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Venue: Five Rivers, Vicarage Place; Walsall WS1 3NA; website
Choice: Manchurian (£6.50) Chooser: Chef
If you're one of the two people on Earth who have an irrational fear of chandeliers inexplicably disconnecting and, courtesy of gravity, meeting your cranium at pace, firstly, we should meet. Talk it through. Group therapy. Secondly, you should pick your seat at Five Rivers wisely. We were positioned beneath the stunning supernova of a light fitting pictured and "the voices" went into overdrive. Still, they couldn't drown out a seriously superb meal. Five Rivers is hot on the heels of Lasan and Asha's when it comes to the region's best Indian fine-dining and one mouthful in particular was, to coin a playground phrase from the 80s, badly wicked skills. The team's Manchurian look like this. They're fresh garden vegetables, finely diced and bound together - deep fried, then simmered in a full bodied jus. The result? The sudden, eye-popping realisation that vegetarians might well be on to something. Manchurian is on their Father's Day menu. Hire a limo. You're taking him to Walsall.
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BE FESTIVAL, WE'VE BEEN EXPECTING YOU
One performer, four headlights on the stage, mixer and light console AWOL. The rest of the company has disappeared. So begins Quintetto (pictured), the ultimate victor of last year's BE Festival, which is relevant to you because the 2016 edition of Brum's big-hitting European exchange programme starts on June 21. Taking over the stage, rafters and just about every available spot at The REP, the cultural cross-pollination of theatre, dance, circus, comedy and music has performers coming from Switzerland to Slovenia for the five-day programme. Every night includes pretty much the best interval dinner ever incepted - eat on the main stage looking out at the auditorium with the performers.
Full menu! Full programme! Praise be!
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THE HIGH FIELD GROWS A TOWN HOUSE
The High Field's done gone got itself a Town House in which you can rest your head, weary or otherwise. Available to book now, and to stay in from June 8, earlier in the week, we broke in (we didn't) and spent the night (we actually did). Think roll top baths, anitquey furniture you really want to steal, and space - plenty of it. The room we sequestered (No. 1) was airy, well lit and split level with a sofa, ottoman and desk, as well as design ideas we'd have to pay someone far too much cashdollar to emulate. There's a sitting room rather than a reception and an all together homely feel (minus the clutter, kids and kid-related clutter). Rooms are from £135, including breakfast for two, to be taken over at the pub. Open house is June 6. More.
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