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Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms

British, Modern European·
££££
·
Gold Award
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SquareMeal Review of Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms

Gold Award

Sat Bains' two Michelin-starred restaurant is, by now, a fine dining veteran, having opened its doors a staggering 25 years ago and retained its second star since 2011. But time is a beautiful thing, and if Sat Bains was great then, it’s outstanding now, sharpening its sword over the years to become a gleaming, powerful weapon of a restaurant.

One look at chef Sat’s Instagram bio, which heeds the quote ‘I am an artist that uses food as a medium’, will give you an insight into the type of cooking you can expect here. His menu is brave and unique, but it’s also filled with comforting things that celebrate the joy of eating. Crusty, hot treacle bread served with heavily salted homemade butter, for example.  

Each course is bursting with concentrated flavour and mouthwatering textural combinations, like flaky crab meat in an umami bisque elevated with the crunch of paper-thin peanut brittle. A velvety potato dish, one of our favourites from the menu, marries contrasting textures with salty kicks, from parma ham to raw truffle to big bites of fluffy baked potato.   

The cooking is intricate and clever, but it’s also filled with fun surprises. Mid-course, we’re led from our table to a greenhouse in the restaurant’s kitchen garden, where one of the chefs crafts bubbly, wood-fired flatbreads in an effortless 60-second demonstration. These are finished with parmesan cream and verdant herb oil, then served still steaming with a crisp beer. Come on! Another dish entitled ‘the crossover’, which functions as a bridge between the savoury and sweet courses, pairs mellow sweetcorn ice cream with olive oil, miso caramel, popcorn and passion fruit in a melee of tang, salt and citrus. Sat challenges the diner constantly, like when infusing creamed rice pudding with truffle, but the execution is always spot on. Needless to say, we didn’t want the meal to end.

A considered wine pairing features bottles from some of the best winemakers across the globe, meandering from mineral-rich whites to berry-heavy reds, to sake and sweet wines. ‘We wouldn’t put a bottle on the menu that we wouldn’t want to drink ourselves’, explains Sat.  

As for the setting? The dining room feels like a countrified home, with large tables, red brick walls and uber-cosy lighting, fake candles and all. 10 courses are £199. 15 courses are £275. Sat Bains is a destination restaurant for sure, but this truly is food of the finest pedigree.  

Good to know

Average Price
££££ - Over £80
Cuisines
British, Modern European
Ambience
Fine dining, Luxury, Quiet conversation, Quirky, Unique, Widely spaced tables
Awards
SquareMeal UK Top 100, Two Michelin stars
Food Occasions
Dinner, Lunch
Alfresco And Views
Outside seating, Terrace
Special Features
Chef’s table, Vegetarian options
Perfect for
Birthdays, Celebrations, Special occasions
Food Hygiene Rating

About

Holding two Michelin stars for over a decade is no mean feat - especially in the UK where that second star is not easily earned. That feat seems even less likely when you're a fine dining restaurant placed amid electricity pylons near the Nottingham ring road, but Sat Bains had always imagined that he would earn his stars in the most unlikely of settings. Not only has Restaurant Sat Bains set the standard for fine dining in the UK for well over a decade, it has also proven to be a breeding ground for superb chefs - the likes of Gareth Ward at Ynyshir, Alex Bond at nearby Alchemilla, Niall Keating at Luna and more have passed through this kitchen over the years, going on to hold Michelin stars of their own.

Originally the Hotel de Clos, Bains relaunched the hotel as Restaurant Sat Bains in 2002 and won his first Michelin star a year later with intricate modern British tasting menus. Two decades later the set up is rather different - the restaurant boasts its own urban kitchen garden now, as well as an al fresco courtyard, lounge bar and a number of rooms for overnight stays - but the philosophy is the same - to make guests feel as though they have had a completely unique experience. 

Dishes on the tasting menu come and go, and are gradually adjusted and iterated on with the team holding regular meetings and tastings to discuss how dishes can evolve. Food at Restaurant Sat Bains is precise, intricate, and measured. Examples of dishes include ratte potato jabugo with tartare sauce and seven-year old parmesan, Cornish crab with brown butter ice cream, and BBQ monkfish with truffle, mushroom and a red wine sauce. Bains' time at iconic Les Jardin des Sens restaurant in France is also evident in dishes like veal sweetbread with pickled cucumber and lentil velouté.

Wine plays a huge part in menu development here - the wine list is equally carefully researched and constructed, and is constantly evolving to match the menu.


FAQs

Does it have a Michelin star?

Yes, it has two Michelin stars.

Helpful? 0

Does it cater for dietary requirements?

