Finding the Wildwood

There are so many beautiful villages within a one hour drive of us that I am not sure we will ever get to see them all.  However we recently repeated a great experience by heading to Oakham for lunch.  The first time we had been was a Saturday and the town was alive with markets, people and loads of great little shops to explore. However, that is not the case on a Sunday! Only a couple of shops open, no markets, no people but we did find the Wildwood Kitchen which we had spied on our previous visit.  This looked like a great place to stop for lunch and we were right. After striking up conversation with the people on the next table we were reassured that this was a good decision, their meals looked good and they gave them the thumbs up.

There was pasta, pizza, burgers and more on the menu. We were both after something tasty so both ended up having burgers; a lamb and chorizo one for my man and a deconstructed portobello mushroom and haloumi one for me.  There was no fuss when I asked for the burger less the bun and I think I got some extra salad as well. I am amused that in the UK we have only found Haloumi deep fried. In Australia we eat it grilled (on the Barbie) or pan fried (with no fat). Here's an opportunity to reduce some fat on the plate!
We sat at a table in the front window of the restaurant which gave me sun on my back, a view of the cooking in the wood fired oven plus a chance to people watch on the pavement outside. Service was great, attentive and quick. We just had sparkling water with lunch but if we'd chosen a wine, beer or spirit then it was all on offer. There were a good range of people in Wildwood Kitchen that afternoon, including couples and families and the place seemed to cater well for everyone. Our meals were tasty, affordable and we would definitely stop here again.  This would be a great place to take friends.