Voodoo Daddy's Pizza @ The Plasterers, Cowgate, Norwich

Voodoo Daddy had been appearing all over my Facebook feed and after reading the great reviews, I knew I had to give it a try. On Friday night, me and two friends ventured down to The Plasterers for a catch up over a few drinks and pizza - a great start to a bank holiday weekend!

The Plasterers has been redecorated and is a really lovely pub for a few drinks, just outside the bustle of the city centre for a Friday night. The Plasterers is also home to Voodoo Daddy's Pizza, providing a takeaway service alongside in-pub dining.

The menu offers a great variety of pizzas, with some seriously impressive toppings. Gluten free bases are also available, as well as 4 veggie options. If you are a fan of a margherita, then Voodoo Daddy may not be the place for you, as every pizza is topped with delicious sounding options (smoked cola bacon, 24 hr pulled pork, homemade garlic meatballs and even macaroni cheese!).

With a pint of cider in hand, we started the unenviable task of choosing which pizzas to have and quickly realised that in order to sample as many as possible, we should share (like Joey, we do not like to share food), but it was essential on this occasion!

A sample of the  delicious menu

After much deliberation, we decided on One Night in Paris (£8.50), Voodoo Double Cheeseburger (£9.50) and Return of the Mac (£9.50) accompanied by 3 dips at 60p each (BBQ, Ranch & Garlic Mayo). After a short wait, we were brought 3 boards covered in pizza.

The pizzas!

One Night in Paris had lots of delicious garlic, big chunks of mushroom, chicken and a homemade pesto. In my opinion, this pizza was overthrown by the other two options, but one of my dining companions liked this one the best. The pesto was a little too creamy for my taste - I was expecting an oily pesto drizzle. However, a mushroom fan would love this option. 

One Night in Paris, £8.50

Next up was the Voodoo Double Cheeseburger, featuring a blue cheese and tomato base with a double helping of garlic meatballs, bacon, onion, gherkins, jalapeños and a covering of american mustard. All the flavours of a cheeseburger on a pizza base is always going to be a winner for me and I would definitely have this one again. The homemade meatballs were amazing and pickly gherkins were a great touch, but the jalapeños were a little overpowering - if you aren't a fan of spice, I would ask for them to be removed.

Voodoo Double Cheeseburger, £9.50

Last up, but in no way least was the Return of the Mac. A pizza with macaroni cheese topping definitely had to be tried! Accompanied by pulled pork, 3 cheeses, jalapeños and smoked ketchup. The pizza / pasta combination was great and the pulled pork was really tasty and tender. However, this was slightly overpowered again by the jalapeños. Voodoo Daddy loves to add some spice to the pizzas, but this was a little much for me. Again, I would definitely have this pizza again, removing the jalapeños.

Return of the Mac, £9.50

The choice available is amazing; with a range of meat options, 4 veggie options (1 being Vegan friendly) and a few super hot pizzas for those wanting a challenge(!). There really is something for everyone and I will definitely be getting pizzas from here in future.

Food - 8.5/10 (0.5 lost for the jalapeños)
Service - 8/10 (order at the bar)
Atmosphere - 9/10 
Value for Money - 8/10

J.D. Young Hotel, Market Place, Harleston

A friend of mine has recently moved to Harleston and whilst visiting, we took a trip to J.D. Youngs for some food.

J.D. Youngs is a hotel and has been host to Sir Alfred Munnings and has a bar and separate restaurant area alongside 11 rooms.

I was expecting standard 'pub grub' and was suitably surprised by the decor. The restaurant area was equipped for a higher class of dining, with all tables dressed for the evening complete with cloth napkins (quite a rarity!). 

As we were eating early the restaurant was empty and we were sat in some armchairs and given some menus to peruse. J.D. Youngs operates a bar and restaurant menu, with the bar menu featuring British classics you would expect in a put (steak burger, steak and ale pie, lasagne, scampi etc), whilst the main menu featured more refined choices, such as pork belly and rabbit ballantine.

We were advised that every Monday is a 'Manic Monday' with 25% off all food on the menu. A definite bonus for us! J.D. Youngs also serve 'Wicked Wednesday', with the cheaper meal available for £2 with the purchase of 2 meals.

The two menus and a special board were slightly overwhelming, so I quickly decided that the bar menu was the choice for me. Part of this was one of my weaknesses present on the menu... Slow Roasted BBQ Spare Ribs, £14.95.

