Tallow

In the leafy environs of Southborough, not far from Royal Tunbridge Wells, Tallow won our Best Local Restaurant award for 2023 . To judge from the avalanche of nominations we have received in 2024, local love for it remains as ardent as ever. Rob Taylor has taken the lineaments of the fine-dining approach and stamped his own identity on it, within the flexible framework of either a three-course monthly changing carte or a full taster comprised of those dishes marked with an asterisk. In an ambience of simple small tables and bare brickwork, this is more than just a place to eat: according to one confirmed regular, 'it's a gathering spot where friends and neighbours come together,' a true neighbourhood resource. What they return for is cooking that is full of intense, savoury energy and which recognises no culinary boundaries, as indicated by a starter of Indian-inspired tandoori-cured monkfish with yoghurt, almonds and mint. Right next to that, Mexico gets a look-in for pulled ox-cheek barbacoa with tomatillo relish, sour cream and a corn taco. Mains might whisk diners to east Asia for wild sea bass and kohlrabi with choi sum, chilli jam and coconut sauce, while Spanish and Levantine influences play in a dish of Ibérico pork presa sauced with cider, served with merguez sausage, sweetcorn fritters and tomato chutney. An English cheese such as Oxford Blue is served with sweet accompaniments, maybe burnt honey and thyme ice cream, as a halfway house for those who don't wish to go full-spectrum dessert with the likes of Kentish cherries poached in plum sake with white chocolate crémeux and chocolate sorbet. To accompany, there are some intelligently chosen global wines at keen prices. A party of eight might take the tasting menu in the stylishly dark-toned 'chef's table' room on the first floor.