After a three-year hiatus the sorely missed St Vincent, operated by celebrated North East restaurateur Terry Laybourne, is back. The popular Quayside bar and restaurant had its first evening service last night – and we were delighted to be one of the first invited along to sample its menu.
The well-known Newcastle chef and business owner, who leads the 21 Hospitality Group, was forced to close the venue in March 2020 as the Covid-19 pandemic struck.
Terry successfully managed to reopen many of the venues within the group after lockdown – including the iconic 21, Broad Chare, and Café 21, Porterhouse Butcher & Grill and Saltwater Fish Company in Fenwick – but St Vincent remained closed until now.
The restaurant, based within the same building as The Live Theatre, has relaunched with a revitalised new menu, while also reintroducing some popular wine and food favourites. He’s also brought back some of his loyal and trusted team, which is great to hear. Unfortunately, due to long closures forced by the pandemic, many hospitality venues have been forced to hire completely new staff which sometimes leads to service issues, but this wasn’t the case at St Vincent.
We arrived at the venue to see a range of happy diners enjoying the ambiance, food and wines. The guests included a mix of families, couples, friends and colleagues who all seemed relaxed while the welcoming sounds of laughter and conversation, combined with just the right level of music. This reassuring positive and warm atmosphere ensured that we were able to embrace a comfortable and relaxed feel as soon as we walked through the door.
We were greeted at the door by one of the lovely team, and given a delicious glass of prosecco, which was crisp and refreshing. It was the finest prosecco I’ve tasted in this country, reminding me of an organic and authentic Italian prosecco I had enjoyed in Lake Como many years ago.
We were seated at our table for two which was snug but comfortable, and we didn’t feel on top of our neighbours as you do in some restaurants. The lighting was just right, dimmed but not dark enough to send you to sleep. While we browsed the menu, my guest and I then enjoyed a lovely German Riesling, Nachschia ‘Bright side of Life’, which she described as light, tangy and fresh. I ordered the Snou, Vi Negre, a Spanish Merlot, a very soft and smooth red wine which was incredibly drinkable.
We decided to share the charcuterie selection to start, which included salame molinari, mortadella, prosciutto san di daniele and rabbit rillettes. I do think that with a charcuterie selection that occasionally the meats can have a very similar taste and texture, but this definitely wasn’t the case. You can tell time and experience had gone into selecting a range of items which while were complimentary of one another, also each offered a different experience. The rabbit rillette was light, fluffy and seasoned to perfection. We also ordered the focaccia and arbequina olive oil – which was just enough to get us started for the evening.
The team were incredibly attentive and we were given enough time to finish our snacks and charcuterie without feeling hassled. We were offered more wine, and were recommended the ALT Sparkling Rose, an alcohol free Spanish sparkling rose wine. Our server had brilliant knowledge of the wines, offering us an insight into how this alcohol-free rose was made to taste almost identical to its alcoholic counterpart.
There was just the right amount of time between finishing our starter to being served our main courses, or large plates. I ordered the fricassee of barn-reared chicken and morel mushrooms, which usually comes with a riz pilaf. I asked that my main come with mixed greens instead and the team were more than happy to accommodate my dietary requirements. I’m not usually a fan of chicken on the bone, but I did thoroughly enjoy the meal. The sauce was moreish and creamy and was a lovely accompaniment to the meat and vegetables. I can’t say I’ve had morel mushrooms before, I did enjoy them, but possibly would have preferred a more traditional mushroom with this dish – just my own personal preference.
My guest ordered the roasted squash, ricotta, sage and chilli, which she thoroughly enjoyed. The perfectly cooked and well-seasoned veggie dish offered a range of flavours and textures and, as with the chicken, the portion was generous and both meals were certainly filling and satisfying. She also added the garlic and rosemary roast potatoes which she said were ‘perfectly crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside’ – none were wasted.
We were there just over two hours, which I think is a lovely amount of time to spend drinking, dining and chatting. It’s often disappointing when your dining experience is shorter than expected, so I enjoyed spending an ample amount of time at St Vincent. By this point, we were both full, so didn’t get the chance to sample the desserts – although I’m now longing for the early season gariguette strawberries and Amalfi lemon cream.
In summary, we were both impressed and had a fantastic evening. St Vincent provides the perfect venue for a variety of occasions; date night, dinner with colleagues and clients or family. It’s affinity with Live Theatre will also provide a special pre-theatre food and drinks menu, which would certainly make a fantastic evening of fine food, wine and entertainment.
We will definitely be returning.
