our drinks order. The extensive drinks menu lists pretty much any drink you can think of, from draught beers to cocktails and hot beverages.

Tempted by the majority of dishes on the menu, I opted for the Churchill chicken liver parfait, while my daughter chose the Lincolnshire potato and leek soup.

While waiting for our starters to arrive, we enjoyed a complimentary smoked salmon and cream cheese canapé which was light and delicately seasoned.

The chicken liver parfait encased in smooth thyme butter was rich in colour and flavour and was accompanied by a local fruit chutney, warm toast and a fresh micro salad garnish.

The homemade potato and leek soup was served with a savoury parmesan and herb scone.

Our main course choices were the Gelston Farm lamb shoulder suet pudding and the pan fried seabream.

The lamb filling in the pudding was juicy and tender, and perfectly complemented by confit shallot, garden peas, pancetta and tasty lamb sauce with a side of creamed potato.

The pan fried seabream was presented beautifully on a bed of sautéed potatoes, cherry tomatoes, spinach, olives, lemon and seaweed. The flavours of the dish were light and balanced.

A range of additional sides are available from the menu to further accompany your chosen dish.

There is also a tempting dessert menu, if you have room! We opted to share my daughter’s “go to” dessert – sticky toffee pudding. The moist sponge base was smothered in a miso butterscotch sauce and acted as a pedestal to a topping of vanilla ice cream.

Other indulgent choices from the menu include a chocolate ganache tart and a rhubarb white chocolate mousse, or a savoury cheese and biscuit selection, with the selected cheeses supplied by Cote Hill Cheese.

Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable meal; each dish was presented beautifully and tasted delicious.

We are looking forward to returning to try the alternative bar menu, which also uses produce from other local suppliers such as Corner Farm Butchers and The Spud Barn. This is available throughout the week, offering the usual classic pub favourites.A traditional three-course Sunday lunch is also served each week, booking is advisable.

For more information about the menus visit www.thequeensheadpub.com

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