Slug and Lettuce Newbury nacho review

It's September and the Slug and Lettuce are still running the eat out to help out scheme! Yep that means a review! After a long morning of shopping, mum and I stopped in the Slug and Lettuce for a half priced lunch and BUY ONE GET ONE FREE COCKTAILS! (mocktail for me - haha). Even without the scheme, the Slug and Lettuce is a beautiful place to go for lunch or an afternoon drink. Having eaten here a year or two before I was interested to come back and see what had changed and if my experience would vary during the half off scheme.

When we entered we were greeted and led to a table were we had the option to order from our phones or socially distanced at the bar. Once we asked for allergen information, the waiter went to get a folder of paper that showed us what was gluten free (and other information like vegan and dairy free options). This was very different to my experience prior to this at the Slug and Lettuce as there used to be a gluten free menu, so I'm not sure what happened there! Looking through the menu the options available were limited but not a travesty. Going through I saw that you could have all the components to a burger but no bun, there was salad and nachos and the chips were gf to so that's a plus!

In the end I went for the cheesy nachos and my mum went for the chicken salad plus a portion of chips for us to share. We both got water and my mum got 2 cocktails for the price of one as they had a buy one get one free offer on! I ordered a mocktail, which was not included in the deal but they kindly made me two as they were a non alcoholic version of a cocktail! Overall the staff were absolutely lovely and very understanding of our dietary requirements.

Once we had ordered the wait was not long before our food was served (it was quiet, but we went in for a very late lunch). Well the first thing to say is that the portion sizes were massive! I am not sure why but the side of chips was a massive bowl full, not that I am complaining but it is a feature to keep in mind!

Now, the nachos...

They were made up of a large layer of tortilla crisps, topped with melted cheese, guacamole, sour cream and salsa with jalapeños (which I took off!). So overall the components written down sound pretty good and they were pretty good.

I am a cheese fan and this cheese quantity did not match up with those cheesy needs, the cheese was centred and not evenly spread across the nachos.

Aside from this I enjoyed all the other parts to these nachos, the sauce to crisp ratio (possibly a little to much if you're not a dip with every crisp type of person!) They also lacked any chilli if that is something you would wish to have but for me it's not so important.

So, as far as the nachos go I would give them a solid 3/5, not the worst, not the best. Now the real deciding factor, the chips!

They were well cooked with a lovely golden colour, however I wished for them to be warmer as they were beginning to decrease to room temperature when they arrived. I also wanted them to be crispier and I added more salt but this I always do. So overall the chips were good but lacking in some very important areas, for this I would give them a 2.5/5.

So there you have it, my review of the Slug and Lettuce nachos and chips! Overall I think that it is a lovely place to choose to eat and has a small variety of gluten free options.

The staff were lovely and very understanding, the location is beautiful and the food is pretty nice too (for anyone wondering, my mum said the salad was very good). So, overall I would give the slug and lettuce a 3/5!

I hope that you found my review helpful and interesting, any questions or general feedback make sure to comment on my most recent instagram post,

Ruby xxx

The ultimate gluten free chicken sandwich recipe

This sandwich consists of layers of warm toasted bread, chunky guacamole, fresh tomato, crunchy spinach, crispy chicken, smoked bacon and topped of with hot mayo and melted cheddar cheese sandwiched together with a crispy slice of bread! And if that doesn't already sound amazing you can make it in just 20 mins with minimal equipment and budget friendly ingredients.

I am not a huge sandwich lover, I used to eat them everyday but once starting my gluten free diet I never found that the gf options quite matched up to the 'normal ones'. However once I learnt the tips and tricks to a successful gluten free sandwich my recipes started to improve and so I thought that I would write it down to see what you thought of it. This particular sandwich is inspired by Cobritzo Lounge's gluten free buttermilk chicken sandwich which after trying I decided that I needed to recreate it.

This sandwich is perfect for lunch or dinner as it is super filling and has a few hidden veggies to give you an extra energy boost for the day. This sandwich is full of layers and is never dry, with a mix of fresh, hot and smokey it will be sure to please your taste buds.

Possible questions that you may have about this sandwich (with answers):

1. Can this sandwich be made dairy free?

Yes! To make this day free all you need to use is dairy free alternatives to the cheese, butter and mayonnaise, it is that simple!

2. Can this recipe be made vegan?

ummm, personally I have not attempted to make a vegan version of this recipe but if dairy free alternatives are used for the ingredients mentioned in the question above and vegan meat alternatives are used then I can imagine it to be possible but may have to take some experimenting! But don't stress, get in the kitchen and have fun - don't feel pressured to get it right first time.

3. Struggling to find good gf bread any recommendations?

So far in the time that I have been gluten free I have not encountered any supermarket bread that blew me away, but one of my favourites are the genius brioche buns so if you haven't I would recommend giving them a go.

4. Can I add other vegetables to this sandwich?

Off course you can you could add lettuce or cucumber etc. Any of your faves/ veg in the cupboard, experiment and get creative!

If you have any other questions head over to my Instagram page and comment them on a recent post or use the contact me section of my website. Now on to the recipe...

Makes: 2 Sandwiches

Prep time: 20min

Cook time: 20 min

Ingredients:

4 slices of gluten free bread or 2 large gluten free burger buns

2 slices of thin streaky bacon, visible fat cut off

2 handfuls of spinach

4 slices of tomato

6 slices of chedder cheese

a knob of butter to grease the tray

For the chicken:

1 egg

Roughly 3/4 of a cup of gluten free plain flour

A pinch of salt and pepper

a pinch of smoked paprika

4 mini fillets of chicken

1-2 cups of gluten free breadcrumbs

For the guacamole:

1/2 an avocado

a tsp of olive oil

a pinch of salt

a squeeze of lime juice

For the smokey mayo:

2 tbsp of mayonnaise

tsp of smoked paprika

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 fan and line a baking tray with baking paper, grease with butter on both sides of the paper.

2. For the chicken, mix the flour, salt, pepper and paprika in a shallow bowl, beat the egg in another shallow bowl and place the breadcrumbs ( made by food processing gluten free bread) in a third shallow bowl.

3. To coat the chicken take one mini fillet and coat in a layer of the flour mixture on both sides, coat in egg and then breadcrumbs and place on the baking tray and repeat this for each mini fillet.

4. Place the chicken tray in the oven for 20 minutes or until the chicken is golden and cooked through, turning each piece over with tongs after 10 minutes.

5. Meanwhile place your bacon on a tray that is lined with tin foil and place under the grill on a medium heat, turning over once browned to brown the other side. Alternatively you can pan fry your bacon by setting a pan to a medium heat and fry your bacon until crispy.

6. While your meat is coking make the smokey sauce, by mixing your mayonnaise and paprika in a small bowl with a spoon.

7. For the guacamole place all of the ingredients in a small bowl and mash/ mix until a chunky sauce is formed.

8. Once both meats have cooked completely leave them to cool slightly on their trays, place your choice of bread onto a tray and add 3 slices of cheese to two of the pieces of bread (these will be the top pieces) and grill on a medium temperature until the bread is toasted.

9. To assemble the sandwich, smear on your desired amount of guacamole to the bottom piece of bread, now add 2 slices of tomato to each sandwich and 4-5 leaves of spinach per sandwich. Next place on 2 slices of chicken to each sandwich, 1 slice of bacon and a dollop of smokey sauce, finishing with your top slice of bread. Serve with chips or a side salad and enjoy!

If you do make this recipe tag me on instagram and share your responses, I'd love to see how you make this sandwich to suit you!

Hope you have enjoyed reading and hopefully getting creative in the kitchen with my sandwich recipe!

Ruby x