Skosh, York

If you are a Squidbeak regular you will know we are done with the small-plate phenomenon: tiny portions on a side plate that come out ‘as and when they are ready’. But I am willing to make an exception for Skosh when the dishes are this good.

Skosh is the brainchild of Neil Bentinck, former head chef of Van Zeller’s in Harrogate before descending on Micklegate with a hipsterish young team he rounded up from Van Zeller’s when it closed.

The name comes from the Japanese ‘sukoshi’ meaning little or small amount. It’s no one cuisine but Bentinck takes his influences from India, Japan, the Middle East, all over. You need three or four dishes each to make up a decent meal.

Prices vary from £3.80 for hen’s egg with cheddar, mushroom and PX sherry to £15.00 for miso glazed skrei cod.   The chefs are not the only hipsterish thing round here. The menu sings with modish ingredients like passion fruit and miso; kohlrabi and pakora scraps; bergamot and tarragon.

Trust me when I tell you that the wild sea trout cured in molasses and topped with cubes of marshmallow, sprinkled with peanuts and a squirt of lime, was divine. Trust me when I say that the hake with cauliflower was my best dish or that my favourite pudding was the chocolate mousse with fennel ice cream and black olive sauce. I know. Best advice: take a pin and stick it in the menu four times and see what turns up. You won’t be disappointed.  This is refined, skilled and original cooking and it leaps into our Favourites.