It can cater for some requirements including vegetarian, no pork , gluten or dairy free diets. Please make this known at the time of booking.

Helpful? 0

Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms is featured in

Location

Lenton Lane, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, NG7 2SA

0115 986 6566 0115 986 6566

Website

Opening Times

Dinner
Mon Closed
Tue Closed
Wed 17:00-19:30
Thu 17:00-19:30
Fri 17:00-19:30
Sat Closed
Sun Closed
All day
Mon Closed
Tue Closed
Wed Closed
Thu Closed
Fri Closed
Sat 13:00-19:45
Sun Closed

Reviews

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11 Reviews 
Food/Drink
Service
Atmosphere
Value

Chris M

27 December 2022  
Food & Drink 5
Service 5
Atmosphere 5
Value 5

Always excellent. Great service great wines fabulous food

Anon

13 May 2022  
Food & Drink 0.5
Service 0.5
Atmosphere 0.5
Value 0.5
Ripped off £500!

Very disappointed, that having been gifted approx. £500 voucher to this restaurant in 2020 during Covid restrictions for my 40th birthday, we were told point black on the phone today - tough luck your voucher has expired! My wife had tried calling in the past but wasn't able to get though and when she tried booking online they were fully booked when she wanted to book it, again tough luck on our side they say! We were not contacted by the restaurant to say that the voucher would expire. Given all the support restaurants were given during Covid; grants, furlough, eat out to help out - It is disgusting that this is how they repay their customers!

Paul A

29 July 2019  
Food & Drink 5
Service 5
Atmosphere 4.5
Value 5
Absolutely top-class

This was a revelation. The beautifully presented and imaginatively conceived dishes formed a well-balanced entity that represented the very top in British fine dining, although the mainly francophone staff were sometimes difficult to understand, and it was slightly disappointing to find that there no appetisers with our lovely English sparkler (Hattingley Valley). However, that paled into insignificance as we launched into the staggeringly good 10-course tasting menu which comes with an interesting guide to the dishes according to the five basic taste categories. The ‘introduction’ was a velouté of the universal favourite currently, lovage, with a gentle horseradish ice cream and a sourdough crisp, a striking palate prompter with a slight hint of curry. Then we were straight into a sequence of outstanding dishes with one of the best versions ever of smoked eel with its Granny Smith apple, truffle and dashi jelly and disks of radish - the first of a series of sensational mixes of tastes, textures and visuals. Wonderful veal sweetbread  in deep-fried sweet corn followed with a caramel coating, sweet wine sauce, novel broad bean leaf and sweet corn, and then poached and fried pheasant’s egg with asparagus from Cornwall and mayonnaise plus a sauce with corn and some caviar. Sounds simple, but it tasted absolutely fabulous. We were asking ourselves if this level of cuisine could possibly continue, and right on cue came a superb tender beef tartare with a surprising beetroot jelly, puffed wheat and a judicious scatter of beetroot powder to underline the umami effect. To prepare us for the main course we were served an unusual and moreish salt-baked turnip dish with striking chilled pear, capers, the best bellota iberico ham and dashi béarnaise. A choice of main course was possible, a pleasing change from the practice in some restaurants, so my wife had top of the range Scottish salmon with an intense mushroom purée, daikon, wasabi mayo and a vegetable wrap with an accompaniment of glazed pork belly, and I went for the squab which was an absolute show-stopper. Mouthwatering, tender, slightly spiced meat wonderfully contrasted with melon, a delicious cornet of minced squab, staggeringly good black pudding with feta cheese and an amazing BBQ sauce made this one of the very best dishes we’ve had all year. A clever spicy dehydrated carrot and “jammy dodger” made for a notable palate cleanser, and then the  reassuringly satisfying desserts: chocolate ganache, chocolate granita, honeycomb and shards was remarkably light for a dish with so much chocolate; coconut ice cream with a touch of mint, cherry jam and a hint of lime; and, finally, candy floss on a stick with ice cream in the middle, reminiscent of sweets popular at Nottingham’s Goose Fair. Definitely one of the best meals ever - Nottingham is definitely on our list of places to revisit.