Slow Roasted BBQ Ribs, £14.95

I was definitely not disappointed! This was a mountain of food - over a rack and a half of tender, juicy ribs served with wedges,  giant onion rings, a pot of coleslaw, a huge side salad and a gravy jug full of BBQ sauce.

The picture really doesn't do the food justice - this was not your average dinner plate - more of a serving plate size! I am proud to say I did a really good job of this and ate almost everything, apart from 1 onion ring and a bit of the coleslaw. 

It was delicious and I was really impressed with the quality for the price. The wedges were home-made with a crispy exterior and soft, fluffy potato filling. The coleslaw also seemed to be home-made and was the right mix of creamy dressing and vegetable crunch. The jug of BBQ sauce was a nice touch and meant I could drench the ribs and wedges!

My friend ordered JD's Slowly Braised Beef & Ale Puff Pastry Pie, £12.95. Out came a dish full of beef with a big puff of pastry, a mountain of chips, dish of peas and jug of gravy.

JD's Slowly Braised Beef & Ale Puff Pastry Pie, £12.95

Both meals were well presented and the staff were friendly and courteous. 

We were pretty full after our main courses, but then we saw something irresistible on the menu... Alburgh ice cream. Alburgh ice cream is locally made in Norfolk and the honeycomb ice cream is a firm favourite of mine (considering I am definitely more of a savoury fan).

The serving at J.D. Youngs is 4 scoops for £5.95 - which is definitely a bigger portion than the average 2 - 3 scoops. We asked if we could have 2 scoops each instead after almost being defeated by the mains and the waitress was happy to oblige. Out came 2 big scoops in an iced sundae dish with 2 white chocolate wafer sticks.

Alburgh's honeycomb ice cream, £5.95 for 4 scoops

This ice cream is pretty amazing - flavoured with honeycomb as well as large, crunchy chunks of honeycomb.

With the discount, the meal for two alongside a soft drink each came to just over £30 - very reasonable for the amount of food we had!

I was really impressed with J.D. Youngs, definitely not what I expected. On my next visit to Harleston, I will be sure the visit again!


Food - 9/10
Service - 9/10
Atmosphere - 8/10 (mainly because we ate early and were the only people in the restaurant for most of the meal)
Value for Money - 9/10 (particularly with Monday Madness!)

42 King Street, Norwich

After a bit of a break, I am back with a treat!

I went out for some food to 42 King Street on Friday and had some delicious tapas. The plan was to go to B'Nou, but it was fully booked - so definitely a place I need to try soon!

Situated just off Prince of Wales Road in the city centre, this cute and cosy eatery has around 6 tables, so it gets booked up very quickly. 

The menu is located on a blackboard and changes regularly to fit with the seasons. Main dishes cost around £8 and the waitress suggested 5 dishes between 2 people.

With so many great dishes on the menu, it was tough to pick what to have! 

First out came the smoked duck salad with orange segments and candied walnuts (£8). Delicious slices of tender smokey duck with a lovely dressed salad, orange segments and candied orange peel. I'm not normally a fan of fruit with salad, but the orange complimented the duck perfectly. I didn't see any candied walnuts though. A lovely light dish to start.

Smoked duck salad, £8

Next came out the pork belly with sautéed veg and a wholegrain and cider sauce (£10). As with the duck, this was cooked to perfection. A slightly small, but thick piece of pork with a lovely crispy skin. Served with green beans, carrots and shallots with a helping of thick cider sauce with a hint of mustard. This was devoured rapidly!

Pork belly, £10

Next up was another new new thing for me - swordfish (£9). Sweet meaty fish with a fresh courgette salad and tangy tomato couscous.

Swordfish, £9

I am always keen to try new dishes and when I saw samphire was on the menu, I knew I had to have it! The samphire was served with a lobster butter (£5). A slightly salty, aromatic green vegetable which was complimented beautifully by the lobster butter. Another slightly small portion for the price.

Samphire with lobster butter, £9

Last, but definitely not least was the braised rib of beef with herb mash and onion jus (£8.50). Tender, fall off the bone beef with a deliciously herby creamy mash. With such a small looking kitchen and only one chef appearing to be serving, all dishes were beautifully cooked.

Braised rib of beef, £8.50

This is definitely a place to share food - the dishes are good size for 2 or more people and the more people there, the more you can try from the menu! Slightly expensive, but the food was amazing. This is a great location for a special occasion, with a great atmosphere and friendly staff. Also, serves a great range of cocktails.

Food - 9/10
Service - 8.5/10
Atmosphere - 9/10
Value for Money - 6/10