Tasty pre-theatre dinner at Zizzi included free garlic bread and moreish ‘nduja potatoes
There is plenty happening in Derby, the city's theatre always has a packed listing
I am no culture vulture, but I do love the theatre. When I heard a production of Sherlock Holmes: The Valley of Fear was showing at Derby Theatre, I just had to plan an evening out.
I decided to go all out and dine in the city too.
As the theatre’s location is in Derbion, we decided to park there and have a look at the restaurants in the shopping centre.
I have dined at Zizzi just a few times, but as we only had 90 minutes to find a place, dine and make the 7.30pm show, indecision flew out of the window and we found ourselves in the restaurant.
I always try and check online for any meal deals or offers, so when I spotted 25% off the food bill, I was chuffed.
As a first time user of the app, there was also a free garlic bread to sweeten the already good deal.
My Chicken Calabrese was a butterflied chicken breast marinated in punchy harissa.
I especially liked roast potatoes and the spicy ‘nduja sauce.
It was a giant dish and one whose flavour profile - chilli layered upon pepper - that I found really moreish.
My dining partner had Chicken Prosciutto Salad which he appreciated but would have liked to see warm, seasoned chicken instead of cold, breast meat.
The garlic bread was a talking point at the table which came served on a long wooden platter for maximum dramatic impact.
The texture was soft with a slight chew but what I loved about it was how spongy it was when soaking up all those delicious juices from my Calabrese dish.
We had 10 minutes to spare when we hot-footed it to Derby Theatre to watch Sherlock Holmes.
I love a good whodunnit and was looking forward to an evening of testing out my little grey cells (I know it’s a Poirot reference but it’s still a detective reference).
It was Blackeyed Theatre’s world premiere which kept us entertained for around three hours.
Under Nick Lane’s direction the cast which included Bobby Bradley as the eccentric but lovable Sherlock Holmes shone on stage.
Star turns from Blake Kubena and Joseph Derrington made the show one to watch.
I cannot wait to explore more theatre outings in Derby and will also be keeping my eyes peeled for food and drink deals in the city too.