Gorse restaurant serves straightforward, flavour-packed dishes in a casual, laid-back setting with the very best Welsh produce. The first restaurant by South Wales-born Tom Waters, Gorse is inspired by the surroundings and produce of his native ‘land of song’, and aims to celebrate local growers, fishermen, and farmers. Beginning first as a pop-up, Gorse occupies a 24-cover restaurant in the Pontcanna, a historic farming settlement in the suburbs of Cardiff.
Waters honed his craft at Odette under the acclaimed Welsh chef Bryn Williams and at two-Michelin-starred restaurant The Square under chef Phil Howard. Since then, Waters has spent three years at Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck, before returning home to set up his own venture.
The Gorse menu is not strictly traditional, it’s a dining experience that reflects both modernity and the regional culinary heritage, so you won't find rarebit or cawl on the menu. Fostering close relationships with local suppliers that embrace short-supply chains and seasonality, the vast majority of ingredients are sourced in Wales according to either organic or biodynamic methods. The menu also highlights the wild food of the landscape; wild game, fish, seaweeds, and coastal vegetables which have historically formed the backbone of cuisine from the region.
Aiming to eliminate waste, the lunch menu is served as four short courses, and the evening menus offer a seven- or ten-course tasting experience. Starters include Pembrokeshire oysters with horseradish, buttermilk, and lovage; salted hake with wild garlic caper sauce; and buttermilk flatbread with sea lettuce butter. Expect mains like Gower saltmarsh lamb leg with turnip and smoked new potatoes, or king oyster mushroom with spelt and green sauce. Desserts and sweet options include brown butter ice cream with carrot, lemon thyme madeleines, wormwood jelly with lemon verbena, and cannele with ‘Welsh spices’.