Around every six weeks or so, Six by Nico designs a new six course menu that is accompanied by a paired wine menu, as well as a snack and an aperitif for ravenous diners.
This time it is the “Ancient Rome” menu that is inspired by Roman history and the various ingredients sourced from the locations that the Legion’s managed to conquer.
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The menu perfectly encapsulates the grandeur and richness of Roman life whilst accompanying unique flavours and textures that transport you to a time of conquest and intrigue.
It is a treat that even the great Caesar Augustus would enjoy if it had been served at one of his luxurious banquets.
Those at Six by Nico have managed to perfectly encapsulate affordable fine dining with the ancient practices of Roman chefs by adopting techniques from the ‘Apicius’/‘De re culinaria’ - considered to be the oldest cookbook in the Western world.
Of course Italians will claim it is the oldest in the world but if you look for long enough then it is often evident that the Chinese got there first - this is also true for this scenario.
On the menu, Six by Nico said: “We invite you to discover a historically-adapted menu that has been inspired by ancient traditions and interpreted through modern delicacies. ‘Ancient Rome’, will pay homage to the origins of foods we know and even enjoy today. From ancient recipes, to the use of ancient ingredients widely used in the modern world.
“Our chefs have spent hours reading the ‘Apicius’, or, ‘De re culinaria’ - coined the world's oldest cookbook - to bring forth dishes that not only transport you back to a nod of Ancient Rome but too, transport Ancient Rome to you.
“Are you ready to immerse yourself in ‘Ancient Rome’?”
Now that was the key question, were we ready to experience the culinary genius that is always on show at the friendly and warm city centre restaurant?
Yes, of course we were!
So to ensure we were able to give an accurate representation of the menu, we decided to order everything like the greedy little piggies we are.
Now the menu is broken down into two components. You have the full six course tasting menu priced at £32 and alongside this is a pairing wine menu for £27.
It is worth noting that we were reviewing the non-vegetarian options but that there were alternatives for vegetarians with each item.
First up was the snack and aperitif combo.
The snack was made up of freshly baked spelt bread, olive tapenade & extra virgin olive oil, artichoke fritti and anchovy emulsion.
The tapenade was to die for and you could eat it off the spelt bread all day, everyday.
But the artichoke fritti was the real hero of the show, they had a proper moreish taste and could easily supplant pigs in blankets as the food you like to gluttonously shovel down your throat.
Then there was the aperitif, the ‘Posca Spritz’ - this is a play on a traditional honey wine that was iconic in Rome and often consumed before dinner.
It was explained to us that the grapes grown around the Mediterranean during Roman times were not as sweet as the ones we have now and therefore honey was often added to sweeten the experience. It was very refreshing.
Next up were the starters.
The first was Cacio e Pepe, which was made up of crispy pasta, black pepper and parmesan royale.
This dish was rich but had the perfect balance of textures as well as a historical context. For elements of the dish were used as light snacks for Romans as they went about their business.
Next was the second starter, titled from Eggs to Nuts, which was made up of white asparagus, crispy duck egg, hazelnut and brown butter.
This was delicious with the crispy duck egg resembling a fancy scotch egg without the meat - can tell I’m not a pro-fine diner. The taste was rich but the dish was light.
Accompanying this dish was the first of the white wines to come, the Aeus, Ribeiro Do, which was from the Bodegas Campante Galicia region of Spain.
It cut through ideally with the flavours in the starter and that is coming from a non white wine drinker like myself.
Next we have the fans favourite but the one dish I personally was not over the moon with. The Cavolo Hispi Arrostito, which was made up of roasted hispi cabbage, cavatelli pasta, pickled girolle mushrooms, truffle foam and pecorino sardo.
The cabbage in this dish is interesting because it relates back to a time when rich Romans would travel to Lazio near Turin to indulge in extravagant dinner parties.
The cabbage was believed to stop people from becoming drunk - something that definitely is not true as we stumbled into our taxi on the way home after our meal.
The dish was strong and bold with its flavours. Both the truffle and the black garlic come through which was personally a bit too much for myself but if that is your kind of thing then I’m sure it will tick your boxes.
As aforementioned, I’m a peasant with a peasant’s palate.
Another white wine came with the dish, the Duas Margens from Douro, Portugal. It was fine for a white and definitely matched the dish. However there is some controversy over whether the Romans ever reached Portugal, which if they did not, their culture certainly would have.
Then there were the mains.
The Bay of Naples was first up out of the mains and dish four on the menu. This was made up of sole, smoked mussel, lovage, white turnip and mussel cream.
Now, after eating this dish, I wholeheartedly believe that the seafood at Six by Nico is better than that found in easteries in the lost city of Atlantis. I do not know how they do it but the flavours are always on point and the fish super fresh. Bravo!
Along with this dish was a white wine, Frascati Superiore DOCG, from the Lazio region of Italy. It washed down the seafood like nothing I had ever tasted before. I imagine that even a big grizzly bear would enjoy a glass as he devoured fish from the local river.
Now for the best dish on the menu - the great feast of AD14, which was made up of belly, fillet and rib of pork with fennel, bean ragu, date and apple.
AD 14 was the year that Tiberius took over from Caesar Augustus and consequently the dish has no link to the great famine that was impacting China that year.
Nonetheless, the various flavours of the pork were exquisite. The pork belly melted in your mouth, the meat just slid off the bone and the fillet…oh my days.
The bean ragu came with bits of pork in it that honestly was a delicacy in itself. Then there was the date apple and fennel that just matched the pork every step of the way. Exceptional.
If I ever murder someone in the state of Florida, then I want this as my last dish on death row.
With this came a special red wine, one that had been created with this dish in mind. The chef waited to serve us the wine until we had finished the previous white as the flavour changed drastically once you ate the pork.
It was an amazing experience to taste this gorgeous earthy red and to feel it transform after your first bite of pork. They are magicians.
Last but by no means least is the dessert. This was titled Honey and Cheese, and was made up of honey parfait, ricotta cheese, preserved quince, fizzy muscat grapes, pear and citrus.
It must have taken so much thought to construct this dish to get the perfect combination in place. Each bite and texture was a new journey for the taste buds and even someone with as simple a palette as I could appreciate what was on offer here.
The desert wine, L’arcano, primitivo igt dolce, from Puglia in Italy, was also paired well but like all desert wines it was a bit sweet for my liking.
All in all, they delivered once more.
Special touches were appreciated with Nico gifting diners a recipe book of the dishes along with a Roman like document that contained the menu.
A sign of immense confidence from Nico to hand out his own recipes. Although he knows fine well we could never match his culinary brilliance.
The menu will run from March 15 to April 24 2022 and anyone looking to make a booking at the Hanover Street restaurant or elsewhere in the UK can do so here.
