So with the bar set high already and a glorious summer’s evening laid out in front of us, we made the drive up to Broadstairs.
And we’re greeted by a familiar face (if you’ve seen MasterChef, that is), as 2015 finalist Tony Rodd is in the kitchen.
His wife Becky is the drinks expert and in charge of front-of-house – and that is literally the team.
Mind you, cooking in a space smaller than many household kitchens, there’s not much room for anyone else.
Fortunately, when we arrive, we’re the evening’s first diners and we’re able to have a bit of a nosy, appreciate the surroundings and have a chat about the menu across the room with our hosts.
I say hosts, because, as the meal unravelled, that’s how it felt.
Dining out is one of my favourite things to do and I can quite confidently say there are few, if any, places I’ve been to in Kent (and further afield) that made it feel quite so personal and homely.
The atmosphere just felt different to most restaurants – you almost feel like Becky and Tony have invited you round to their house.
I think in part that is down to the intimacy and size of the dining room, but their personalities really shine through in their friendliness, warmth and welcoming approach with their guests.
But then we came to the food and in a menu (albeit a regularly changing one) which is evidently inspired by Middle Eastern and Asian flavours.
The growing trend in the restaurant scene for small plates (tapas style) coming out as and when is here to stay. It’s a concept, personally, that I love.
On our visit, there’s an enticing selection of meat, fish and vegetarian dishes to choose from.
We kick off with tofu kaarage (£7), an ingredient I’ve not really been too fond of in the past.
So when the steaming hot bowl comes out straight from the fryer with a crispy and golden coating, then covered in a togarashi spice rub offering heat and offset by a sweet and sticky maple glaze, it’s a brilliant start to accompany my lager.
Don’t worry, carnivores, there’s a chicken version too – but if you do fancy something different, give the tofu a try!
Then comes the flurry of main events, including one of my favourites, scallops.
As soon as I see them on the menu, there’s an incredibly high chance they’re getting ordered.
The plate of the za’atar-coated shellfish (£18), accompanied by a scallop roe taramasalata giving an intense but creamy taste of the sea and then the pickled flavours red cabbage, topped off with crispy chickpeas and lavosh crackers, is absolute food heaven as far as I’m concerned.
The surprise of the night was the mackerel tartare (£17). On the sounds of it, you might not expect its accompaniments of celeriac, apple and avocado to go together.
But upon tasting it, the chef’s skill in bringing it all together is abundantly clear – soft and oily fish, paired with the tartness of apple then the smoothness and richness from avocado paired with an earthy celeriac, it’s really very clever and delicious.
Add to that a perfect summer dish of watermelon, feta, mint and olives (£14) with spice from the togarashi (the same spice we had earlier on the tofu) and it’s hitting so many flavour profiles.
The last main was a pomegranate lamb breast (£18) that just melted and fell apart as soon as you put your fork in it, which had the wonderful sweetness from the fruit, then supported by the savoury baba ganoush and tang from labneh, which just balanced the plate beautifully.
Finally, it was ended off deliciously and continued the Middle Eastern theme with a dessert of poached apricots (£9), which delicately balanced the sweetness with the somewhat aromatic hit from cardomom cream and finished off with a honey tuile.
Everything was beautifully cooked and prepared, punched big on flavour and tasted super fresh, balanced superbly with textures and was so picturesquely presented, perfect for an Instagram post (or a KentOnline review).
But the thing that sets Fifteen apart and makes it special?
It’s got to be the cosy dining and home-from-home feeling offered by a lovely couple who really know what they’re doing.
I can’t wait to go back.
Out of five:
Food: Everything was excellently prepared with fresh, zingy and interesting flavours ****
Staff: If it was possible to give them six out of five, I would. We were made to feel welcome, relaxed and as though we were sat in their own home *****
Drink: An exciting wine list with some unusual finds (like an orange wine from Georgia) and good range of non-alcoholic options for the drivers, non-drinkers ****
Decor: Modern and contemporary pink and green colour scheme throughout, mixed with wooden tables and artworks dotted around ****
Price: Not going to pretend this is an everyday/weekly type place for most and more likely to be an occasional place. But for higher-end Good Food Guide quality, it sits on a par with similar places around ***