Anon

04 May 2017  
Fantastic from check in to check out, with the best food we have ever eaten in between.

Helen L

09 June 2015  
Food & Drink 4
Service 4
Atmosphere 3.5
Value 3
Top-notch tasting menus and top-notch prices, in a seriously odd location
And the award for least starry entrance goes to… Restaurant Sat Bains. Its grim location feels more like a place to dump a body, but this industrial wasteland conceals a tranquil country house. I regretted heels as I click-clacked gracelessly across the pebbled drive and stone floors, but the welcome was warm and reassuring (despite bafflingly being listed as ‘Mr Helen’). A glass of Nyetimber in the cottage garden, alongside pet bunnies and a thriving greenhouse, kicked off the evening nicely. Much is made of the mighty duck egg that earned Bains his place on the 'Great British Menu’, so it appears regularly as an extra. Having plumped for ten epic courses, we forsook it… in favour of the optional cheese course, obvs. (Alas, a bite and a half of brie ‘rarebit’ does not merit £8pp in my mind). The somewhat obtuse menu might rub people up the wrong way. Each dish is given a flavour profile - whether it’s big on umami say, or a super-balanced palate cleanser. This either encourages deeper consideration of what you’re eating, or points towards a chef that’s as pleased with himself as his ingredients. (Having trained under the likes of Raymond Blanc, perhaps he’s entitled). We chose to savour every mouthful, and reaped the pure joy of 'textures of asparagus’ and scallops with ponzu jelly and piggy treats. Sea trout in mussel broth disintegrated temptingly in the mouth, while celeriac linguine with pesto was downright luscious. Simple ‘steak au poivre' inevitably had a twist; the umami-rich beef was prepared as tartare and nasturtium leaves delivered the peppery heat, while resembling trembling lily pads in a water garden. The plate looked magnificent, but uncooked meat is an acquired taste. I, for one, prefer my meat to be seared (at the very least), but I sense Chef Bains might shoo me off his premises for such philistine ways. Be sure to flag dietary preferences when booking for this very reason. I forgot, and while the first improvised alternative was flawless, the next offering recycled a distinctive element from another dish; after all, it’s not hard to spot horseradish ice cream in a line up. Rare moments of understated theatre changed the pace of the meal, and sweet courses (including a posh Aero with top-secret ingredient) were suitably unpredictable. Feeling comfortably stuffed, the chocolate log finally did us in; with its homemade confection and bonkers combos, white choc with bee pollen and camomile was one taste sensation too far. The damage for our boozy blowout was nearly £450, although you’d rack up more at a Michelin two-star in London. We were utterly smitten with our charming sommelier, who delivered fine wine matches and a novel sake with dessert. (He later emailed our bespoke list, which was an unsolicited but nice touch). All in all, Restaurant Sat Bains is very, very good; brimming with masterful tasting menus composed with fluidity and skill. But come prepared to sell your granny, all the time knowing it could miss the mark with non-foodies.

John O

08 September 2013  
Food & Drink 4
Service 5
Atmosphere 4
Value 1.5
Resturant Sat Baines
The least you can pay is £79 for the seven course set menu. We had the the 10, 10, 10 duck egg with the seven course tasting menu for an extra £15 and a cheap bottle of wine ( for this resturant) at £37. The food was mostly very well presented and clever in its construction, however, some parts of the dishes – the duck egg and the nettle soup – were boarding on the bland. The stand out dish was the scallop with pork belly. The service was seamless and exceptional and although the Resturant itself was well laid out it is bit small, and dare I say oppressive. To eat at this restaurant with a bottle and wine etc., would cost, at the cheapest, close to £300. This is too over priced for what is on offer. We have eaten at high end Restaurants where the food has had much more depth of flavour, the Resturant a better atmosphere and the cost half the price.

04 September 2012  
Food & Drink 5
Service 5
Atmosphere 5
Value 5
I feel I had to come and defend the bad reviews that Sat Bains has received on here (that's not to say they aren't justified), but I had an absolutely perfect stay. We had a suite for my birthday, I have given it a 10 for value for money, this is quite possibly because I didn't pay, it's an expensive evening if you stay in the room but absolutely worth it! Our room was perfect right down to the little toiletries and home baked cookies left along side the espresso machine, but of course the main event was the dinner. Once shown into the small bar area for an aperitif we were offered another course on top of our 10 course tasting menu, do not be so hasty as to say no! This extra course is simply ham, egg and peas, but won 3 perfect 10's from the judges on the great British menu and wow did it deserve it. GET that extra course, you will not regret it. The food was cooked to perfection and was incredibly difficult to pick the best course, if one tasted the best, another was better for experience or texture… I highly recommend the 10 course tasting menu, the courses (in my opinion) are better than the 7, that's not to say I would say no to it if I was offered it! The staff were polite and insightful and more than happy to give you information about how the dishes were cooked, the sommelier was helpful with our wine choice and it didn't disappoint. Apparently no wine goes onto the list unless both sommeliers like it. Best meal I have had, best experience and am incredibly sad it's over… Let's hope I get this gift again for another Birthday gift… Hint hint.

