Long Friday
Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear
Following the success of the Cook House on Foundry Lane, Anna Hedworth opened her second Newcastle venture in autumn 2022, on a boutique- and eatery-lined parade by the neat Victorian terraces of affluent Jesmond. A soundtrack of laid-back beats announces Long Friday’s hip credentials, as do the switched-on, dressed-down young staff and the modish design (backlit bar, white-tiled counters, ochre wood-panelled walls). But there’s serious intent here too – as evidenced by a lengthy wine list, most of which (apart from the heavyweight ‘specials’ selection) is available by the glass. Cocktails and homemade soft drinks are also a cut above. Food is of the moment, too: a batch of bar snacks and small plates designed for grazing alongside a drink – expect an abundance of enticing crispy and salty things (even the focaccia comes with anchovies and olive oil). Ordering two or three per person is the guidance, but unless one of these is carb-based, heartier appetites might happily plump for four – though the bill can mount up. A snack of truffle and black-pepper popcorn, pungently mushroomy, could get things under way, paired with a glass of Sicilian white. Next, ‘slip sole cooked in lamb fat’ is precisely that: the only adornment to the accurately timed, fresh-as-a-daisy fish (fried on the bone, in the appealingly salty fat) being a chopped parsley garnish. Barbecued broccoli makes a happy companion, its smoky flavour and crunchiness amplified by a smoked almond sauce, toasted flax and mustard seeds. Crispy fried chicken hearts were the highlight for one visitor, the battered morsels matched with a piquant sweet-and-sour sauce – though a thirst-quenching glass of water might also be needed after all this. To finish, our tiramisu was rather dense; you might want to follow a reader’s advice and choose the ricotta bomboloni doughnuts with rosemary caramel and candied lemon – ‘so good!'