Milton C

16 August 2012  
Food & Drink 5
Service 5
Atmosphere 5
Value 4
My wife and I visited as a birthday treat and were looking for the full modern european cooking experience. We had the 7 course tasting menu with wines to match each course. We thought it was sensationally inventive cooking, full of flavour and the wines chosen by the excellent sommelier, a fantastic match. The service was good natured and very knowledgeable. Highly recommended restaurant. We stayed in one of the rooms which was to a very high standard. We had a wonderful time, and think you should go too! Breakfast is red hot. We enjoyed the French toast and crispy bacon with maple syrup, but a passing ‘full English’ looked worth a stab at as well. The yoghurt and fruit compote was pretty damned good also.

Matt B

31 October 2010  
Food & Drink 3.5
Service 0.5
Atmosphere 2
Value 0.5
Be very careful when you book into this restaurant, read the small print on the cancellation policy as there is a £360 fee. On the day we were due to go to Sat Bains my five year old son fell over and split his head open. He required stitches and the doctors advised close observation for 24 hours. I naturally called Sat Bains that afternoon and requested that my table reservation was moved to another day. They informed us that there would be a £360 cancellation fee. Despite explaining the situation they were very unsympathetic and inflexible. Unbelievably when they managed to rebook half our table allocation they still wanted to charge us the full cancellation fee. We would have hoped that a restaurant that prides itself on it's level of personal service would be more understanding of the situation. You never know when you might have to cancel last minute due to unforeseen circumstances.

Wayne R

23 July 2009  
Food & Drink 2
Service 0.5
Atmosphere 0.5
Value 0.5
The location of the place is not particularly inspiring; near an industrial estate, a motorway flyover and directly beneath two huge electricity pylons. All that was missing was the stereo-typical burnt-out car on the roadside. We arrived to what looked like a 1970's bungalow with a few extensions and a gravel drive (no cladding though). The black VW Golf parked up outside with the ‘Cheff’ registration plate made us snigger; was this Lenny Henry's 80's parody of the Chef, Gareth Blackstock??!! We parked up and entered. Mmm. Knowone around. When someone eventually appeared (Mrs Bains), we were made to feel that we were an inconvenience. we were told to sign in. We were told to be at our table for 7:30pm (our original booking). We were led to our room, just about 10 yards along the corridor. The Charles 2. Pleasant room, mock English tudor/period French. The TV didn't work well. The stand-alone bath had huge cobwebs at its base and the shower curtain was cheap and badly planned. The bed was very uncomfortable; two average mattresses on top of each other to create a traditional high four-poster effect. It didn't work. After spending circa £550 for an overnight stay (£175 for the room) I'm sure they could invest in some quality furnishings. We asked (Mrs Bains) whether it was possible to delay our sitting slightly (just around 20minutes as we had a long drive and wanted to relax a little). Her answer? A straight no! When asked why she simply said that “you must be joking” that was followed by a profanity. Charming. Even though we were now on a strict deadline, we found a little time to walk out into the tiny courtyard. It is plain to see (given Mr Bains experience at Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons) that they have attempted to duplicate this style; and failed. We made our way to the bar (at 7:25pm). We sat and ordered some drinks. The restaurant manager appeared to make a point of checking her watch and informed us that our table was booked at 7:30pm. Warm service! I don't think so. We chose the ten course tasting menu with suggested wines. When we asked the sommelier to explain a few of the courses versus wine choices we were simply given the impression that that we were being naive to even think that we could question their choices. There were frustrated looks when we made our table selection rather than the one we were led to (one that we were, told to sit at). The food. The food was generally good; the “9 hour tomato, 6 herbs, 1 Manni olive oil” was very good, a perfect blend; although the pork belly was 90% fat and the cheese course was very poor. Three of the wines were badly chosen in our opinion (and I can speak with authority as a qualified member of wset). My opinions; an attempt to spark up a little conversation and aloow the uptight staff to chill a little; were dismissed by the restaurant manager. The customer experience was poor. The following morning improved, far more relaxed; but perhaps that was due to the fact that they only had four out of five covers for breakfast!! Then came check out. Over-priced. £540 much better spent elsewhere. £15 charged for ice! thats a first; we have never experience that!! (we had a bottle of champagne in our room). We put it down to experience. The coverted Michelin star is awarded for exceptional service and food. They will struggle if they continue in this vein. look at the other reviews!! Poor service and cold welcomes are mentioned on many occasions. One to avoid. We will.
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0115 986 6566 0115 986 6566

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